Peking Opera

Peking opera, or Beijing opera (Chinese: 京剧; pinyin: Jīngjù), is the most dominant form of
Chinese opera which combines music, vocal performance, mime, dance and acrobatics. It arose
in Beijing in the mid-Qing dynasty (1636–1912) and became fully developed and recognized by
the mid-19th century. The form was extremely popular in the Qing court and has come to be
regarded as one of the cultural treasures of China. Major performance troupes are based in
Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai. The art form is also preserved in Taiwan (Republic of China),
where it is also known as Guójù (Chinese: 國劇; literally: "National opera"). It has also spread to
other regions such as the United States and Japan.

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's 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. 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 and
èrhuáng styles. Melodies include arias, fixed-tune melodies and percussion patterns. The
repertoire of Peking opera includes over 1,400 works, which are based on Chinese history,
folklore and, increasingly, contemporary life.

Traditional Peking opera was denounced as "feudalistic" and "bourgeois" during the Cultural
Revolution (1966–1976) and replaced with the revolutionary operas as a means of propaganda
and indoctrination. After the Cultural Revolution, these transformations were largely undone.
In recent years, Peking 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.

Peking opera was born when the 'Four Great Anhui Troupes' brought Anhui opera, or what is
now called Huiju, in 1790 to Beijing, for the eightieth birthday of the Qianlong Emperor on 25
September. It was originally staged for the court and only made available to the public later. In
1828, several famous Hubei troupes arrived in Beijing and performed jointly with Anhui
troupes. The combination gradually formed Peking opera's melodies. Peking opera is generally
regarded as having fully formed by 1845. Although it is called Peking opera (Beijing theatre
style), its origins are in the southern Anhui and eastern Hubei, which share the same dialect of
Xiajiang Mandarin (Lower Yangtze Mandarin). Peking opera's two main melodies, Xipi and
Erhuang, were derived from Han Opera after about 1750. The tune of Peking opera is extremely
similar to that of Han opera, therefore Han opera is widely known as the Mother of Peking
opera. Xipi literally means 'Skin Puppet Show', referring to the puppet show that originated in
Shaanxi province. Chinese puppet shows always involve singing. Much dialogue is also carried
out in an archaic form of Mandarin Chinese, in which the Zhongyuan Mandarin dialects of
Henan and Shaanxi are closest. This form of Mandarin is recorded in the book Zhongyuan
Yinyun. It also absorbed music from other operas and local Zhili musical art forms. Some
scholars believe that the Xipi musical form was derived from the historic Qinqiang, while many
conventions of staging, performance elements, and aesthetic principles were retained from
Kunqu, the form that preceded it as court art.

Thus, Peking opera is not a monolithic form, but rather a coalescence of many older forms.
However, the new form also creates its own innovations. The vocal requirements for all of the
major roles were greatly reduced for Peking opera. The Chou, in particular, rarely has a singing
part in Peking opera, unlike the equivalent role in Kunqu style. The melodies that accompany
each play were also simplified, and are played with different traditional instruments than in
earlier forms. Perhaps most noticeably, true acrobatic elements were introduced with Peking
opera. The form grew in popularity throughout the 19th century. The Anhui troupes reached
their peak of excellence in the middle of the century, and were invited to perform in the court
of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom that had been established during the Taiping Rebellion.
Beginning in 1884, the Empress Dowager Cixi became a regular patron of Peking opera,
cementing its status over earlier forms like Kunqu. The popularity of Peking opera has been
attributed to the simplicity of the form, with only a few voices and singing patterns. This
allowed anyone to sing the arias themselves.

At the time of its growth in the late nineteenth century, albums became used to display aspects
of stage culture, including makeup and costumes of performers.

Peking opera was initially an exclusively male pursuit. The Qianlong Emperor had banned all
female performers in Beijing in 1772. The appearance of women on the stage began unofficially
during the 1870s. Female performers began to impersonate male roles and declared equality
with men. They were given a venue for their talents when Li Maoer, himself a former Peking-
opera performer, founded the first female Peking-opera troupe in Shanghai. By 1894, the first
commercial venue showcasing female performance troupes appeared in Shanghai. This
encouraged other female troupes to form, which gradually increased in popularity. As a result,
theatre artist Yu Zhenting petitioned for the lifting of the ban after the founding of the Republic
of China in 1911. This was accepted, and the ban was lifted in 1912, although male Dan
continued to be popular after this period.
 Kabuki

Kabuki (歌舞伎) is a classical Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for the stylization
of its drama and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers.

