A place of tea and tradition

Ancient traditions of Northeast China are being preserved in a teahouse tucked away in an alley in Changchun, the capital of Jilin province.

Juyuequ Teahouse - juyuequ roughly translates as "a trove of music" - is a gathering place for older folk artists in the town who want to pass on their art to the younger generation.

Each day it presents performances of local traditions such as cross-talk - comic dialogues - and northeast drums.

"It's been happening for nearly 50 years," says Zhao Baohua, 57, who took over the business from his father. "The teahouse has now a troupe of more than 40 people, with ages ranging from 20s to 80s."

Tickets for each performance cost 5 yuan (76 cents; 0.64 euro; 57 pence), which includes freely flowing tea.

"The frequent customers are mostly senior people. They are willing to stay for a whole day," Zhao adds.

The teahouse was established by Zhao's father in the 1970s.

"At that time, the place was swarming with people and the applause and cheers could be heard throughout the neighborhood," he says.

The teahouse is no longer flourishing, and Zhao worries about who will carry on the folk art traditions.

lijing2009@chinadaily.com.cn

Northeast drum, a story-telling regional folk art, has characteristics of Peking Opera, Peking drum and folk music from the Northeast region of China. Here 46-year-old Li Jing, from a village near Changchun, takes the stage. She spent three years learning the art. Photos by Bai Shi / For China Daily

(China Daily Africa Weekly 08/04/2017 page4)