Chinese Opera

Among the stream of Chinese music, there is a form of music drama called Chinese opera. Formerly these operas were based on old tales of heroes and the supernatural. Today the stories often deal with heroes of the Communist revolution or with great historical events of the recent past.

Traditional Chinese opera is a distinctive comprehensive performing art that combines typically Chinese music, singing, dialogue, pantomime and martial arts. China has a great variety of operas. Each variety differs slightly in costume and makeup as they are based on regional music and dialects. But since Peking Opera assumed its present form about 200 years ago in what was then the capital of Qing Dynasty, it has been regarded as a national art form. It is also the form of Chinese opera best-known abroad.

Chinese Opera

Peking opera falls primarily under two categories, the “wenxi” and “” wuxi”. The “wenxi” are plays on civil themes, dealing with social life; the “wuxi” is plays on martial subject, concerning war, rebellion and intrigue.

The roles in Peking Opera are strictly fixed in different types. Female roles are generally known as “dan” and male roles are “sh <!–[if !vml]–><!–[endif]–>eng”. The “chou” or clown can be recognized by the patch of white paint around his eyes and nose. He is a comic character who uses humorous language. The “jing” are the painted-face roles. They represent warriors, heroes, statesman, adventures or demons.

The singing in Peking Opera can highly enable the performers express the thoughts and emotions of different characters in different situations. You can learn any plot by movement or gesture, even without speech. Acting in Peking Opera can show a vivid plot by movements and gestures, such as stroking a beard, swing a long sleeve or lifting a foot, etc. The actions to suggest something that is non-existent on the stage, for instance: opening or closing a door, going up or down a building or a mountain, and getting on, getting off or traveling by the boat, etc. Through the gesture of hands the performers can give the audience a sense of reality. Peking Opera combines stylized acting with singing, dancing, dialogue, colorful facial make up, acrobatic fighting and fantastic costumes.

Chinese Opera

The music instruments accompanying the Peking Opera are string and wind instrument as well as Chinese styled percussion instruments-gongs, drums and bamboo castanet. The most important one is a kind of two-stringed music instrument-Erhu or Jinghu in Chinese.

The famous dan actor Mr. Mei Lanfang was the first performer to introduce Peking opera to Japan in 1919, to the United states in 1929 and to the Soviet Union in !935. After 1949, Peking Opera troupes made frequent trips abroad, such as Europe, America, and Africa etc. Today Peking Opera has won high praise around the world.