Chinese Opera (Chinese: 戏曲/戲曲; Pinyin: xìqǔ) is a popular form of drama and musical theatre in China. There are numerous regional branches of opera with its original root starting in the dynastic periods. The Beijing opera is one of the most famous Chinese Opera.
Beijing opera or Peking opera (simplified Chinese: 京剧; traditional Chinese: 京劇; pinyin: Jīngjù) is a form of traditional Chinese theatre which combines music, vocal performance, mime, dance and acrobatics. It arose in the late 18th century and became fully developed and recognized by the mid-19th century. The form was extremely popular in the Qing Dynasty court and has come to be regarded as one of the cultural treasures of China. Major performance troupes are based in Beijing and Tianjin in the north, and Shanghai in the south. The art form is also enjoyed in Taiwan, where it is known as Guoju (國劇; pinyin: Guójù). It has also spread to other countries such as the United States and Japan.
Beijing opera has a history of over 200 years. The main melodies originated from Xipi and Erhuang, in Anhui and Hubei, respectively, and over time techniques from many other local operas were incorporated.
It is generally accepted that Beijing opera gradually came into being after 1790, when the famous four Anhui opera troupes came to Beijing. Beijing opera underwent fast development during the reign of Emperor Qianlong and the notorious Empress Dowager Cixi under the imperial patron, and eventually became more accessible to the common people
In recent years, Beijing opera has attempted numerous reforms in response to sagging audience numbers. These reforms, which include improving performance quality, adapting new performance elements, and performing new and original plays, have met with mixed success.
The repertoire of Beijing Opera is mainly engaged in fairy tales of preceding dynasties, important historical events, emperors, ministers and generals, geniuses and great beauties, from the ancient times to Yao, Shun, Yu, the Spring and Autumn Period, the Warring States Period and the dynasties of Qin, Han, Sui, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, Qing. Some of them also were adopted from the literature and classical novels, which are well known among the public but may not be an accurate account of history. Some of the popular Stories during the history are:
Orphan of Zhao Family, The Ruse of Empty City, Story of the White Snake, The Drunken Concubine, Unicorn-Trapping Purse.
The music of Beijing Opera is that of the "plate and cavity style".Its melody with harmonious rhythms is graceful and pleasing to the ears. The melody may be classified into two groups: "Xipi" and "erhong", guiding pattern, original pattern, slow pattern, quick pattern, desultory pattern being their chief patterns. The performance is accompanied by a tune played on wind instruments, percussion instruments and stringed instruments, the chief musical instruments being jinghu (a two-stringed bowed instrument with a high register), yueqin (a four-stringed plucked instrument with a full-moon-shaped sound box), Sanxian (a three-stringed plucked instrument), Suona horn, flute drum, big-gong, cymbals, small-gong, etc.
The costumes in Beijing Opera impress the audience with their bright colors and magnificent embroidery. Some of the costumes used in the present performances have a resemblance to the fashion of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). The use of colors indicate different social status: yellow for the imperial family, red for high nobility, red or blue for upright men, white for old officials, and black for each role. A student usually wears a blue gown, a general wears padded armor, and an emperor wears a dragon robe. Besides gorgeous clothes and headdresses, jewelry girdles for men and hair ornaments for women are also used in Beijing Opera.
The types of facial make-ups in Beijing Opera are rich and various, depicting different characters and remarkable images, therefore they are highly appreciated. It is said that this special art derived from the Chinese opera has different origins. But no matter wh
at its origin is, the facial painting is worth appreciating for its artistic value. The paintings are representations of the roles of the characters. For example, a red face usually depicts the role's bravery, uprightness and loyalty; a white face symbolizes a sinister role's treachery and guile; a green face describes surly stubbornness, impetuosity, and lack of self-restraint. In addition, the pattern of the facial painting is significant. In a word, the unique makeup in the opera allows the characters on the stage to reveal themselves voicelessly. In Beijing Opera, over one thousand painted facial patterns are used. Each pattern makes subtle and interesting changes to the standard facial pattern.
Mei Lanfang
In addition to its presence in mainland China, Beijing opera has spread to many other places. It can be found in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and overseas Chinese communities elsewhere. Mei Lanfang, one of the most famous Dan performers of all time, was also one of the greatest popular
izers of Beijing opera abroad. During the 1920s, he performed Beijing opera in Japan. This inspired an American tour in February 1930. Although some, such as the actor Otis Skinner, believed that Beijing opera could never be a success in the United States, the favorable reception of Lanfang and his troupe in New York City disproved this notion. The performances had to be relocated from the 49th Street Theater to the larger National Theater, and the duration of the tour extended from two weeks to five. Lanfang traveled across the United States, receiving honorary degrees from the University of California and Pomona College. He followed this tour with a tour in the Soviet Union in 1935.
Beijing Opera is a synthesis of stylized action, singing, dialogue and mime, acrobatic fighting and dancing to represent a story or depict different characters and their feelings of gladness, anger, sorrow, happiness, surprise, fear and sadness. In Beijing Opera there are four main types of roles: sheng (male) dan (young female), jing (painted face, male), and chou (clown, male or female). The characters may be loyal or treacherous, beautiful or ugly, good or bad, their images being vividly manifested.