Inheritor dances in dedication to preserving precious culture

Lu Lihua, a provincial-level inheritor of the national intangible cultural heritage "dage", a kind of Yi ethnic folk song and dance, and a deputy to the 14th National People's Congress from Southwest China's Yunnan province, has dedicated 14 years to the preservation and promotion of ethnic culture and rural vitalization.

Born in 1987 in Fengxian village, Nanjian Yi autonomous county in Dali Bai autonomous prefecture, Lu is a member of the Yi ethnic group. Growing up in this area known for its abundance of Yi ethnic culture, she learned a lot of traditional folk songs and dances from the elders during her childhood.

In 2011, Lu quit her job as an actress of ethnic song and dance in Kunming, capital of Yunnan, and returned to Nanjian to join the local tiaocai art troupe, dedicating herself to the preservation and promotion of intangible cultural heritage and grassroots cultural work.

Through her tireless efforts, Nanjian, known as the birthplace of two Yi ethnic cultural practices — dage and tiaocai — now thrives with over 300 folk dance troupes and more than 2,000 performers.

Dage is a traditional form of recreation where people form a circle around a fire and dance and sing in a rhythmic manner. Tiaocai is a food-serving style that combines dance, music, acrobatics and dining traditions. Both art forms were designated as national intangible cultural heritage projects in 2008.

"Both the dage and tiaocai customs serve to bolster social cohesion and foster communication and integration among communities," Lu said.

In 2023, she was elected as an NPC deputy. Since then, about half of the 11 proposals she has proposed focus on ethnic cultural protection and rural vitalization.