Chinese+Theatre

Beijing Opera

Lily Houston Dr. Farley Richmond Theatrical Worlds 31 March 2017

According to Theatrical Worlds, China's most recognizable theatre form is Beijing Opera. China also has spoken theatre, but it is not as popular as opera. Since I love to sing and since many times opera is not as appreciated as other theatrical art forms, I have chosen Beijing Opera as my world theatre form that I have further researched. It has been around for over 160 years (some sources date it to the 16th century) and mixes singing, dancing, dialogue, and martial arts. The theatre form came from the 18th-century Huiban drama which was located in South China. This theatre form was the first in many aspects and has remained popular throughout the times. media type="youtube" key="SAFbG-hI6p0" width="267" height="150" align="right" media type="youtube" key="mN9iXlfxpxI" width="262" height="157"media type="youtube" key="2bTkILMOyVs" width="283" height="159"

The video on the left shows a production of opera; it most likely is a Dan singing. The video in the middle shows training at the opera school. The one on the right shows Lianpu. 

Face painting is also a huge component of Beijing Opera. Face Painting is called Lianpu. Sometimes masks are painted instead of the face. Lianpu is crucial because it shows the character's personality and allows the audience to know things about roles without having to actually know the character. Red symbolizes loyalty, black symbolizes honesty, and white symbolizes cleverness. The painting shows the mood of the characters, and sometimes the designs are animal-like.



Qimo is the set. Beijing Opera uses more imaginative sets so that there is less required, but also to give more symbolism to actions. Opera used to be performed outside, in courtyards, or teahouses, but now it is performed in the Beijing Opera House which was built upon the order of Empress Dowager Cixi. The costumes are made from silk and other fabrics to give a royalistic feel. Costumes began in the Ming Dynasty. Martial arts are used to give more action. There are four major roles in Beijing Opera: Dan, Jing, Chou, and Sheng. Dan is the women roles and until recently was played by a man as well; Wudan is the woman who is best at fighting. Jing is the male character who is recognizable usually by a white strip on his nose. Chou is usually a clown. Sheng is the most common name for the male characters in opera. This theatre form is enjoyed by the common people, but also people in government too. Prices for these tickets start at 140 yuangs which is about 20 dollars so anyone can enjoy this experience. Overall, opera still thrives in China due to the intriguing face paintings and the mixing of martial arts.

sources:

http://theatrebeijing.com/shows/beijing_opera/ https://www.travelchinaguide.com/intro/arts/beijing_opera/