A Ming-dynasty aesthetic feast: Dance drama Tiangong Kaiwu arrives in Guangzhou this Dragon Boat Festival

BY :SilkRoadPost

UPDATED :2026-06-16

Still wondering how to spend this year's Dragon Boat Festival? Why not come to Guangzhou for a spectacular performance! Tiangong Kaiwu (《天工开物》) — hailed as "Encyclopedia of Crafts in 17th Century China" — once confined to the pages of history textbooks, is now set to captivate Guangzhou audiences as a dance drama.

The dance drama follows the legendary life of Song Yingxing, a renowned scientist of the Ming Dynasty. With chapters such as "Pursuing the Imperial Examination (赶考)", "The Grand Examination (大考)", "Compiling the Book (著书)", and "Rivers and Mountains (山河)" as threads, the drama recreates the wisdom and ingenuity of ancient Chinese laborers.

During its creation, the dance drama drew extensively from historical materials. Through research into Ming Dynasty architecture, furniture, artifacts, paintings, and costumes, the creative team distilled the aesthetic characteristics of "grandeur, ingenuity, and simplicity". It presents the understated elegance of Chinese aesthetics through the beauty of music, costumes, dance, physicality, imagery, stagecraft, and technology.

Helmed by the acclaimed director Lu Chuan, the dance drama revives a centuries-old scientific classic, offering audiences a spectacular feast of Ming-dynasty aesthetics.