Innovation of “Money Drum Dance” in the context of the new era

The times are developing rapidly, and the dance should also keep pace with the development of the times and constantly explore new ideas, and traditional culture should be adapted to the rhythm and aesthetics of modern life on the basis of protection and inheritance if it is to be understood and loved by more people. As one of the representatives of many Lingnan non-heritage dances, "Money Drum Dance" has rich folk connotations and strong ethnic flavour, and has well preserved the original traditional dance style, both in terms of content form and artistic aesthetics. But in the context of the new era, I think we can explore some new innovations in the performance style of Money Drum Dance.

The following dance piece, which I participated in performing and choreographing during my university years, uses the "money drum" as the main prop, breaking the original traditional performance style of the Money Drum Dance. The fusion of Chinese folk dance props with the rhythm of Chinese classical dance, together with the creative inspiration of the black and white game of Go, is a bold attempt and innovation.

This work is called "Yi Si", which is mainly based on the creation of Chinese traditional culture Go, and cleverly uses "money drums" as the black and white pieces in Go, and with the help of the artistic expression of money drums, it graphically demonstrates the connotation of the competitive culture of Go. On the one hand, under the flowing artistic expression of the dance, the dancers wear black and white dresses and hold the drums in their hands, which is compared to the black and white game of Go. The music of the whole dance is combined with classical elements, and in the smooth and progressive rhythm, it not only shows the beauty of the stage flow, but also embodies the attitude of "playing against the game" of Weiqi. On the other hand, most of the dance characteristics of the Money Drum Dance are accompanied by drums. In this dance, the choreographer has integrated the original movement dynamics of the Money Drum Dance into the image of black and white chess pieces. In the change of movement in the stage space, it also adds the traditional beauty of the "money drum" technology such as turning drums, flipping drums, throwing drums, etc., which makes the artistic characteristics of the dance more and more intense.

Money Drum Dance not only has a long history, but also inherits a colourful folk culture, and its traditional performance form and fixed content presentation still retains a relatively simple and innocent side compared to the prevailing culture in today's society. In the dance "Yi Si", the vitality and natural quality of the non-heritage dance "Money Drum Dance" are inherited, but also innovatively adapted. The movement not only retains some of the traditional technical movements of the Money Drum Dance, but also adds the elements of the black and white game of Weiqi as a reflection, the whole dance not only retains the traditional characteristics but also does not lose its novelty. This kind of difference from the previous performance style of Money Drum Dance will bring the audience a new visual impact, which is refreshing and will make more people interested in Money Drum Dance.