| The sword dance was a dance with sword as the props. It appeared very early. It used to be a dance performed in the ceremony of worshiping Gods in the country of Chu.Later it was turned into a dance of the army, with both the movements of combat and recreational performance. The sword dance was quite popular in the army of Han Dynasty. Following the rise of the different operas, the practicality of using sword dance movements in combat was weakened and the performing practice was improved. There even appeared an acrobatic sword dance. In Tang Dynasty, in the wake of the popularity of Hu music in China, a sword dance characterized by the skill of wushu and acrobatics developed quickly. And matched with the music, it formed a routine of music performance. With the further rich forms of sword dance, its content changed from solo dance to group dance and evolved from fencing show to acting out stories. Thus a style of sword dance, which was similar to the later stage performance, gradually came into being. |
