Chu dance is a dance art form born in the development of Chu culture. Due to the cultural integration, Chu dance also spread from Chu to the Central Plains. Gradually formed a dance form of "long sleeves and thin waist".

People who are good at dancing with long sleeves dance more gracefully-if they rely on something, they will be more likely to succeed.

"Good at dancing with long sleeves" is a typical expression of Chu dance's elegance and romance. In the article "On the Relationship between Water and Chu Dance", Liu put forward the dance form of "rippling water waves" according to the unearthed data, and inferred that Chu dance has the characteristics of long sleeves. The characteristics of long sleeves are conducive to expressing romantic and elegant dance vocabulary, which has an important relationship with the formation environment of Chu dance.

Chu is adjacent to the Yangtze River, and there are many mountains and rivers in the jungle. This natural environment makes the Chu people romantic, and the uncertain factors in nature increase the mystery of the Chu people. This mystery and romance were expressed in the form of art, and this elegant art form was widely accepted and prevailed in the Han Dynasty.

Yi Fu of the Eastern Han Dynasty also mentioned in his dance fu that "the snake is weak and erratic" and wrote the mystery of the dance form. The dance seemed to imitate the sparkling water waves and set off the charming romance of the dance with the ripples of the water waves. "Body like Youlong, sleeves like plain sleeves" is a dance form that needs long sleeves to express its elegant and romantic feeling.

It can be seen that the style characteristics of Chu dance are in line with the aesthetic needs of the Han Dynasty. However, the Chu dance style with long sleeves and good dancing made a new leap in the Han Dynasty. If the Chu dance in the pre-Qin period had feminine beauty, it added masculine beauty in the Han Dynasty. Chu dance was performed by women in the pre-Qin period, but in the Han Dynasty, with the participation of men, the original style was changed, with both elegant beauty and masculinity.

This combination makes dance more secular, which is welcomed not only by the court, but also by the people. This leap in style has given Chu dance a wider audience and higher artistic value.

Roll one's sleeves and bend one's back

"Waist" and "sleeve" are the main elements of the dance form of Chu dance, which are related to the artistic effect of Chu dance, especially "waist", which is the hub of human movement and plays an absolute role in dance movements. "Han Feizi Two Handles" records Chu's aesthetic view of waist: "King Chu Ling loves thin waist, and there are many hungry people in the country". In ancient times, the people had absolute admiration for the son of heaven, and the preferences of kings influenced the preferences of Chinese people.

King Chu Ling loves women's slim waist, but in order to meet the aesthetic requirements of King Chu Ling and meet the aesthetic needs of King Chu Ling, junior high school women go on a diet by hook or by crook to achieve the goal of slim waist. This aesthetic demand is naturally reflected in art, and ancient dance art mostly serves the upper class. Therefore, a thin waist is a basic requirement for dancers.

A painted figure lacquerware was unearthed from the Chu Tomb of the Warring States Period unearthed in Huangtuling, Changsha. The lacquerware is painted with 1 1 dancers, all with long sleeves and thin waist. The dance form of "thin waist, thin neck and long face" is also recorded in the Great Tactics of Chu Ci.

Under this aesthetic demand, the sleeve waist needs to give full play to its own advantages and aesthetic feeling in dance creation, so the dance form of "stretching sleeves and bending over" came into being.

This dance form not only embodies the unique charm of thin waist, but also shows the elegant feeling of sleeves. The twisting of the body strengthens the difficulty of the movement and enhances the visual beauty of the dance. This dance form and aesthetics continued until the Han Dynasty. "Miscellanies of Xijing" recorded the Chu dance of "Long Sleeves Bend" by the favorite concubine of Emperor Gaozu.

The dance form of Chu dance

The main action of the sleeve. Sleeves are mainly long sleeves, which are both costumes and dance props. The main actions are sleeve lifting, sleeve swinging, sleeve lifting and sleeve dragging.

The following is a description of the sleeve action:

Sleeve dragging is an action that depends on the whole body. The lower limbs, waist and buttocks cooperate with the upper limbs, and the upper limbs drive the long sleeves, which embodies the calm atmosphere of the dance and highlights its heavy feeling.

As one of the main technical movements in Chu dance, Yang Sleeve is the basic dance of Yang Sleeve. When dancing, the elbow exerts force and extends to the fingertips through the wrist, so that the long sleeves can be thrown the farthest distance and show elegance.

Sleeve swinging, the dancer throws the long sleeves to her sides with her big arms. Long sleeves drive wrist strength through elbows, making them linear, which enhances the sense of flow while stretching arms.

Sleeve lifting, sleeve lifting is mainly a dance movement on the wrist. The arm and forearm exert force to drive the palm, making the long sleeves swing in a small range. The biggest difference between lifting sleeves and lifting sleeves lies in whether the big arm exerts force.

The main movement of the waist. The main feature of waist movement in Chu dance is bending, and Chu people's love for thin waist is vividly reflected in Chu dance. In the Han Dynasty, this aesthetic style was continued, and this aesthetic tendency was fully applied to dance forms, so there was a saying that "the waist is thin and the palm is light".

The following is a description of the sleeve action:

Twist your waist out of your crotch. When dancing, the dancer lifts one leg and drives the whole body with the strength of the waist, and the upper body leans to one side. When the action is still, the crotch is formed.

Tilt forward and push out the crotch at the same time. This style is particularly graceful. The dancer leaned forward before leaning. When the body loses weight, the dancer moves forward with the tilt direction and raises her arms to keep her balance. In this fast-moving movement, the dancer's long sleeves are like willow branches fluttering in the wind, elegant and mysterious, very beautiful.

When dancing, the dancer shakes his long sleeves, showing a posture in which the sleeves are upturned, his waist is folded down and his head is twisted back. This is a typical posture of stretching your sleeves and bending over. When moving, the dance is beautiful and moving, showing the femininity and romance of women to the fullest.

Tilt forward and backward. When dancing, the dancer leans down, looks at one side of her body and waves long sleeves at the same time. When leaning back, dancers are required to retreat and lean back at the same time. This action requires the dancer to be flexible, agile and have high control over the waist.