The individual kanji, from left to right, mean sing (歌), dance (舞), and skill (伎). Kabuki is
therefore sometimes translated as "the art of singing and dancing". These are, however, ateji
characters which do not reflect actual etymology. The kanji of 'skill' generally refers to a
performer in kabuki theatre. Since the word kabuki is believed to derive from the verb kabuku,
meaning "to lean" or "to be out of the ordinary", kabuki can be interpreted as "avant-garde" or
"bizarre" theatre. The expression kabukimono (歌舞伎者) referred originally to those who were
bizarrely dressed. It is often translated into English as "strange things" or "the crazy ones", and
referred to the style of dress worn by gangs of samurai.

In 2005, the Kabuki theatre was proclaimed by UNESCO as an intangible heritage possessing
outstanding universal value. In 2008, it was inscribed in the UNESCO Representative List of the
Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

The history of kabuki began in 1603 when Izumo no Okuni, possibly a miko of Izumo-taisha,
began performing a new style of dance drama in the dry riverbeds of Kyoto. It originated in the
17th century. Japan was under the control of the Tokugawa shogunate, enforced by Tokugawa
Ieyasu. The name of the Edo period derives from the relocation of the Tokugawa regime from
its former home in Kyoto to the city of Edo, present-day Tokyo. Female performers played both
men and women in comic playlets about ordinary life. The style was immediately popular, and
Okuni was asked to perform before the Imperial Court. In the wake of such success, rival
troupes quickly formed, and kabuki was born as ensemble dance and drama performed by
women—a form very different from its modern incarnation. Much of its appeal in this era was
due to the ribald, suggestive themes featured by many troupes; this appeal was further
augmented by the fact that the performers were often also available for prostitution.For this
reason, kabuki was also called "遊女歌舞妓" (prostitute-singing and dancing performer) during
this period.

In the 1840s, fires started to affect Edo due to repeated drought. Kabuki theatres, traditionally
made of wood, were constantly burning down, forcing their relocation within the ukiyo. When
the area that housed the Nakamura-za was completely destroyed in 1841, the shōgun refused
to allow the theatre to be rebuilt, saying that it was against fire code. The shogunate did not
welcome the mixing and trading that occurred between town merchants and actors, artists, and
prostitutes. The shogunate took advantage of the fire crisis in 1842 to force the Nakamura-za,
Ichimura-za, and Kawarazaki-za out of the city limits and into Asakusa, a northern suburb of
Edo. Actors, stagehands, and others associated with the performances were forced out as well.
Those in areas and lifestyles centered around the theatres also migrated, but the inconvenience
of the new location reduced attendance.These factors, along with strict regulations, pushed
much of kabuki "underground" in Edo, with performances changing locations to avoid the
authorities.

The theatres' new location was called Saruwaka-chō, or Saruwaka-machi. The last thirty years
of the Tokugawa shogunate's rule is often referred to as the Saruwaka-machi period. This
period produced some of the gaudiest kabuki in Japanese history. The Saruwaka-machi became
the new theatre district for the Nakamura-za, Ichimura-za and Kawarazaki-za theatres. The
district was located on the main street of Asakusa, which ran through the middle of the small
city. The street was renamed after Saruwaka Kanzaburo, who initiated Edo kabuki in the
Nakamura Theatre in 1624.

European artists began noticing Japanese theatrical performances and artwork, and many
artists (for example, Claude Monet) were inspired by Japanese wood block prints. This Western
interest prompted Japanese artists to increase their depictions of daily life including theatres,
brothels, main streets and so on. One artist in particular, Utagawa Hiroshige, did a series of
prints based on Saruwaka from the Saruwaka-machi period in Asakusa.

The relocation diminished the tradition's most abundant inspiration for costuming, make-up,
and story line. Ichikawa Kodanji IV was one of the most active and successful actors during the
Saruwaka-machi period. Deemed unattractive, he mainly performed buyō, or dancing, in
dramas written by Kawatake Mokuami, who also wrote during the Meiji period to follow.
Kawatake Mokuami commonly wrote plays that depicted the common lives of the people of
Edo. He introduced shichigo-cho (seven-and-five syllable meter) dialogue and music such as
kiyomoto. His kabuki performances became quite popular once the Saruwaka-machi period
ended and theatre returned to Edo; many of his works are still performed.

In 1868, the Tokugawa shogunate fell apart. Emperor Meiji was restored to power and moved
from Kyoto to the new capital of Edo, or Tokyo, beginning the Meiji period. Kabuki returned to
the ukiyo of Edo. Kabuki became more radical in the Meiji period, and modern styles emerged.
New playwrights created new genres and twists on traditional stories.

