Fan Zheng'an, the sixth-generation inheritor of Mount Tai shadow puppetry, is trying to share Chinese culture with the world through this traditional Chinese performance.

 

Taishan shadow puppetry, a national intangible cultural heritage, has a history of more than 600 years. It stands out among many shadow puppetry schools for its exquisite artistic modeling, performance, and beautiful song style.

 

Fan said that unlike other regional puppet shows that involve an entire troupe, the shadow play is performed by only one person.

 

The gongs, drums, cymbals and wooden knocker are combined into a music machine that can be operated by one person. It is self-made, and people who wander backstage to have a look are often amazed by its ingenuity.

 

Fan has to date performed the show in more than 50 countries. To help more foreigners understand the show, he has translated some parts of the performance into English, and this has won praise from foreign audiences.

 

A recent tour in Germany was originally scheduled for eight performances. But organizers had to increase the number of shows to 15 due to the overwhelming response.

 

Fan has also established a shadow puppetry museum where visitors can enjoy shadow shows, experience shadow show culture and learn how to make shadow puppets.

 

Fan said that the art form could be further developed by staging more performances online so that more people can view the beauty of shadow puppetry through their phones.

 

Last year, a shadow puppet show themed on the fight against COVID-19 received more than 10 million views.

 

Officials said Shandong will be established a digital platform for intangible cultural heritages to help more people learn about Chinese intangible cultural heritages online.