PEKING OPERA

Jīngjù 京劇

PEKING OPERA….WHAT’S THAT????

The Peking Opera is a form of traditional Chinese theater which incorporates vocal performance, miming, dance and acrobatics.The style is symbolic and suggestive, rather than literalThe melodies are arias, fixed tune melodies, and percussion patterns.Today ,there are more than 1,400 operas known to date. They are most often based on Chinese folklore, history, and modern life.The two different styles of Peking Opera are Xipi and Erhuang

A BRIEF HISTORY…

It is thought to have been formed in 1845Its origins are in the southern Anhui and eastern HubeiOne cannot describe the Peking opera in one way, there are various styles withinInitially, it was regarded as only a male pursuit, because the Quianlong emperor banned all female roles in 1772.Acrobatics were Introduced to the Peking Opera in the nineteenth centuryWomen started appearing in the operas in the 1870’s, impersonating male roles.The first official Peking Opera troupe was founded in Shanghai by Li Maoer, a former member of the Peking Opera.Li Maoer started a troupe in 1894 which officially incorporated and declared female actresses.Yu Zhenting petitioned to end the ban on female actresses in the opera, and succeeded after the founding of the People’s Republic in 1911.Dramatic Works (Peking Opera included) were banned during the cultural revolution.

THINK YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO BE IN THE PEKING OPERA?

A century ago, training was much more rigorous than it is todayStudents would wake by five a.m, and were whipped with bamboo rods if they made mistakesAll schools were closed down during the Japanese invasion, and later reopened in 1952, when training was not as brutalPerformers are first trained in acrobatics, and later in their education, study singing and hand gestures.Today, students are not only trained in the art of performance, but receive a decent academic education as well.Some famous training schools for the Peking Opera include: The Mei Lanfang school, the Cheng Yanqiu school, the Ma Lianliang school, and the Qi Lintong school.Many students today serve as small roles in some famous Peking Opera productions today.

SHENG 生

Sheng is one of the main roles in the Peking Opera- it is played by men.These characters have a gentle disposition, and wear fairly sensible clothing.Roles played by the Sheng always have a very comprehensive acrobatics experience

DAN 旦

The Dan is a female partThere are five different roles of Dan: old women are played by the laodan, martial women are played by the wudan, young female warriors are played by the daomadan, elite women are played by the qingyi, and various unmarried women are played by the huadan.In the early years, the Dan role was played by menNeat Fact: A male Dan performer named Wei Changsheng developed the cai qiao, or "false foot" technique, to simulate the bound feet of women.

JING 净

The Jing is a male role who must have a strong, forceful voice, because he usually plays an aggressive characterJing roles are divided into three categories: the tongchui which involves singing, the jiazi, which involves less singing and more physical performance, and the wujing, which involves martial and acrobatic skills.

*The Jing has the most elaborate face paint

CHOU 丑

The Chou is a male clown roleThe combination of the Chou’s ugliness and laughter is meant to drive away evil spirits.The Wen Chou is a civilian role, like merchants and jailers, and the Wu Chou is a minor military role.The Wu Chou is the most demanding role to play in the opera because of its comic acting, strong voice, and acrobatic requirements.The Chou is the most amusing, likeable, and foolish character in the Peking Opera.

COSTUMES

Costumes are very important because there are little to no props.Emperors and their families wear elaborate yellow robesHigh ranking officials wear purple robes(These robes are called the mang and have intricite embroidery and design, they often have designs of a dragon on them)People of high rank wear redPeople of low rank wear blueChildren wear white

A N E L A BO RAT E C O S T U M E W O R N BY A M E M B E R O F T H E U P P E R C L A S S I S S H O W N H E R E . N O T I C E T H E Y E L LO W C O LO R A N D

D RAG O N E M B R O I D E RY O N T H E S L E E V E

SOME VOCAB…

Costume: gǎizhuāng---改装Acrobatics: zájì--- 杂技Singing: gēshēng--- 歌声Performance: biǎoyǎn--- 表演Stage: wǔtái--- 舞台Opera: gējù--- 歌剧

PEKING OPERA VS WESTERNIZED OPERA

Here is a video comparison of the two. The first is “Dadengdian” (Chinese) , the second is “TheMagic Flute” (Austrian). They are very, very different!

1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mN9iXlfxpxI

2)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMSgzuTA38A&feature=related

DIFFERENCES CONTINUED

Western Operas are divided by voice type and gender: Bass, Baritone, Tenor, Contralto, Mezzo- Soprano, and Soprano.Peking Opera is divided by age, gender, profession, and status: Sheng, Dan, Jing, and Chou, Westernized Operas use realism, while the Peking Opera uses a more symbolic approach

FUN FACTS

Because the operas may be very long, The Chinese in the audience often eat meals and listen the radio while observing the opera. In one of the famous operas, Farewell my Concubine, a character said, "If you belong to the human race, you go to the opera. If you don't go to the opera, you're not a human being." Li Yuru, who died in Shanghai at aged 84, was one of the greatest Beijing Opera performers

FUN FACTS

From www.factsanddetails.com “The training for Peking Opera included doing handstands for 40 minutes while their legs are tied to a rod and staying a crouching position for more than an hour. The training is so rigorous that some trainees developed blood in their urine.”Face Paint is made of oil and egg whites

THANKS FOR WATCHING!

SOURCES

http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&gbv=2&biw=1280&bih=705&tbm=isch&tbnid=HHEoPFW9WBo46M:&imgrefurl=http://www.aoehome.com/about-china/learn-chinese/Peking-Opera-755&docid=Brgc22uDGvhqGM&imgurl=http://www.aoehome.com/cache/upload/2011/08/28/7f96383715c11499b0b4a51e5c5ee446.jpg&w=295&h=424&ei=IoYlT5jcEqTG0AH-pZzaCA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=633&vpy=122&dur=38&hovh=269&hovw=187&tx=97&ty=112&sig=112570938427567467080&page=1&tbnh=159&tbnw=122&start=0&ndsp=16&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:http://www.google.com/imgres?q=li+yuru&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-Address&rlz=1I7SNNT_enUS339&biw=1280&bih=705&tbm=isch&tbnid=T3ClwOSFs8i8_M:&imgrefurl=http://www.pekingopera.sh.cn/english/detail.asp%3Fpzlid%3D519&docid=BFvXvFRtIEmmwM&imgurl=http://www.pekingopera.sh.cn/english/UploadFile/20087239513766514.jpg&w=400&h=590&ei=xp4lT5uJHePv0gHmipykCA&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=217&sig=106293690797782707565&page=1&tbnh=130&tbnw=88&start=0&ndsp=19&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0&tx=56&ty=105

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peking_operahttp://www.nciku.com/search/all/operahttp://www.google.com/search?sourceid=ie7&q=wkipedia+peking&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-Address&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&rlz=1I7SNNT_enUS339#hl=en&rls=com.microsoft:en-us%3AIE-Address&rlz=1I7SNNT_enUS339&sclient=psy-ab&q=facts+and+details+peking+opera&pbx=1&oq=facts+and+details+peking+opera&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&gs_sm=e&gs_upl=7964l17402l0l17712l51l32l0l7l7l7l277l3349l17.13.1l39l0&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&fp=e8db89ab90c5d414&biw=1280&bih=705