“A TAPESTRY of a Legendary Land,” a dance film inspired by the famous landscape scroll painting “A Thousand Miles of Streams and Mountains,” is now screening in theaters across China.

The film tells the story of a cultural relic researcher who, while immersed in studying this nearly 12-meter-long scroll, travels through centuries to connect with the artist and understand how the masterpiece was created.

This painting from the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1126) is the only surviving work of prodigy court painter Wang Ximeng. It depicts a panoramic view of mountains and rivers and is celebrated as a hallmark of blue-green landscape painting, a style that uses mineral-based pigments like malachite (green) and azurite (blue) to create bold, vibrant colors.

In 2021, the theatrical dance show “A Tapestry of a Legendary Land” premiered to positive reviews. It gained widespread popularity across the country after parts of the show were staged during the 2022 Spring Festival Gala and became a hit.

The film, an adaptation of the original dance show, was produced with the same cast and creative team from the stage production. It has raked in over 40 million yuan (US$5.6 million), making it the third-highest-grossing domestic musical film on the Chinese mainland and earning an 8 out of 10 rating on the popular film platform Douban.

“Using dance to express the artistic conception of traditional Chinese painting is an excellent idea. The film achieves a harmonious blend of style and color, creating a visually stunning experience,” commented a netizen on Douban.

The directors of the film, who also helmed the dance show, expressed hope that the movie could serve as both an extension of the show and an interpretation of the painting. The film uses blue and green — the painting’s most distinct characteristics — as its basic colors, featuring no spoken dialogue to emphasize the dance performance.

According to Jing Xiaoyong, chairman of China Oriental Performing Arts Group, a co-producer of both the film and the dance show, China needs to develop its own dance films and promote dance and music productions as a means of fostering international exchange.

“From online literature to internet-based films and stage productions, art knows no boundaries,” said Jing.

(Xinhua)