Circus festival keeps pace with the times

Since its birth in 1987, China Wuqiao International Circus Festival has gathered over 30,000 acrobats from more than 60 countries and regions to stage wonderful performances.

The latest edition, which started on Sept 28 and concluded on Oct 8, again proved that this ancient art form continues to thrive through innovation and dialogue.

That evolution resonates powerfully with Chinese artists like Zhao Wenquan from the Hebei Acrobatic Troupe, who started to learn acrobatic skills when he was 9 years old.

At 31, Zhao returned to Wuqiao — which is considered to be the birthplace of Chinese acrobatics — this year. His first time was for the 17th edition.

The difference, he said, was night and day.

"Years ago, Wuqiao struggled to host its own festival. It lacked venues and nice hotels," Zhao said.

This time, he performed with his team members in the magnificent new Oriental Acrobatics Center, showcasing a lion dance performance titled Auspicious Lions Leap Across the Land, an act which won the Golden Lion Award, the highest award for the festival.

According to Zhao, this year's performance was an evolved version of the Golden Lion Award-winning Lion Dance from the first China Wuqiao International Circus Festival.

The act itself is a metaphor for innovation — blending a heartfelt narrative of lion parents raising their cubs with daring new stunts, and merging the distinct styles of southern and northern Chinese lion dances.

"We brought the lions home," Zhao said, with a note of pride in his voice.

The festival also provides a platform for the next generation, whose dedication ensures the art's future.

Liu Aojie, a 17-year-old from Shandong Acrobatic Troupe, brought a performance titled Yi to Wuqiao for the first time.

Her act, a dynamic display of traditional drum pedaling fused with aerial twists and complex partner work, demands extreme physical precision.

"We've practiced this for over three years, for over a hundred times, but we still review videos after every rehearsal to tweak the smallest details," Liu said.

For young performers like Liu, cuts and bruises are part of daily life, forging a resilience that belies their age.

"When you hear the audience roar with applause, every bit of pain is worth it," she said. "That is like my fuel. It makes me want to push my limits even further."

With 28 programs from 19 countries and regions, the 20th festival was a vibrant gathering of global talent, living up to its reputation as one of the world's top three circus competitions.

For visitors such as Meng Meining from Hengshui city in Hebei, who attended the festival with her child, the experience was unforgettable.

"It was stunning. Seeing 20 lions move as one in the lion dance performance was incredible," she said, adding that this is the place to truly experience acrobatics.

As Jasmine Straga looks forward to her next trip, and as Zhao Wenquan and Liu Aojie get back to their training, the legacy of the Wuqiao festival continues.

Performers said that it's a legacy built not just on "daring, risk, wonder, and mastery", but also on personal stories of connection, growth, and a shared passion that leaps over generations and borders, ensuring the show will go on for generations to come.

Fu Xinchun contributed to this story.

zhangyu1@chinadaily.com.cn