Photo: Courtesy of Beijing Tianqiao Theater

The Chinese national anthem was one of the most frequently heard pieces of music at the Paris Olympics, when the Chinese national team won 40 gold medals. This means that the national anthem, “March of the Volunteers,” was played 40 times.

A dance drama performed at Beijing’s Tianqiao Theater on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings tells more about the creation of the anthem, with lyrics by poet Tian Han and music by Nie Er, and honors those who fought on the front lines against Japanese aggression in northeast China during World War II.

“It takes us back to the time when the anthem was created,” Yang Xia, artistic director of the dance drama Ode to Hot-Blooded Youth, told the Global Times on Tuesday. “Every time we hear it, we feel the power and inspiration, especially when it was played during the Paris Olympics.”

In the 1930s, Tian, ​​a passionate playwright, met like-minded people An E and Nie Er in Shanghai. Against this creative backdrop, “Ode to Hot-Blooded Youth” tells the story of these three passionate young people who used their talents and passion to advocate for the working people, call on people to fight against Japan’s invasion and promote national renewal in a turbulent time.

She wrote the March of the Volunteers, a song like the thunder of spring that awakens “us who refuse to be slaves” to “roar in defiance” and inspires countless hearts to fight for freedom, independence and liberation.

Although this is not dancer Zhang Zihao’s debut as Tian, ​​he says it is “a new and touching experience” every time he takes on the role.

“I have played Tian in nearly 60 performances so far,” Zhang told the Global Times before Tuesday night’s performance. “Every time, I try my best to win the audience’s recognition because of my sense of mission.”

Tian, ​​​​a young man from a simple farming family in Changsha, central China’s Hunan Province, left the countryside and tried with passion and talent to realize his dream.

“Young people like Tian belonged to the generation after 1980 and 1990,” Yang added. “Their simple but great patriotic spirit was a role model for today’s youth. That was the original reason why we started the dance drama.”

The national anthem is a spiritual symbol of a country and the heroic story behind its creation is a spiritual force that inspires the Chinese people.

It is a real challenge to interpret the anthem with a dance drama because only body language can be used. “But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. The limitations of body language have led us to make breakthroughs and create innovations,” show director Ma Bo told the Global Times.

Confident in the great theme, a group of young people joined the cast and worked together with enthusiasm and creativity to perfect every detail of the show.

From the post-1980 chief director to the post-1990 executive director to the post-millennium dancers, young people have brought youthful vitality to the show.

In Yang’s eyes, “Ode to Hot-Blooded Youth” is not only a dance drama, but also a youth dialogue that travels through time and space. “We hope that we can present to every viewer the youthful passion of this era and the deep feelings for our motherland that span 100 years in dialogue with our ancestors,” Yang said.

The growing up and awakening of Tian, ​​​​Nie and An could “resonate with modern young audiences because the drama puts young people at the center.”

In the artistic world of “Ode to Hot-Blooded Youth”, the theme of the national anthem is its soul, and artistic means such as music, set design and costumes demonstrate the passion and perseverance of the creative team in pursuing art.

To portray the distinctive personality of this Changsha native, the team incorporated musical elements such as Hunan Opera and Changsha Tanci. The audience can not only feel the “spice of Hunan” through the music, but also Shanghai’s unique local culture.

Three mini-stories about the three young people drive the development of the story and enrich the portrayal of their life experiences.

In 1930, Tian adapted and created a drama of the same name based on the French novel Carmen. In 1934, Nie and Tian co-created China’s first new opera, Storm over the Yangtze. In 1935, Tian worked as a screenwriter on the film Children of Troubled Times.

As the theme song of the film, the original song gave great courage to Chinese soldiers and civilians during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931–1945).

It was declared the national anthem in 1949 and broadcast around the world when Chairman Mao Zedong announced the founding of the People’s Republic of China on October 1, 1949. The national anthem was revised in 1978. “The March of the Volunteers” was declared the national anthem again in 1982.