Please use a table to compare the difference between Western musicals(NOT opera) and Beijing Opera in terms of performance & musical features?Use several photos as evidence to support your comparison.
Advice on structure & personal information
An essay of 2000 words is merely a draft or skeleton like a small replica of a full scale book.
Tips: A small & condensed topic is easier to handle so as to pin-point into the core discussion of a specific topic related to what had been discussed during the lectures.
Content outline:
1. Cover sheet with all personal detail, topic title (not the course title), submission date and your signature.
2. List of contents: chapter by chapter in order.
3. Introduction/foreword/preface: the purpose and intention of writing such an essay, what to achieve after this research. To what extend this study will include.
4. Chapter by chapter in paragraphs, with subtitles.
5. Conclusion: any new discovery? Any new idea? Anything yet to be dissolved? Further discussion needed? Any possible prospect or development of this aspect?
6. Footnotes & captions for illustrations(if any)
7. Reference resources: bibliography or websites, articles, periodicals, documentaries….etc.
8. Appendix: such as chronological charts, maps, pin-yin tables….etc.
9. word count
10. Book list should include the title, writer or editor, publisher, year of publication.
A reference/bibliography list must be put at the end of essay.
All attached pictures, photos must be followed by a caption(the title of art work, artist, year, collection)
Lecture notes on Beijing Opera Franz Cheung
1. Terminology: Beijing Opera is being regarded as Chinese National Opera, it is the most popular & wide spread theatrical art within China.
Guoju, Pingju, Jingju, Jingqi, Pihuang(Xipi & Erhuang)
2. Beginning of Chinese theatre:
Emperor Ming Huang (~762 AD) of Tang dynasty who could compose & play music and a great lover of stage established an Imperial Drama College known as Li Yuan Jiao Fan and the actors were known as Emperor’s Pear Garden Pupils.
The origins of Chinese drama can trace back as early as 12c.BC until Zhou Dynasty when Chinese believers entertained their Gods with Sacred Play. The witch (Mu) dance was also an offering to thank Gods, like the Mimos in ancient Greek.
Play: Xi means to make fun of, to ridicule, or play games.
Ju: Literally make sport of.
3. Beginning of Beijing Opera:
1790, 55th year of reign of Emperor Qianlong, Sanqing Anhui Opera Troupe had been invited to Emperor Palace to perform in His Majesty’s 80th birthday celebration.
Soon after, 3 more troupes followed: Sixi, Chungtai, Hechun.
These opera is a mixture of Hanju of Hubei,Kunqu from Jiangsu, ancient melodies from Shaanxi and blended with some local folk tunes.
4. Songs & music:
2 principal styles are Erhuang from Yihuang of Jiangxi province and Xipi. They serve as a prototype for a prescribed number of metrical arrangements defined as BAN (the accented) and YAN (unaccented beat)
Major instruments: Erhu, Jinghu(higher key), Yueqin, Sanxian, Drums & Gong.
5. Themes & stories:
Most of the original models were the theatrically transmuted from popular historical novels & public story tellers: Sanguo Zhi Yanyi(Romance of 3 Kindoms) & Shuihu Zhuan(Water margin heroes)
The actors construct the character which is actually to create imagery that draws upon the collective concepts of a traditional society schooled in a Confucian values & behavior codes.
Generally plays are not classified by Tragedy or Comedy but civil (focus on singing) & military. (focus on action)
6. 4 main roles(hangdang):
All roles are classified according to sex, personality, age, profession, social status of each character. They are absolutely archetypal. Every actor normally specializes in only 1 type in his/her career. These terms now extend to our daily speech regarding entertainment arena.
Sheng: Symbolizes mature, literate, orthodox man. A scholar; official; civilian of good standing. Subdivisions as Laosheng(old & middle age), Xiaosheng(young), Wusheng(action heroes, fighters), Hongsheng(red face), Wawasheng(kid, boy)
Dan: Embraces all female roles.Subdivisions as Qingyi which symbolizes women of virtue, dignity, strong character, loyal to family obligations, faithful wives, filial daughters & distressed lovers.Huadan are young women of bold & extrovent character, commonly as a maid servant. Laodan are old women & Daomadan(Wudan) are female warriors.
Jing: To symbolize through colour & pattern so as to design the particular nature, talents, and fate of the character portrayed. In general these characters suggest power, representing warriors, knights, outlaws, crafty/evil ministers, upright judges & loyal statesman, as well as Gods & supernatural beings.
Chou: comic actors/clowns. Not only playing the roles as buffoon (fool) but also depicting corrupt and stupid officialdom, shrewish women, petty criminals & haunted men.
7. Stage design:
Minimal furnishing normally just a table & a pair of chairs that could become anything according to the needs of the synopsis. All props are mobile which can be instantly set up or removed in the middle of the performance. Non actors or assistants can step up anytime they want to help cleaning up or provide what is necessary for the actors. A lot of sceneries are just suggestive and symbolic; audience must associate and imagine themselves. In doing so, the audience can be more compassionate and get deeper involved into the play.
8. Costume:
mostly based on Ming dynasty fashions. Occasionally borrows from Tang ~ Qing dynasties, even modern days current style. Costume can be used according to the characters and roles, regardless of real dynasty in history.
9. Conversation & recitals(no music)
The dialogue is not using Beijing local dialect but contains elements from dialects all over Anhui, Hubei, Sichuan areas.
Conversation follows the scripts are being recited with rhythm. It is extremely demanding and requires proper control of tongue, teeth & breath in order to achieve accurate outcome for each single word uttered(bite).Mainly divided into 2 classes as <SHARP> & <ROUNDED>.
5 different modes of conversation: Self introduction in the beginning of each section; talking to oneself; speaking to the audience in the middle of performance; between singing lines; rapid dialogue.
10. Regimen of Face painting for Jing roles:
Colour-red is royalty, courage; black is integrity, honest, fair, straightforwardness; white is wicked, treacherous, conspiratorial; yellow is bad tempered, cruel; blue/green is fearlessness, ferocity, brutal; gold/silver is gods, spirits, ghosts, celestials, immortals, supernatural beings.
Pattern- Full face, three tiles, Cross face, variegated face, pictographic face, twisted face.
11. Stereotyped performance:
All gesture & movement are stereotyped and follow the training from senior generation. Each step, gesture, head movement posture, combat form is strictly prescribed & minutely defined according to certain rules & formulas. With minimal stage design & props, actors must pantomime all motions which are choreographed, like ballets & dances. In other words, Beijing Opera is a synthesis comprehensive performance art which combines SINGING, RECITATION, ACTING, ACROBATICS altogether.
12. Conclusion:
In fact all classical Chinese theatre conforms to fundamentally similar principles of production & performance, irrespective of the literary content of the plays.
Audience enjoys the skill of the performance rather than following the story plot.
Beijing opera attained a supreme popularity as it transposed & adapted the essence from other regional styles. The leading actors in each troupe become the effective instruments of any possible new change so as to shape Beijing Opera through several epochs. They had a multiple tasks of combining all script writing, directing, composing, choreograph and acting into ONE.
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