Festival returns Yi culture to its origins

Many performers brought songs that have been passed down from generation to generation and learned to sing in various dialects and styles, yet all featuring an unadorned raw power.

With a minimalistic monochrome setting, the performers sing folk songs in their dialects without any accompaniment and perform dances derived and choreographed from traditional ritual movements.

Performer Wu Zimo says that in rehearsing and performing the dances, she feels she is returning to her true nature.

"The director and producer guided us in finding inner peace, encouraging us to examine and rediscover ourselves under the dim lights, undisturbed by external distractions," Wu says.

To her, through dance moves distilled from ancient farming and ritual practices, the production is relative to the Yi group's philosophy on life and death.

"While we're often taught how to live, we are seldom taught how to face death. In Yi culture, both life and death hold significance. We try to live with splendor and when someone passes, we hold grand funeral ceremonies because we see death as the start of a new life," Wu adds.