The steel fork dance originated from the ancient pre-war martial arts training, and then gradually evolved into a sacrificial dance to drive away ghosts and evil spirits. Now it has become a kind of entertainment activity. During the Longqing period of the Ming Dynasty, there was already a custom of dancing with steel forks in the seawall area of Zhapu, Pinghu. By the end of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, the steel fork dance activities along the coast of Zhapu had reached a considerable scale. During every festival, especially the March 23rd Temple Fair of Chang'an Bridge and the September Double Ninth Festival Temple Fair, the steel fork dance is an indispensable performance program and one of the most popular programs among the masses. The steel fork dance is a marching folk performing art. In the early days, the steel fork dance was performed by six people, one holding a command flag, and five wearing masks representing gold, wood, water, fire, and earth, holding steel forks, wearing knight clothes, and changing formations while marching under the command of the leader. The whole process has no plot and no accompaniment. You can only see the steel forks dancing with great power, the sound of hitting the ground is deafening, and the team moves and changes quickly, like a dragon out of the sea. Later, the steel fork dance was developed, and some popular performances were added to the steel fork dance. The performance of the steel fork dance in the later period at the Chang'an Bridge Temple Fair was different from that in the early period. The leader wore a ghost face on his head, which was made of loofah tendons. The loofah tendons were split in half and put on the face. Two holes were dug at the eyes, and the rest of the parts hung on both sides of the face, which looked like the impermanence in the City God Temple. The performer held a broken umbrella in one hand and a broken cattail fan in the other hand, blowing a whistle in his mouth, shaking his head, jumping around, and directing the entire steel fork dance team. Sometimes, some plots reflecting social phenomena are added to liven up the atmosphere. For example, a pair of young people in free love in front, followed by an old couple in the back, trying every means to obstruct the young people's marriage. The old man's goatee and the old woman's sheep horn braids are up and down, and they are both funny and beautiful. Although the plot is simple, the exaggerated movements and funny performances are hilarious. The characteristics of the steel fork dance are the sound of the steel fork and the change of formation. Dancers either wave their steel forks or hit the ground with them, and the steel plates on the steel forks collide to produce loud and rhythmic sounds. The dancers' formations change constantly with the command flags, such as circles, triangles, rectangles, crosses, and twisted cables. When changing formations, they interweave and hit each other's forks. Dancers sometimes move briskly, sometimes move slowly, sometimes stagger left and right, and sometimes shift forward and backward. The dance is powerful, fast, tightly connected, and has clear layers. The steel fork dance was once unprecedented. At the Chang'an Bridge Temple Fair that year, wherever the steel fork dance went, there were crowds of people, constant applause, and a warm atmosphere. When the audience was excited, they often followed and learned to dance with bare hands. In 1966, the Chang'an Bridge Temple Fair was discontinued and later evolved into a twice-a-year material exchange fair. The popular steel fork dance was on the verge of being lost. In 2002, the steel fork dance regained attention. The staff of Zhapu Town Cultural Station made innovations to the traditional steel fork dance. At the Pinghu Watermelon Lantern Festival that year, the steel fork dance became a big hit, once again proving to the world its tenacious vitality and unique artistic charm. The steel fork dance was included in the second batch of Jiaxing City's intangible cultural heritage list. Information source: Text/Jiaxing City Library Photo/Zhang Yuguan Information source: Text/Jiaxing City Library Photo/Zhang Yuguan