The traditional art of shadow play was performed in many places around China. It has been part of the nation's culture for thousands of years, but as artists pass away, the unique performance art is increasingly endangered. But fortunately, some people are now paying more attention to the preservation of the ancient art form.
中国很多地方都有表演传统艺术皮影戏。几千年来，它一直是国家文化的一部分，但是随着艺人的去世，这门独一无二的表演艺术日益濒危。然而，幸运的是，一些人现在更加关注这种古老艺术形式的保护。
"Lang zhong shadow play" of Sichuan province can traced back to the end of Ming dynasty. And through three hundreds years of development, especially with the efforts of the fifth generation successor, it generated a new school, the Wang shadow play. The performing skills are more and more sophisticated, but successors are less as time goes by. Since Wang shadow play successfully became a national intangible cultural heritage, it has attracted more attention. The seventh successor Wang Biao even organized a training institute.
四川省的“阆中皮影戏”可以追溯至明朝末年。经过三百年的发展，尤其是第五代继承人的努力，它产生了一个新的派别，王皮影。虽然表演技巧越来越精湛，但是随着时间的流逝，传承人越来越少。自王皮影成功入选国家非物质文化遗产以来，它引来更多关注。第七代继承人王彪甚至还成立了一个培训机构。
Wang Biao, shadow play successor, said, "We are the national intangible cultural heritage and it's our responsibility to make this traditional art prosperous."
皮影继承人王彪表示：“我们是国家非物质文化遗产，我们有责任发扬这种传统艺术。”
Shadow play artist Xu Junxian was once a performer of Shanxi opera. But after studying and performing shadow play, he was deeply fascinated by it. His first performance turned out to be a great success for he was asked to perform it three times more than he imaged. Later, he build his own shadow play band with some folk music players. According to him, the reason to perform is not to make money, but to inherit the traditional skills.
皮影艺人Xu Junxian曾经是山西戏曲的演员。但是学习和表演了皮影戏之后，他被它深深吸引了。他的首次演出非常成功，因为他出乎想象地被要求演出三次。之后，他和一些民间音乐表演家成立了自己的皮影戏团。据他介绍，演出的目的不是为了赚钱，而是为了传承传统技艺。
An shadow play is performing at the Tiexi Cultural Center of Shenyang. Zhang Guoqing, the performer, has already performed for more than 40 years. While performing, he almost forgets himself.
沈阳铁西文化中心正在上演一出皮影戏。演员张国庆已经有40多年的演出经验。表演的时候，他几乎到达忘我的境界。
Zhang Guoqing, artist of shadow play, said, "Usually, four strings are needed to accomplish a performance. As time goes by, more instruments and more modern elements were added into the performing, so we need the participation of young people. I'm looking for successors, but I only have my children."
皮影戏艺人张国庆表示：“通常，完成一次演出需要四弦。随着时光的推移，表演中加入更多乐器、更多现代元素，所以我们需要年轻人的参与。我正在寻找继承人，但是我只有我的孩子。”
Shadow play is a complex folk art that contains drawing, music, carving, manipulation puppets and singing. Xu Chengshu is an accomplished artist that can handle all skills needed for a performance. He even made the puppets himself.
皮影戏是一门复杂的民间艺术，它包括绘画、音乐、雕刻、操纵木偶以及唱歌。Xu Chengshu是一位可以掌握表演所需的所有技巧的精湛艺术家。他甚至能自己制作木偶。
Xu Chengshu, folk artist, said, "I cannot express my feelings in words. I've performed shadow play for decades. I'll leave it to my children."
民间艺术家Xu Chengshu表示：“我无语言表。但是皮影戏我已经演出几十年了。我会把他留给我的孩子。”
With so many artists devoting themselves to shadow play, the future of our traditional arts will be brilliant.
有如此多的艺人献身于皮影戏，我们这门传统艺术的未来将会很光明。