The future looked bleak for Yunis， a wealthy Persian trader lost in a swirling dust storm in the middle of the Gobi Desert， until the beautiful Yingniang and her father Zhang Shenbi， a painter， came to the rescue. It was act one in a tale of the triumph of good over evil and international friendship—and the New York audience at Lincoln Center was completely enthralled.

Silk Road， a classic Chinese dance drama celebrating the desert city of Dunhuang， in Gansu Province， made its New York debut on February 27. Delighting audiences with dazzling， colorful costumes， a large cast of 60 dancers and stunning choreography， Silk Road takes an“academic approach” to spreading the artistic culture and historical traditions of west China， say organizers.

Silk Road is more than a story： It’s a living history of Dunhuang and the grottos that have since become a UNESCO heritage site. The tale follows the maiden Yingniang， who is captured by bandits and rescued by Yunis. After reuniting with her father Zhang， she inspires his paintings in the grottos of Dunhuang with a dance and by playing a lute （called the pipa） behind her head. Yingniang and Yunis flee to Persia to escape the city’s evil mayor， and Zhang is forced to paint the famous frescos of the Dunhuang grottos until his death. In a triumphant conclusion， the governor punishes the corrupt mayor and celebrates international cooperation with guests from the various nations along the Silk Road trading route.

Under the direction of Lu Jinlong， President of the Gansu Dance Theater， Silk Road is a visual feast. The top stage， lighting and costume designers of China have come together to present the classic tale in a new way. The paintings of the Dunhuang caves seem to come to life on stage， transporting the audience into the past to the height of the Silk Road trade.

“After years of research on the magnificent Dunhuang frescoes， we created a new category of dance， which is called ‘Dunhuang Dance.’ It merges Chinese classic dance and modern foreign dance， and is based on all kinds of different gestures in the frescoes. In a sense， Dunhuang Dance is one of the most important parts of academic research about Dunhuang，” said Lu.

The cast also took an academic approach to their roles and became cultural ambassadors. An Ning， who played painter Zhang， masterfully conveyed the emotion of a father losing his beloved daughter and joyful reunion with gravity-defying leaps and flips. To prepare for his role， An said he spent many hours sitting in the grottos absorbing the stories depicted in the colorful frescos.

“I spent a lot of time doing research on Dunhuang and watching the frescos to understand the spirit of Dunhuang arts，” he said.

The lithe and graceful Chen Chen， who played the maiden Yingniang， said she also hoped to educate as well as entertain American audiences.

“I’m very excited and hope I can perform perfectly on the stage， in order to help the American audience better understand our Asian art，” she said.

The troupe’s mission to research， create and perform the traditional music and dance of Dunhuang culture was appreciated by audience members like Jo Johnson， an expert on tea and author of two children’s books on how tea connects world cultures.

“My thing is tea， and tea was a big part of the Silk Road trade，” Johnson said. “So， I came because of that but I’ve learned a lot about the culture.”

Johnson said the colorful costumes and set design were stunning and she was inspired by the presentation along with her daughter/coauthor Joya Powell.

“I really liked the dust storm，” Johnson said of the first act. “It was done so nicely. I like that the dancers were swirling around and the main character （Yunis） rolled and fell and followed the choreography of the other dancers.”

Though Johnson has not yet traveled to China and knew nothing about Dunhuang history and culture， she said she was able to learn and be inspired by the performance.

“It was truly wonderful，” she said.

Cultural diplomacy

HoFbq+pRAABlYM+7pfsLDA==The performance of Silk Road is part of an ongoing relationship between Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater and the China Arts & Entertainment Group （CAEG）. The cooperation was launched with a performance of The Peony Pavilion in 2012 and is expected to bring classic Chinese dance performances to New York annually. Wang Xiuqin， Deputy Director of CAEG， said the story of international friendship presented in Silk Road is the perfect bridge for cultural exchange between the United States and China.

“It’s a very special show，” Wang said. “And for the U.S. market we invited some talented dancers from other parts of China like Beijing and Shanghai， so it really brings a cast from across the country.”

The background of Dunhuang culture “may be something new” for U.S. audiences， Wang said， and of interest to the New York market in particular. The Metropolitan Museum of Art has some Dunhuang paintings in its collection already， he noted.

“The New York market is the best in the world because it welcomes all kids of cultures，”Wang said. “Our dance drama has a universal theme. It’s about love. Not only love between a man and a woman but also the Chinese and Persian friendship. That kind of theme is universal and can be understood by everyone.”

The unique culture of the Silk Road may be especially poignant for today’s globalized world， Wang continued. Now， more than ever， the Silk Road story of international cooperation is a message of peace and mutual prosperity for the entire world.

After New York， the show will move on to Boston and continue its U.S. tour. In addition to sharing Chinese culture with the United States， the cast is learning about American culture as well.

“Most of the dancers have never been to New York. It’s their first time so they are very excited. They are amazed by the city and are doing a lot of shopping，” Wang joked. “A type of cultural exchange.”

CAEG will be back with another traditional dance drama in March 2014 for the New York market， he said， building on the relationship with Lincoln Center. Since its founding in 2004， CAEG has arranged 400 overseas performances and exhibitions， and presented more than 15，000 performances in nearly 60 countries before audiences of more than 20 million people. The group is the main official channel for cultural exchanges and has a mission of reviving Chinese culture and promoting it to the world.

（All photos by CAEG）

The Story of Silk Road

At the height of the Tang Dynasty （618-907）， a golden age dawned in China. The empire grew rich， arts and culture flourished and a trading route known as the Silk Road became an economic superhighway. A major rest stop along the route was a desert town in Gansu Province called Dunhuang. There， travelers from India， Tibet， Persia and Europe loaded up with water and supplies to continue their trek across the Gobi desert.

Over 1，000 years later， the multicultural history of Dunhuang remains alive in the UNESCO World Heritage Site there called the Mogao Caves. Thousands of frescos and religious sculptures awe visitors with depictions of dance， song and motifs of Chinese， Central Asian and Indian origin. One image in particular has become the patron saint of the city—a beautiful goddess playing a lute called pipa behind her head as she flies to heaven.

The story of the talented goddess was memorialized in a 1979 dance drama called Silk Road. Just as Chinese traders once spread Gansu culture via camel caravans to the north， the Silk Road story of international friendship has now spread via jumbo jet around the world. A movie version came out in 1982， and the dance was performed in more than 20 countries and regions by the year 2000. In 2009， the drama was modernized and shortened for international audiences but the core story remains—the tale of Yingniang， a beautiful， pipa-proficient daughter of a Dunhuang fresco painter who is kidnapped by bandits and rescued by a wealthy Persian trader.

Silk Road has won numerous international awards， including first-class prize for creation and performance by the Ministry of Culture， Top Chinese Dance Drama by the Shanghai Great World Guinness， and the Award for Arts Contribution of Excellent Repertoire.

Since its premiere， Silk Road has been performed more than 1，990 times for more than 4 million people. It was performed in December 2011 in Washington D.C. In February the drama made its New York debut， delighting audiences with four shows at the famed Lincoln Center.