“Mr. Anatole, don’t worry. After all the actors come on stage for their curtain call, there will be a special Q&A session. You can talk to Ms. Cai then.” Wen Ruan was startled by Anatole’s excited expression, as if he couldn’t wait to rush backstage to talk to “Xi’er”.
In Anatole's words, "he seemed to have met his 'muse'" and wanted to discuss art with her.
Wen Ruan doesn't have much artistic talent and doesn't understand these things, but perhaps our performance was just so good that it could excite this art master so much, which is something to be very proud of.
Wen Ruan kept speaking in hushed tones with Anatole and other French participants in the exchange meeting when she suddenly heard a burst of noise from the side.
Du Mei, the translator in charge of the Soviet art exchange group, was sweating profusely and looked anxious, as if she was explaining something to the Soviet leader.
The team leader and members from the Soviet Union were all visibly excited, and Du Mei's face was flushed red.
Wen Ruan looked around. The teacher in charge had already gone to prepare for the follow-up procedures and related matters. There was no one else around. Moreover, the argument between the two sides was getting louder and louder, which gradually attracted the attention of the audience in the front and back rows.
Some people even kept looking in that direction.
After thinking for a moment, Wen Ruan whispered something to Anatol and then walked straight toward Du Mei.
"What's wrong? What happened?" Wen Ruan stepped forward and firmly grasped her hand, signaling her not to panic and to stay calm.
“This Soviet ballet principal dancer, Ivanov, said that the performance just now was a ‘pirated performance,’ and that what we danced was not ballet, but a ‘low-quality’ and inferior dance…” Du Mei’s tone was slightly flustered, and her voice trembled as if she was about to cry.
The actors had just finished their curtain call, and the auditorium was very quiet. Gradually, their location attracted the attention of the leaders in the front row, and some people even turned around to look at them from time to time...
After hearing the whole story, Wen Ruan felt that it was indeed a tricky situation and was afraid that things would escalate and become difficult to control. She instructed Du Mei to quickly find someone or go backstage to call out the leader of our art troupe.
After hearing Wen Ruan's words, Du Mei quickly ran backstage.
But after Ivanov saw Dume walk away, he was muttering something under his breath, but unfortunately it was in Russian, which Wen Ruan couldn't understand.
But it wouldn't be very polite to just leave a guest from afar here. After thinking for a moment, Wen Ruan asked in English, "Sir, may I ask if you can speak English?"
Fortunately, Ivanov's English was also fluent and he could understand English, so the two could communicate in English.
After realizing that Wen Ruan could understand him, Ivanov repeated his question in English. In short, his words were a denigration of our dance as not being true ballet art, but a 'inferior' and defective product.
Wen Ruan was furious upon hearing this, constantly reminding herself to remain calm.
After carefully listening to Ivanov's explanation and waiting for him to calm down, Wen Ruan slowly spoke: "Mr. Ivanov, I think you've misunderstood. Neither the host's introduction nor our team leader's introduction before the performance indicated that our upcoming performance would be entirely ballet."
"The performance just now was a perfect blend of ballet and folk dance. I greatly admired your dance; it was classical, elegant, and full of captivating charm..."
"But I also appreciate our performance. After watching it, I could feel a strong historical atmosphere, as if I were in that era, experiencing the protagonist's tragic life..."
“Although I don’t understand art, I do understand respect for other cultures… I believe this dance is not a copy of ballet, nor is it a ‘low-quality product.’ Rather, it is a dance form that takes our national characteristics as its theme, combines various aesthetic principles as its foundation, and absorbs and learns from the beneficial aspects of foreign arts such as ballet. It is an independent, national, and contemporary dance form!” Wen Ruan said firmly and seriously, her eyes never leaving Ivanov.
"Great!" Lin Qingyou and the leader of the Chinese exchange group rushed over after hearing the news, just in time to hear Wen Ruan's impassioned speech.
There were also students who understood English nearby, translating for the others around them.
The entire auditorium was filled with chatter and cheers, with everyone applauding Wen Ruan. Ivanov, however, was timid and hesitant to speak after hearing Wen Ruan's powerful words and the cheers. He quietly retreated, and it was only after another female leader from the Soviet exchange group stepped in to smooth things over that the matter was finally resolved.
When Wen Ruan saw Lin Qingyou and the others arrive, she understood that there was nothing more for her to do. So she greeted them and quickly headed towards the French exchange group to keep to her post.
After Wen Ruan returned, Anatol and the other actors looked at her with astonishment.
Anatol, in particular, was very excited, his tone filled with astonishment: "Oh, beautiful Ms. Wen, you Eastern women are truly incredible, with such great energy contained in such small bodies."
"The 'Ms. Xi'er' just now was like that, and so are you. Is this the natural charm of you Eastern ladies?" Anatol was a young man in his thirties who, at such a young age, was able to become the leader of the country's art exchange delegation, demonstrating his profound attainments in the field of art.
Wen Ruan originally thought that someone of his status would have a serious, meticulous, or even harsh personality, but the reality was quite the opposite.
Perhaps because he is very young, his words are very humorous and witty, and despite his achievements in the arts, he is very humble and does not have an arrogant attitude.
It is evident that he has a deep love for dance. She still remembers how focused she was while watching the performances by the two countries. Even though she was sitting on a stool, her hands and feet would involuntarily move to the music.
Wen Ruan greatly respected people who were passionate and dedicated to their work. She didn't find Anatol's question offensive at all. Instead, she replied with humor, "Mr. Anatol, perhaps I can understand the charm of Eastern women that you mentioned as a kind of power. And I can assure you that this power is contained in our cultural bloodline. In ancient times, there was the story of Hua Mulan joining the army in place of her father. In modern times, there are all kinds of heroines who are not inferior to men."
"Furthermore, I must correct you on one point: the charm you speak of may not be unique to Eastern women. Women should never be defined..."
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