Er ren zhuan

The tradition & historical record

Errenzhuan (simplified Chinese: 二人转; traditional Chinese: 二人轉; pinyin: Èrrénzhuàn, lit. "two-people rotation") is a genre of musical theater and folk dance from Northeast China, usually involving two performers (one male and one female). The dance uses folding fans or square-shaped red handkerchiefs, which are twirled as the songs are performed. It is popular due to its comedic dialogue and sketches, which have obfuscated the old dances and songs. Errenzhuan was previously called a "double play". It may consist of half-class opera, small yangko, fengliu, Spring Song, double side songs, bouncing, or Northeastern local opera written by the people of Northeast China. This form of performance emerged at the beginning of the 21st century as a folk art of Northeast China. Errenzhuan means 'two people' (erren) 'telling stories through performing different roles' (zhuan). Errenzhuan is one of the particular forms of Chinese walking-singing, which was famous in many northern Chinese provinces, such as Liaoning, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Inner Mongolia, and northeast Hebei. It is also referred to by the locals as the "Northeast-featured Errenzhuan", and has more than 300 years of history since its creation. Years of development have cultivated a variety of performances, divided into four factions: Eastern School, Western School, Southern School, and Northern School. Each faction has its own unique characteristics.

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Er ren zhuan is music genre and type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition. ¹

The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation. ¹