Peking opera
Peking opera, or Beijing opera (Chinese: 京劇; pinyin: Jīngjù), is the most dominant form of Chinese opera, which combines instrumental music, vocal performance, mime, martial arts, dance and acrobatics. It arose in Beijing in the mid-Qing dynasty (1644–1912) and became fully developed and recognized by the mid-19th century.[1] The form was extremely popular in the Qing court and has come to be regarded as one of the cultural treasures of China.[2] Major performance troupes are based in Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai.[3] The art form is also preserved in Taiwan, where it is also known as Guójù (Chinese: 國劇; lit. 'National opera'). It has also spread to other regions such as the United States and Japan.[4]
Peking opera
From Peking, the postal romanization of Beijing
Beijing opera, Pekingese opera, Jing opera, Jingju, Jingxi, Guoju
Capital drama
Jīngjù
Jīngjù
ㄐㄧㄥ ㄐㄩˋ
Ching1-chü4
Jing-jyù
Gīng-kehk
ging1 kek6
Kiann-kio̍k
Capital play
Jīngxì
Jīngxì
ㄐㄧㄥ ㄒㄧˋ
Ching1-hsi4
Jing-sì
National drama
Guójù
Guójù
ㄍㄨㄛˊ ㄐㄩˋ
Kuo2-chü4
Guó-jyù
Píhuáng
Píhuáng
ㄆㄧˊ ㄏㄨㄤˊ
P'i2-huang2
Pí-huáng
Beiping's drama
Píngjù
Píngjù
ㄆㄧㄥˊ ㄐㄩˋ
P'ing2-chü4
Píng-jyù
Peking opera features four main role types, sheng (gentlemen), dan (women), jing (rough men), and chou (clowns). Performing troupes often have several of each variety, as well as numerous secondary and tertiary performers. With their elaborate and colorful costumes, performers are the only focal points on Peking opera characteristically sparse stage. They use the skills of speech, song, dance and combat in movements that are symbolic and suggestive, rather than realistic. Above all else, the skill of performers is evaluated according to the beauty of their movements. Performers also adhere to a variety of stylistic conventions that help audiences navigate the plot of the production.[5] The layers of meaning within each movement must be expressed in time with music. The music of Peking opera can be divided into the xīpí (西皮) and èrhuáng (二黄) styles. Melodies include arias, fixed-tune melodies and percussion patterns.[6] The repertoire of Peking opera includes over 1,400 works, which are based on Chinese history, folklore and, increasingly, contemporary life.[7]
Traditional Peking opera was denounced as "feudalistic" and "bourgeois" during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and replaced mostly with the revolutionary operas until the period's end.[8] After the Cultural Revolution, these transformations were largely undone. In recent years, Peking opera has responded to sagging audience numbers by attempting reforms, including improving performance quality, adapting new performance elements, shortening works, and performing new and original plays.
Etymology[edit]
"Peking opera" is the English term for the art form; the term entered the Oxford English Dictionary in 1953.[9] "Beijing opera" is a more recent equivalent.
In China, the art form has been known by many names at different times and places. The earliest Chinese name, Pihuang, was a combination of the xipi and erhuang melodies. As it increased in popularity, its name became Jingju or Jingxi, which reflected its start in the capital city (Chinese: 京; pinyin: Jīng). From 1927 to 1949, when Beijing was known as Beiping, Peking opera was known as Pingxi or Pingju to reflect this change. Finally, with the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the name of the capital city was reverted to Beijing, and the formal name of this theatre in Mainland China was established as Jingju. The Taiwanese name for this type of opera, Guoju, or "national opera", reflects disputes over the true seat of the Chinese government.[10]
Aural performance elements[edit]
Vocal production[edit]
Vocal production in Peking opera is conceived of as being composed of "four levels of song": songs with music, verse recitation, prose dialogue, and non-verbal vocalizations. The conception of a sliding scale of vocalization creates a sense of smooth continuity between songs and speech. The three basic categories of vocal production technique are the use of breath (yongqi), pronunciation (fayin), and special Peking-opera pronunciation (shangkouzi).[69]
In Chinese opera, breath is based in the pubic region and supported by the abdominal muscles. Performers follow the basic principle that "strong centralized breath moves the melodic-passages" (zhong qi xing xiang). Breath is visualized as being drawn up through a central breathing cavity extending from the pubic region to the top of the head. This "cavity" must be under performers' control at all times, and they develop special techniques to control both entering and exiting air. The two major methods of taking in breath are known as "exchanging breath" (huan qi) and "stealing breath" (tou qi). "Exchanging breath" is a slow, unhurried process of breathing out old air and taking in new. It is used at moments when the performer is not under time constraint, such as during a purely instrumental musical passage or when another character is speaking. "Stealing breath" is a sharp intake of air without prior exhalation, and is used during long passages of prose or song when a pause would be undesirable. Both techniques should be invisible to the audience and take in only the precise amount of air required for the intended vocalization. The most important principle in exhalation is "saving the breath" (cun qi). Breath should not be expended all at once at the beginning of a spoken or sung passage, but rather expelled slowly and evenly over its length. Most songs and some prose contain precise written intervals for when breath should be "exchanged" or "stolen". These intervals are often marked by carats.[70]
Pronunciation is conceptualized as shaping the throat and mouth into the shape necessary to produce the desired vowel sound, and clearly articulating the initial consonant. There are four basic shapes for the throat and mouth, corresponding to four vowel types, and five methods of articulating consonants, one for each type of consonant. The four throat and mouth shapes are "opened-mouth" (kaikou), "level-teeth" (qichi), "closed-mouth" (hekou or huokou), and "scooped-lips" (cuochun). The five consonant types are denoted by the portion of the mouth most critical to each type's production: throat, or larynx (hou); tongue (she); molars, or the jaws and palate (chi); front teeth (ya); and lips (chun).[71]
Some syllables (written Chinese characters) have special pronunciations in Peking opera. This is due to the collaboration with regional forms and kunqu that occurred during the development of Peking opera. For example, 你, meaning "you", may be pronounced li, as it is in the Anhui dialect, rather than the Standard Chinese ni. 我, meaning "I" and pronounced wo in Standard Chinese, becomes ngo, as it is pronounced in the dialect of Suzhou. In addition to pronunciation differences that are due to the influence of regional forms, the readings of some characters have been changed to promote ease of performance or vocal variety. For example, zhi, chi, shi, and ri sounds do not carry well and are difficult to sustain, because they are produced far back in the mouth. Therefore, they are performed with an additional i sound, as in zhii.[72]
These techniques and conventions of vocal production are used to create the two main categories of vocalizations in Peking opera: stage speech and song.
