Peking Opera Show – The Quintessence Of Chinese Culture

The Beijing Opera, with its magnificent music, singing, and costumes, is a national show of China. Filled with Chinese cultural facts, the opera presents viewers with an encyclopedia of Chinese culture, unfolding stories, beautiful pictures, exquisite costumes, graceful gestures, and martial arts. Since Beijing Opera enjoys a higher reputation than other local operas, almost every province in China has more than one troupe of Beijing Opera. It is so popular among the Chinese, especially the elderly, that a “Month of Peking Opera” was even declared.

Beijing Opera has a history of 200 years, which is believed to have gradually emerged after 1790, when the famous four Anhui opera troupes arrived in Beijing. It rapidly developed during the reign of Emperor Qianlong and the Dowager Empress Cixi under imperial patronage, eventually becoming more familiar to the common people.

In ancient times, costumes were a bright collection of sharply contrasting colors to stand out on the dim stage lit only by oil lamps. Peking Opera is a harmonious combination of grand opera, ballet, and acrobatics, consisting of dance, martial arts, and pantomime.

The orchestra of Peking Opera mainly consists of an orchestra and a percussion ensemble. The first often accompanies peaceful scenes, while the second provides the right atmosphere for battle scenes. The most commonly used percussion instruments include castanets, drums, bells, and cymbals. One person usually plays castanets and drums simultaneously, conducting the entire orchestra. The orchestral instruments include erhu, huqin, yueqin, sheng (bamboo flute), pipa (lute), and others. The group usually sits on the left side of the stage.

Peking Opera is a special form of makeup that considers cultural features, just like singing and music performance, hence it is called “Facebook”. Peking’s theatrical art is very loved and is considered one of the signs of traditional Chinese culture.