Er ren zhuan
Two-people Rotation (Chinese: 二人转; pinyin: Èrrénzhuàn) is a genre of local folk dance and song from Northeast China. It usually involves two performers, one male and one female. They sing and dance, using folded fans or square-shaped red handkerchiefs, which are twirled along as the songs are performed, during the dancing portion. It is very popular due to its humorous dialogue and sketches, which have eclipsed the old dances and songs.
In earlier times, the Er ren zhuan has been both criticized ad loved due to its “vulgarity,” which involves profanities and sex. This also led to the reforming works of Zhao Benshan, who make the genre more appealing to the modern crowd by making it “greener." Er ren zhuan is now becoming better known in the rest of China, because many er ren zhuan performers perform on television and act in TV serials; Zhao Benshan is one of the most famous examples.
Popular routines include "Fowling", "Selling Thread", "Reward for Detective Dee's Deeds", "Ancient City", "Blue Bridge Tryst", "Romance of the West Chamber", "At Ba Bridge", "Shuangsuo Mountain", "Huarong Pass", "Palace", "Baohao", "Pandao", "Chanyu Temple" and "Spring Trip of Miss Yang the Eighth".
After the foundation of the People's Republic of China, the government cared for and supported the prosperous development of er ren zhuan, organizing training courses for both old artists and new learners. It invites old artists to pass on their art to the new learners, and organizes performers of er ren zhuan to watch each other perform and learn from one another, which leads to more improvements of the art form.