The transmission and practice of intangible cultural heritage in the perspective of geographies of the body

Intangible cultural heritage is essentially the "embodied heritage" according to the fact that the human body is the subject and carrier of intangible heritage with the power of structuring and performing heritage. This article selects Shachong Aoyu Dance, an intangible cultural heritage in Guangzhou and its transmitters as the study case and research subject respectively. Based on the perspective of geographies of the body, a diachronic investigation on both the transmitters' training and performance was conducted to explore how their body techniques formed in the process of training and to interpret how they experience a performing process. In the space-time of training, transmitters who has higher proficiency of Aoyu Dance lead the relationship between old and new transmitters. The senior transmitters obtain a particular power in this space due to their professional body techniques. This relationship is formed based on hierarchical domination and discipline. The affectual flow between senior and junior transmitters is significantly impacted by their interactions, and it is also influenced by their biological characteristics. The junior transmitters, however, can overcome the negative impacts of the disciplinary relationship and the biological resistances of their bodies. Therefore, the junior transmitters can actively engage in the emotional and affectual interaction between the old transmitters, their own bodies and themselves. The social and cultural relation in the local village is the main force forming the politics of relationship during the training process. In the space-time of performance, the body is the core of transmitters' multisensory experience. The transmitters firstly perceive their surroundings in performing, and then establish a visual interaction with the audience through "gazing" and "being gazed". With the supplement of rhythm and sound, the transmitters can successfully connect themselves to the audience with full emotional and affectual circulations and contagions, which helps the transmitters increase the strength of performance and reciprocate these procedures. The bodies of transmitters are thus the premise and guarantee for the inheritance and performance of intangible cultural heritage. The body, carrying the rich local history and culture, occupies a central position in this complex space-time network that is characterized by multi-subject and multi-level. © 2020, Science Press. All right reserved.