Kunqu Opera

Kunqu Opera is the “Mother of China’s Operas”. Kunqu, also known as Tunes from Kunshan or Kun Tunes, originated in the areas around Suzhou and Kunshan in the lower Yantze River Delta and is one of the oldest forms of opera in China.

Kunqu, Ancient Greek Theatre and Sanskrit Drama have been called the Three Ancient Dramas of the World, while Kunqu is the only one that still plays an active role in people’s daily lives. At the later years of the Yuan Dynasty, the elements in the Southern Opera mingled with the Kunshan dialects and the local music forms. With constant improvements by Gu Jian, the great Kunqu musician, the Kunqu Opera developed further. After the Ming Dynasty, Zaju declined, while the Southern Opera, which absorbed the music forms of Zaju and became known as Kunqu, had become the most prominent vocal opera in China with the greatest number of artists in the Ming and Qing dynasties. Peking Opera, Chuanju Opera, Yueju Opera and Huangmeixi Opera originated and developed from Kunqu.

The most famous writer of the Kunqu Opera was Tang Xianzu (1550–1616) of the Ming Dynasty. His greatest works include The Peony Pavilion, The Handan Dream, The Nanke Dream and The Purple Hairpins. These four plays were known as Four Dreams in Linchuan and have been popular in the last 300 years in China. A Tour in the Garden and An Amazing Dream stand as the most famous scenes in The Peony Pavilion and in all of Kunqu. In May 2001, the UNESCO listed Kunqu Opera as one of over fifty representative works of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Cultural Notes

The Peony Pavilion

The full name of this opera is “Records of the Soul Returned at the Peony Pavilion”. It is well known for its artistic and elegant lyrics, and tells the love story between Du Liliang and Liu Mengmei who go through life and death to be reunited. The most famous verses in it include, “It is not known where love started, but my love is deep and profound”, and “Where is the ‘pleasant day and pretty sight? Who can enjoy Contentment and delight?”

Peking Opera

Peking Opera has a history of over 200 years. It is also the “national opera” of China. Peking Opera’s original form was the Anhui Troupe popular in the lower Yangtze River Delta in the early Qing Dynasty. During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, the opera began to absorb the repertoires, tunes and performance methods of Huiju Opera from Anhui Province, Hanju Opera from Hubei Province, Kunqu Opera from Jiangsu Province, Qinqiang Tunes from Shaanxi Province, and other local operas, and eventually formed the Peking Opera through continuous evolvement and integration. Facial make-up plays a very important role in Peking Opera. Red faces represent loyalty and bravery (such as the face of Guan Yu, whom the Chinese respect and worship), yellow and white faces represent the negative connotations (such as the cunning of Cao Cao), while black faces demonstrate integrity, courage and even boldness. Peking Opera has about one thousand traditional repertoires, with three to four hundred performed frequently. There are different schools of Peking Opera and numerous famous artists, such as the four most famous male performers who play leading female roles: Mei Lanfang, Shang Xiaoyun, Cheng Yanqiu and Xun Huisheng. Popular acts of Peking Opera include The Dininken Concubine and The Encounter at the T-Junction.

In November 2010, Peking Opera was listed as one of the Representative Works of Intangible Heritage of Humanity. In October 2014, CPC General Secretary Xi Jinping clearly pointed out that “Peking Opera, folk music, calligraphy and traditional Chinese painting are the gems in China’s cultural heritage, and are important ways for foreigners to understand China.”

Yueju Opera

Yueju Opera is the second biggest opera form in China. It came from the lower Yangtze River Delta and became popular in Shanghai, Zhejiang Province, Jiangsu Province, Fujian Province and other places. Yueju Opera is a rather new form of opera. Started in 1852 in the form of “story-telling and singing on the ground” in Matang Village, Sheng County, Zhejiang Province, it was formally established as a form of opera in 1906. Absorbing the characteristics of Kunqu Opera and Shaoju Opera, Yueju Opera reformed on the rules to include female casts. Singing is one of the major methods of the opera which focuses on the expression of feelings in fresh and delicate ways, a characteristic of the lower Yangtze River Delta. The main themes of Yueju Opera are often the love stories of “a gifted scholar and a beautiful woman”. Yuan Xuefen, Yin Guitang, Xiao Dangui are the most famous artists in Yueju Opera, and Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai (The Butterfly Lovers), The Dreams of the Red Chambers, and Five Daughters Celebrate Their Father’s Birthday are the most famous plays. It is worth noting that in the early stage of Yueju Opera, musical instruments had been deployed to simulate sounds and voices for the performances. For example, the opening and dosing of the door is simulated with Huqin, a string instrument; the crying of a baby is simulated with a Suona, a trumpet-like instrument. Starting in the late 1930s, Yueju Opera relied on some special tools to simulate more sounds, such as rain, thunder, and wind. These techniques had been used in plays and movies. In the 1960s, Shanghai Yueju Opera Theatre began to use pre-recorded sounds during the performances and achieved great effects. In 2006, Yueju Opera was among the first group of operas to be included in China’s national list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Henan Opera

Henan Opera began in the form of Henan Clappers Show in the middle and late Ming Dynasty in Henan Province. Most of the traditional plays of Henan Opera are based on historical novels and stories, such as Investiture of Gods, The Three Kingdoms, Magistrate Bao’s Stones, Warriors of the Yang Family, and Warriors of the Yue Family. There are also some operas about love and moral ethics, lop artists of Henan Opera include Chen Suzhen, Chang Xiangyu and Ma Jinfeng, and the representative repertoire includes Hua Mulan and Lady Mu Guiying as the General. In 2006, Henan Opera was among the first group of operas to be included in China’s national list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Huangmeixi Opera

Formerly known as Huangmei Tune or Tea-Picking Opera, Huangmeixi Opera can be traced back to Huangmei Tea-Picking Songs in the Tang Dynasty. Influenced by folk songs which were popular in the Song Dynasty, and by Zaju which was popular in the Yuan Dynasty, Huangmeixi Opera started to form gradually. In the Ming and Qing dynasties, it developed rapidly. Huangmeixi Opera originated in Huangmei, Hubei Province, yet it developed in Anhui Province. It is said that this is largely due to geographical reasons and the natural disasters. Huangmei County is located on the north bank of the Yangtze River, where large areas sit below the riverbank. Floods occurred quite frequently, and the people of Huangmei had to evacuate and beg for food. They performed Huangmeixi Opera along the way, which accelerated the development of Huangmeixi Opera from the mountain areas in Huangmei to the outside world. The masters of Huangmei Opera include Yan Fengying, Wang Shaofang and Han Zaifen, and the classical repertoire includes The Match of the Fairy, The Cowherd and the Weaving Girl, and Meng Lijun. In 2006, Huangmeixi Opera was among the first group of operas to be included in China’s national list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Pingju Opera

Pingju Opera first appeared in Luanxian area in Hebei Province in the late Qing Dynasty. This opera had its root from “story-telling and singing” performances, and from the singing and dancing forms of the northeast of China. It is popular in the north, northeast and some other regions in China. With a lively, free style, and simple, easy lyrics, it has a down-to-earth folk atmosphere. There are two schools of Pingju Opera, the East and the West, with the former being more popular. Top performers of Pingju Opera include Xin Fengxia, Bai Yushuang and so on, and the popular repertoire includes Qin Xianlian and Yang Sanjie Goes to Court. In 2006, Pingju Opera was among the first group of operas to be included in China’s national list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.