Land Boating
跑旱船
Land Boating is a performance to imitate rowing boat in the water usually people use bamboo, wood or straws to make the outline of the ship, cover it with the silk and draw different pictures or write the auspicious word on it. Some boats have roofs with colored silk. Certain land boats are three meters long, and some only one meter. When Land Boating is on, the performer stands in the center of the boat and ties it to his waist. In this way the boat is moving with his running. The movement of the land boat is caused by the running of people, so it is called land Boating.
跑旱船是一种在陆地上模仿水中划船情形的表演活动。通常以竹、木或秫秸杆扎成船的形状，在外面蒙上绸布，在绸布上再装饰上各种图案或写上吉祥的语句。有的旱船还有顶篷，上扎绸彩。旱船长的有3米多，短的也有一米多。旱船表演时，表演者站在船的中央，用带子把旱船捆在自己的腰间，这样，随着表演者的跑动，船便在陆地上移动起来。因为旱船在陆地上的这种移动是靠人跑动造成的，所以称为跑旱船。
Land boating appealed simultaneously with the Dragon-boat Race. In the late years of the Warring States Period, the people in Chu held their Dragon-boat race in annual Dragon-boat Festival to memorize Qu Yuan. Local people in Yunmeng County also wanted to take part in it, but the river was too shallow to have it, then they got the idea to have the race on the land. Therefore, Land Boating came into being.
跑旱船是战国时期与赛龙舟的活动同时产生的。战国晚期，楚地一带的民众为了纪念屈原，每到端午节，就会举行盛大的龙舟竞渡活动。而云梦县一带因为河水太浅，无法搞龙舟竞渡，当地民众又想参与这一活动，于是便想出了一种在陆地上进行龙舟竞渡的办法，从而形成了跑旱船这种活动形式。
There are many land boating performances. The common one is that one woman sits in the center of the boat, alongside a man acting as her father or husband rows the boat. They ask and answer in turn or sing together. What they are singing are usually the traditional dramas. Meanwhile, they will perform different movements such as the easy swing on the calm water or the dangerous scene on the rough sea. On the important celebrations, there will be several or even dozens of land boats performing at the same time.
跑旱船有多种表演形式，常见的是一女子“坐”在船中间，边上由一个男子扮演成她的父亲或丈夫，两人一问一答，或一同唱曲，所唱的多为传统戏曲中的内容。同时，他们还会表演各种动作，或表演在风平浪静的水面上轻轻悠荡，或表演遇到狂风暴雨时的惊险激烈。在一些重大的庆祝场合，则会有几只甚至几十只旱船同时表演。
Nowadays, Land Boating is still a common performance in the fairs and the festivals. It is often performed together with Yangko, Stilts and lion dance, which has become unique scenery of the festival activities.
到今天，跑旱船仍是民间庙会和传统节日里经常表演的节目，它常常与秧歌、高跷、舞狮等一起表演，成为中华民族节庆活动中的一道独特的风景。
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