Review: The Legend of Lanling by Hong Kong Dance Company – starkly spectacular, superbly performed despite some flaws
- Chinese dance blends with martial arts in Hong Kong Dance Company’s The Legend of Lanling, which tells the tale of a real-life hero of the Northern Qi dynasty
- Both sets of skills are on dazzling display in this mesmerising piece of theatre, despite a lopsided structure and some lack of contrast and variety
Hong Kong Dance Company’s new full-length production, The Legend of Lanling, continues artistic director Yang Yuntao’s quest to combine Chinese dance with martial arts.
Warrior Lanling is the sobriquet given to a real-life Chinese hero of the Northern Qi dynasty, Gao Changgong (541-573). Famed for both his heroic military exploits and his gentle nature, Lanling is said to have worn a mask on the battlefield to disguise the beauty of his face and terrify the enemy – his combination of noble character and fierce fighting skills is the very essence of the classic martial arts hero.
He met a tragic end when the emperor had him poisoned.
The choreography, by Yang with principal dancers Ong Tze Shen and Ho Ho-fei as assistant choreographers, is heavily based on martial arts and is brilliantly executed by the whole company, with both male and female dancers as warriors.