Wayang Kulit
Wayang (Krama Javanese: Ringgit ("Shadow"), also known as Wajang, is a form of puppet
theatre art found in Indonesia and other parts of Southeast Asia, wherein a dramatic story is
told through shadows thrown by puppets and sometimes combined with human characters.
The art form celebrates the Indonesian culture and artistic talent; its origins are traced to the
spread of Hinduism in the medieval era and the arrival of leather-based puppet arts called
Tholu bommalata from southern India.

Wayang refers to the entire dramatic show. Sometimes the leather puppet itself is referred to
as wayang. Performances of shadow puppet theatre are accompanied by a gamelan orchestra
in Java, and by gender wayang in Bali. The dramatic stories depict mythologies, such as
episodes from the Hindu epics the Ramayana, the Mahabharata as well as local adaptations of
cultural legends. Traditionally, a wayang is played out in a ritualized midnight-to-dawn show by
a dalang, an artist and spiritual leader; people watch the show from both sides of the screen.

UNESCO designated wayang kulit, a shadow puppet theatre and the best known of the
Indonesian wayang, as a Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity on 7
November 2003. In return for the acknowledgment, UNESCO required Indonesians to preserve
their heritage. Wayang has also been a significant historical art form in Malaysia, Thailand,
Cambodia and Laos.

History

Wayang is the traditional shadow puppet theatre in Indonesia and other southeast Asian
countries.There is no evidence that wayang existed in ancient Indonesia. The earliest evidence
is from the late 1st millennium CE, in medieval-era texts and archeological sites. The origins of
Wayang are unclear, and three competing theories have been proposed:

Indian origin: this is the generally favored theory, since Hinduism and Buddhism arrived on the
Indonesian islands in the early centuries of the 1st millennium, and along with theology, the
peoples of Indonesia and Indian subcontinent exchanged culture, architecture and traded
goods. Puppet arts and dramatic plays have been documented in ancient Indian texts, dated to
the last centuries of the 1st millennium BCE and the early centuries of the common era.
Further, the coastal region of Southern India (Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu) which most
interacted with Indonesian islands has had a leather-based intricate puppet arts called Tholu
bommalata, which shares many elements with Wayang. Some characters such as the Vidusaka
in Sanskrit drama and Semar in Wayang are very similar. Indian mythologies and characters
from the Hindu epics feature in many of the major plays performed, all of which suggest
possible Indian origins, or at least an influence in the pre-Islamic period of Indonesian history.
Jivan Pani states that wayang developed from two arts of Odisha in Eastern India, the Ravana
Chhaya puppet theatre and the Chhau dance.
Indigenous origin: the word "Wayang" is not found in Indian languages, but is Javanese.
Similarly, some of the other technical terms used in the Wayang Kulit found in Java and Bali are
based on local languages, even when the play overlaps with Buddhist or Hindu mythologies.
This suggests, state some scholars such as Hazeu, that Wayang has indigenous roots.

Chinese origin: the least popular theory, but it is based on the evidence that puppet arts based
on animism existed in ancient China (1000CE) and it may have been the "place of origin of all
Asian shadow theatre", states Brandon.

Regardless of its origins, states Brandon, Wayang developed and matured into a Javanese
phenomenon. There is no true contemporary puppet shadow artwork in either China or India
that has the sophistication, depth and creativity as expressed in Wayang.

Artist

The dalang, sometimes referred to as Dhalang or Kawi Dalang, is the puppeteer artist behind
the entire performance.] It is he who sits behind the screen, sings and narrates the dialogues of
different characters of the story. With a traditional orchestra in the background to provide a
resonant melody and its conventional rhythm, the dalang modulates his voice to create
suspense thus heightening the drama. Invariably, the play climaxes with the triumph of good
over evil. The dalang is highly respected in Indonesian culture for his knowledge, art and as a
spiritual person capable of bringing to life the spiritual stories in the religious epics.

The figures of the wayang are also present in the paintings of that time, for example, the roof
murals of the courtroom in Klungkung, Bali. They are still present in traditional Balinese
painting today. The figures are painted, flat woodcarvings (a maximum of 5 to 15 mm thick—
barely half an inch) with movable arms. The head is solidly attached to the body. Wayang klitik
can be used to perform puppet plays either during the day or at night. This type of wayang is
relatively rare.

Wayang today is both the most ancient and most popular form of puppet theatre in the world.
Hundreds of people will stay up all night long to watch the superstar performers, dalang, who
command extravagant fees and are international celebrities. Some of the most famous dalang
in recent history are Ki Nartosabdho, Ki Anom Suroto, Ki Asep Sunandar Sunarya, Ki Sugino, and
Ki Manteb Sudarsono.