3/1/2017, Aspen, CO. – On a cold and snowy night at The Wheeler Opera house, residents of the Roaring Fork valley gathered to witness the legendary supreme masters of martial arts. Shaolin Kung Fu is one of the oldest and most respected forms of martial arts. While the performers were not exactly the monks from the titular temple, they were skilled acrobats nonetheless.
The evening was divided into two sets with a brief intermission. During the short break in the action, the bar in the Wheeler Opera House was jam packed with patrons. It was a family friendly event, and felt as though a spontaneous block party had erupted from thin air. With out a doubt, ticket buyers were enjoying the performance of the high energy show.
Bombastic. Colorful. Precision. These are but a few adjectives I scribbled into my notepad while taking in the atmosphere. There was no dialogue once the show began and relied solely on choreography set to prerecorded music. Overarching the duration of the performance was a story about two young boys who aspire to be Shaolin Warriors, and their journey through the young apprentice stages of the martial arts school. When the younglings had achieved their transformations, they were given a new uniform, satchel and directions to leave the temple, thus ending the performance.
While there were many highlights from the display of gymnastics and fighting techniques, some stood out in my mind. Particularly, there was a display of the Drunken Style of Kung Fu (醉拳, Zuì Quán, drunken fist). There were many weapons used that evening, but none were more impressive than the bo staff. The irony is that is was the least sophisticated weapon. Being no more than a long and sturdy wooden shaft at the outset it did not have the image of lethality that some of the swords or chain link weapons held, yet once in action it appeared that the bo staff’s capability to inflict maximum damage was matched by none.
Following the culmination of the show I sat and spoke with the coach of the Shaolin Warrior team. He expressed his desire to, “Deliver kung fu culture to the world‘. When asked about the performers diet, he confessed that the actors were not actual monks, and therefor could eat what ever they wished. However, in monks in the temple are vegetarian. Finally, I asked him through his translator how long it takes the monks to graduate from training. The coach responded, “It depends on each person. At least ten years. Normally about 25 years.”
Photos courtesy of Anna Stonehouse and the Aspen Times.
