Swordsmen on the wire

Bigger on the world stage that even Harry Potter’s creator JK Rowling, Louis Cha – who writes under the pen name Jin Yong – is known the world over for his wuxia or martial arts novels that have been adapted for television, film, comic books and video games. 

 

Among the 94-year-old author’s most famous titles is 1967’s “Xiao Ao Jiang Hu” (“The Smiling, Proud Wanderer”) – which loosely translates as living a carefree life in a world of strife – and was made into Tsui Hark’s movie triology under the English title of “The Swordsman” in 1990, 1992 and 1993. Thais will know it better as “Dej Kampee Thevada.

 

In 2016, the very popular novel found a different way of coming to the stage when its story was woven into a series of acrobatic moves under the English title of “The Legendary Swordsman” by Guangzhou Acrobatic Arts Theatre. It was premiered in Guangdong then travelled to Taiwan, Singapore and Macau, each time playing to packed houses and earning critical acclaim.
Now, thanks to the efforts of BEC-Tero, it is on its way to Bangkok and will be staged next month at Thunder Dome, Muang Thong Thani. 

 

“Everyone in Mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan knows this novel by heart. When we performed in Shanghai, Jin Yong came along and he was impressed by our interpretation,” says the show’s director Xu Juan, deputy general manager of the Theatre, formerly known as Guangzhou Acrobatic Troupe, during a recent press conference at CentralWorld. 

 

“All performers with Guangzhou Acrobatic Art Theatre must read this novel and try to really understand their characters.”
“Even though I was born in 1999 and am only 19, I know this novel,” adds Tang Zhe, the acrobat who plays the main character of Linghu Chong.

 

Xu Juan says the novel lent itself to an acrobatic interpretation because of the interesting lead characters. These are: Linghu Chong, a young apprentice of Mount Hua Sword School who refuses to follow the rules and likes to help others; Ren Yingying, daughter of the former leader of the Evil Party; Yue Buqun, leader of the Mount Hua Sword School who raised and trained Linghu Chong and wants to get his hands on the coveted Mallow Journal and rule the world; Ren Woxing, Yingying’s father, who was betrayed by the Invincible Orient and has been held captive for a long time; and Dongfang Bubai aka Invincible Orient – leader of the Evil Party who successfully completed the training outlined in the Mallow Journal.

 

The story starts in a world where people are fighting for power, where good tries to overcome evil and everyone is searching for the Mallow Journal, a mysterious manuscript that will render its owner invincible. Chaos arises when the manuscript reaches the hands of Invincible Orient, and he embarks on a journey to conquer the world.

 

Linghu Chong, the free-spirited apprentice of the Mount Hua Sword School, is ordered by his master Yue Buqun, to retrieve the Mallow Journal. During his mission, he encounters members of the Evil Party as well as Ren Yingying, who is a mission to find her father. The encounter triggers feelings between Linghu Chong and Ren Yingying. The good guys turn bad and the bad guys become honourable, but they all end up fighting in their quest to rule the world.

 

“This acrobatic show maintains the original story of ‘The Swordsman’ with those five main characters. It is a love story of Linghu Chong and Ren Yingying who face different obstacles and also that of good and evil. In the story, both are hunting for Dongfang Bubai so they can take back the good. It is one of the Chinese people’s favourite moral stories.
“It wasn’t easy to transfer a novel into an acrobatic production, which shows the beauty of strength and skills. The hardest part was finding the best way to attractively and elegantly perform the acrobatics in harmony with the story. I cast those performers based on the characters of the novel and their acrobatic skills. Tang Zhe was the obvious choice for Linghu Chong, as he is solemn and strong and most importantly handsome, even when he is performing on the softwire,’ says Xu Juan.

 

“It’s tough to portray the character in combination with the acrobatics. Performing acrobatics isn’t like performing with dialogue. And I’m nothing like Linghu Chong. I’m a funny guy while Linghu Chong is taciturn,” says Tang Zhe, who has been training as an acrobat for 13 years. 
“The development of acrobatics of today relies on the director’s creativity. It is blended with other performing arts such as ballet and gymnastics. China has many acrobatic troupes but the Guangzhou Acrobatic Art Theatre puts on unique and striking performances such as silk rope and softwire walking,” Xu Juan adds.

High leaps, daring moves

- “The Legendary Swordsman” is being staged at Thunder Dome, Muang Thong Thani, on October 5 to 7 and again from October 9 to 14 at 2pm and 7pm.
- Tickets cost from Bt700 to Bt1,500 at Thai Ticket Major outlets. Call (02) 262 3456 or visit www.ThaiTicketMajor.com.