History of the Chinese National Peking Opera Theater

The China National Peking Opera Theater is a national theater directly under the Ministry of Culture of the People's Republic of China*** and the State. Its earliest predecessor was the Yan'an Institute of Chinese Opera, which was founded in 1942 under the care of the Party Central Committee. Chairman Mao Zedong wrote an inscription for the Academy, "Push out the old and bring in the new", which provided a historically significant guideline for the theater business. After several changes and reorganizations, the institute was first merged with the Vanguard Ping Opera Troupe of the Sixth Column of the North China Military Region and the Democratic Opera Troupe of the Ji'nan Military Region and renamed the North China Ping Opera Research Institute; after the founding of the People's Republic of China, it was reorganized into the Peking Opera Research Institute of the Ministry of Culture's Bureau of Theatre Arts Improvement and the Peking Opera Experimental Troupe No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3 Troupes under the Chinese Theatre Arts Research Institute; and later, the three troupes merged to form the China Peking Opera Company in 1953. On this basis, in January 1955, the China Peking Opera Theater was established. Mei Lanfang, a master of Peking Opera, was the first president.

The Chinese Peking Opera Theater was severely damaged during the Cultural Revolution and was renamed the Chinese Peking Opera Troupe. After the "Gang of Four" was crushed, the establishment, name and organization of the China Peking Opera Theater were fully restored. Over the past forty-seven years, the theater has inherited the glorious revolutionary tradition of the Yan'an Ping Theater, absorbed the artistic innovations of the liberated areas and other progressive Peking Opera troupes, and continuously absorbed performing artists of various genres, famous actors, and socially renowned writers, directors, composers, and stage artists, to form an elite Peking Opera stage performance and art creation group. In the long-term artistic practice, the successor, push forward the new, formed the theater's artistic style, for the prosperity and development of the cause of Peking Opera continue to make efforts to achieve brilliant results

November 28, 2007, the Chinese Peking Opera Theatre was officially renamed as the National Peking Opera Theatre of China.