In #Liaoning, Kano has witnessed the prosperity and development of high art. Each of her performance on the toe tells the story of Liaoning, presenting a China that is credible, appealing and respectable.
Swan Lake, a classical ballet, will be staged in Shengyang, Liaoning Province. An actress with white feathers and white dance skirt is dancing on tiptoe at the side curtain of the stage of Liaoning Grand Theater. She will turn into a “white swan” on the stage ten minutes later.
Her name is Kano Miyuki, a Japanese actress from Liaoning Ballet. During the 12 years of studying and working here, Kano has performed in major theaters along with Liaoning Ballet and witnessed the transformation of Liaoning Ballet from an old site near Beiling Park to a new one in Hunnan District. With the continuous improvement of hardware facilities such as the rehearsal ground of the ballet, she has also improved her skills. “The number of rehearsal halls of Liaoning Ballet has increased five times compared with 10 years ago. Each rehearsal hall is spacious, bright and modern. After moving to the new site, we have a studio theater.” When it comes to current working environment, Kano is totally impressed.
The better environment of rehearsal is, the more incredible operas the Liaoning Ballet performs. When Kano just joined the Ballet, she took part in the western ballet operas such as the Nutcracker. In recent years, Liaoning Ballet plays an increasingly important role in the global arena and begins to strengthen their cooperation with many countries. For example, the actors can not only play the different kinds of ballets of Russia and Denmark, but also launch original ballets such as Hua Mulan, Eight Women Throwing into the River, and Iron Man, telling Chinese stories with ballet.
With the expansion of the performance market and the improvement of the audience’s taste, there is a larger stage for high art. Kano feels that the art appreciation level of Shenyang citizens has been improved over the years. Ten years ago, ballet art was still “caviar to the general” among the audience, but now it is often hard to get a ticket. Even audiences come from other cities and other provinces to Shenyang just for watching performances. “Some tickets are sold out once on sale. I often saw the audience anxiously waiting for the tickets returned, and leaving with regrets until the performance started.” Kano said.
As both an actress and an audience, she often goes to Liaoning Grand Theater and Shengjing Grand Theater to enjoy high art in her spare time. Sitting at the audience seat, she often hears the heated discussion among audience. “In Liaoning, an increasing number of people begin to appreciate high art. In light of their consumption and appreciation, I am confident in the future market of high art in Liaoning.” Kano said.
The continuous popularization has also cultivated a large number of potential high art lovers. In Liaoning, not only the ballet market for children and teenagers is thriving, but also adults are keen on art training to improve their artistic ability. In a ballet training center in the south of Shenyang, actors of Liaoning Ballet often come here to teach basic training courses to students in their spare time. Although they are amateurs, they have already had the ability to stand on their toes like professional actors when they dance, showing natural elegance in their gestures.
In Liaoning, Kano has witnessed the prosperity and development of high art. Each of her performance on the toe tells the story of Liaoning, presenting a China that is credible, appealing and respectable.