Stage speech[edit]
Peking opera is performed using both Classical Chinese and Modern Standard Chinese with some slang terms added for color. The social position of the character being played determines the type of language that is used. Peking opera features three major types of stage speech (nianbai, 念白). Monologues and dialogue, which make up the majority of most plays, consist of prose speeches. The purpose of prose speech is to advance the plot of the play or inject humor into a scene. They are usually short, and are performed mostly using vernacular language. However, as Elizabeth Wichmann points out, they also have rhythmic and musical elements, achieved through the "stylized articulation of monosyllabic sound units" and the "stylized pronunciation of speech-tones", respectively. Prose speeches were frequently improvised during the early period of Peking opera's development, and chou performers carry on that tradition today.[73]
The second main type of stage speech consists of quotations drawn from classical Chinese poetry. This type is rarely used in Peking opera; plays have one or two such quotations at most, and often none at all. In most instances, the use of classical poetry is intended to heighten the impact of a scene. However, Chou and more whimsical Dan characters may misquote or misinterpret the classical lines, creating a comical effect.[74]
The final category of stage speech is conventionalized stage speeches (chengshi nianbai). These are rigid formulations that mark important transition points. When a character enters for the first time, an entrance speech (shangchang) or self-introduction speech (zi bao jiamen) is given, which includes a prelude poem, a set-the-scene poem, and a prose set-the-scene speech, in that order. The style and structure of each entrance speech is inherited from earlier Yuan Dynasty, Ming Dynasty, folk, and regional forms of Chinese opera. Another conventionalized stage speech is the exit speech, which may take the form of a poem followed by a single spoken line. This speech is usually delivered by a supporting character, and describes their present situation and state of mind. Finally, there is the recapitulation speech, in which a character will use prose to recount the story up to that point. These speeches came about as a result of the zhezixi tradition of performing only one part of a larger play.[75]
Song[edit]
There are six main types of song lyrics in Peking opera: emotive, condemnatory, narrative, descriptive, disputive, and "shared space separate sensations" lyrics. Each type uses the same basic lyrical structure, differing only in kind and degree of emotions portrayed. Lyrics are written in couplets (lian) consisting of two lines (ju). Couplets can consist of two ten character lines, or two seven character lines. The lines are further subdivided into three dou (lit. "pause"), typically in a 3-3-4 or 2-2-3 pattern. Lines may be "padded" with extra characters for the purpose of clarifying meaning. Rhyme is an extremely important device in Peking opera, with thirteen identified rhyme categories. Song lyrics also use the speech tones of Mandarin Chinese in ways that are pleasing to the ear and convey proper meaning and emotion. The first and second of Chinese's four tones are normally known as "level" (ping) tones in Peking opera, while the third and fourth are called "oblique" (ze). The closing line of every couplet in a song ends in a level tone.[76]
Songs in Peking opera are proscribed by a set of common aesthetic values. A majority of songs are within a pitch range of an octave and a fifth. High pitch is a positive aesthetic value, so a performer will pitch songs at the very top of their vocal range. For this reason, the idea of a song's key has value in Peking opera only as a technical tool for the performer. Different performers in the same performance may sing in different keys, requiring the accompanying musicians to constantly retune their instruments or switch out with other players. Elizabeth Wichmann describes the ideal basic timbre for Peking opera songs as a "controlled nasal tone". Performers make extensive use of vocal vibrato during songs, in a way that is "slower" and "wider" than vibrato used in Western performances. The Peking opera aesthetic for songs is summed up by the expression zi zheng qiang yuan, meaning that the written characters should be delivered accurately and precisely, and the melodic passages should be weaving, or "round".[69]
Film[edit]
Peking opera and its stylistic devices have appeared in many Chinese films. It often was used to signify a unique "Chineseness" in contrast to sense of culture being presented in Japanese films. Fei Mu, a director of the pre-Communist era, used Peking opera in a number of plays, sometimes within Westernized, realistic plots. King Hu, a later Chinese film director, used many of the formal norms of Peking opera in his films, such as the parallelism between music, voice, and gesture.[89] In the 1993 film Farewell My Concubine, by Chen Kaige, Peking opera serves as the object of pursuit for the protagonists and a backdrop for their romance. However, the film's portrayal of Peking opera has been criticized as one-dimensional.[90]