When it comes to opera, you might think of Beijing opera. But have you ever heard of Qinqiang opera?
Qinqiang opera is one of the (1) (old) forms of opera in China. It started from the ancient folk songs and dances of the people in Shaanxi and Gansu. According to some records, the local opera dates back to the Qin Dynasty, and it is of great (2) (history) interest.
Hou Yan is the president of Qinqiang Theatre of the Ningxia Performing Arts Group. She started learning Qinqiang opera at 4. Training in the basic skills of Qinqiang opera is very challenging. In 1985, Hou studied at an art school where teachers were very strict with students. While training, each basic move had to be held quite (3) (correct) for half an hour and a single mistake could mean she had to start all over again. Leg stretching(伸展), waist bending and somersaults(空翻) were just some of Hou's (4) (day) training. Her hard work (5) (final) paid off.
Hou became a performer with a troupe(剧团) in Yinchuan at 16. But in 1993, the sweeping trend(趋势) of pop and (6) (west) music hit Qinqiang opera hard. The troupe was closed and Hou had no choice but to leave the opera stage.
In the past decades, China has made great efforts to develop its (7) (tradition) culture. Local governments have thought of many ways to encourage people to pay more attention to our traditional culture. (8) (lucky), Hou had the chance to return to the stage in 2000 and put her heart into the opera form again.
Now, Hou's team gives hundreds of performances every year. The performers are all (9) (energy) and lively. They usually work together in an active and (10) (cheer) way. "As we become more confident about our culture, more young people feel proud of our traditional culture and consider it as a fashionable trend," said Hou.