Sichuan Opera

A Brief Introduction to Sichuan Opera

As an important part of the Sichuan culture, Sichuan Opera was originated and developed in Chengdu, both the capital of Sichuan and the hometown of Sichuan Opera. It is popular in the eastern and central parts of Sichuan, Chongqing, and part of Guizhou and Yunnan Pronvinces.

History of Sichuan Opera

As early as in the Tang Dynasty (618AD-907AD), there was a popular saying that goes, "Sichuan Opera was the number one opera in the world".

During the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty (1644AD-1911AD), the local people developed the Sichuan Opera based on the local Chedeng Opera, which was one of the local folk art forms and was usually performed by several people who rapped stories while dancing and singing.

At the same time, different styles of vocal cavities from provinces of Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Anhui, Hubei, Shanxi and Gansu were absorbed into the Chedeng Opera. It was finally developed into the famous Sichuan Opera.

Features of Sichuan Opera

Sichuan Opera is well-known in China, featured by vivid, humorous narration, singing, and acrobatics. It also boasts a system of stylized movements and its acting is both exquisite and lively. Sichuan Opera performances are always full of wit, humor, lively dialogues, and pronounced local flavors.

To portray special features, the opera incorporates a series of stunts, including the famous face-changing. In Chinese opera, facial makeup is usually painted, but in Sichuan Opera, the performer can change his or her facial makeup in the snap of a finger right on stage.

Contents of Sichuan Opera

Most Sichuan Opera repertoires are adapted from the classical Chinese novels, mythologies, legends, and folk tales. Statistics show that the total number of Sichuan Opera plays exceeds 2,000. Among them are the traditional and classical "Stories of Five Robes " including "Story of Blue Robe", "Story of Yellow Robe", "Story of White Robe", "Story of Red Robe" and "Story of Green Robe", and "Four Pillars" including "Pengtian (touching the sky) Pillar", "Crystal Pillar", "Paoluo (a form of cruel punishment in ancient times) Pillar" and "Wuxing (the five elements-metal, wood, water, fire and earth- in Chinese Taoism view) Pillar" and so on.

Nowadays, Sichuan Opera becomes more and more popular. Many foreign guests come to Chongqing to watch the real Sichuan Opera performances. It is the pearl of Chinese traditional culture.