Sounds of Yunnan rocks Beijing

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The dance drama "Sounds of Yunnan" premiered at Beijing's Poly Theatre on Thursday night. After the large-scale landscape show "Impression Yunnan", this new production, directed by famous Chinese dancer Yang Liping, is the second to feature the mysterious charm of Southwest China's Yunnan province.

The dance drama "Sounds of Yunnan" premiered at Beijing's Poly Theatre on Thursday night.

As its name suggests, the show is all about the sounds in the land of mystery. In this scene, performers strike earthen bowls and drums, creating a mixture of sounds that herald the birth of a new life. The whole village drums up support for a pregnant women giving birth.

Everything becomes a percussion instrument. The actors use drums, gongs, and even dustpans to mimic the sounds of wind, thunder, and rain in a celebration of the new-born babe.

The sounds of nature are given further artistic expression in the later part of show. An ample supply of local musical instruments were used to achieved a mixture of sounds, sometimes fast and furious, sometimes slow and gentle.