As the curtain rises, the powerful drumbeats pierce the air like thunder. Under the interweaving of light and shadow, it feels as if one can hear the echoes from the ancient altars of Hongshan culture.

Recently, the large-scale original ethnic dance drama Hongshan, choreographed and produced by the Shenyang Conservatory of Music, was staged at the Liaoning Grand Theatre. Faculty and students from the conservatory used their dance movements to interpret the Hongshan culture represented by the Niuheliang site dating back over 5,000 years, leading the audience back to the Liaohe River basin of that time. Through four chapters— “Jade Breaking”, “Seeking Help”, “Praying for Rain”, and “Flood Catastrophe”—the dance drama tells the story of jade searching, jade crafting, jade completion, and state-building in Hongshan society.