The Origin of Sichuan Opera

The origin of Sichuan Opera can be traced back to the pre-Qin period and even earlier periods, and then the two Han Dynasty's Jiaozhi Hundred Operas laid the foundation for the early Sichuan Opera.

According to "Taiping Guangji" and "Compilation of Barnyard History", since Li Bing, the governor of Shu County, there has been "Bullfighting" theater. During the Three Kingdoms period, there was the first satirical comedy "Wrathful Controversy" in Sichuan, which can be called the originator of Sichuan comedy.

The Tang and Five Dynasties period was the most prosperous period of Sichuan opera, and the situation of "Shu technology championing the world" appeared. During this period, there were plays such as "Liu Pi Chui Buying", "Maixiu Liangqi" and "Goukou Shen". And there appeared the earliest troupe in the history of Chinese opera so far, that is, the troupe composed of five people, namely, Gan Manchuan, Bai Jia, Ye Si, Zhang Mei and Zhang Ao, which is contained in "Youyang Miscellany Chopping Block".

From the "Bullfighting" play to the Song miscellany of "wine, color and wealth", which lasted more than a thousand years, they are authentic "Sichuan opera", which can be regarded as a broad sense of Sichuan opera. The modern sense of Sichuan opera, should be said to be in the Song and Yuan South opera, Sichuan opera, Yuan miscellaneous plays on the basis of the "Sichuan opera" began in the Ming Dynasty.

To the Qing Dynasty, Sichuan opera by the Kunqu, Gaoqiang, Huqin, play and lamp play five different kinds of voice miscellany, the late Qing Dynasty, there were five **** and a new situation, so that the face of the Sichuan opera for the new, all kinds of voice characteristics of the repertoire and retention of the repertoire began to take shape. Subsequently, the Sichuan opera improvement movement, the establishment of the "Opera Improvement Association", funded the construction of the "Yuelai Tea Garden (now the former site of the Jinjiang Theatre)", "Sichuan Opera Department" and other performance venues.

This led to the founding of the "Three Celebrations Society" in 1912, which was organized by Sichuan opera artists themselves, and the emergence of a large number of famous performers such as Kang Zilin, Yang Sulan, and Xiao Kaixin, with an elite of more than 300 people. There were also a large number of famous actors and actresses, such as Zhao Xi's "Love Detective", Huang Ji'an's "The Three Dutiful Heroes", "Chai Shi Festival", etc., and there were more than 700 popular dramas.

Since the 20th century, although also appeared to Liu Huaisu as the representative of the "Sichuan opera creators" who created modern theater, but the country is in a dark period, Sichuan opera began to decline; after the founding of the People's Republic of China, in the party and the new China's support, the Sichuan opera began to rejuvenate the art of youth, re-entered its own "Golden Age".

Expanded Information

The Art of Genre

Chuan Opera has gradually formed a number of genres due to the popularity of various voices in the region and the relationship between the masters of the artists. Among these schools, except for the Dan line Run (Hua Xian) school, the ugly line Fu (San Qian) school, Cao (Jun Chen) school and other outstanding artists called schools, mainly according to the popular area of the distinction between four schools:

One is the "Western Sichuan School", including the Wenjiang area counties centered in Chengdu, the main huqin, the formation of a unique "bei tunes". The first is the "Western Sichuan School", which includes the counties in the Wenjiang area centered on Chengdu, and is dominated by the huqin, forming a unique "Bei Tune";

The second is the "Ziyang River School", which includes the districts and counties of Zigong and Neijiang, and is dominated by the gaoqiang (high cadence), which is the most rigorous in artistic style;

The third is the "Northern Sichuan School

Three is the "North Sichuan School", including Nanchong and parts of Mianyang, mainly singing bomb opera, influenced by the Qin cavity school;

Four is the "East Sichuan School", including the east of Sichuan and the Chongqing area, due to the performance of a lot of foreign plays, resulting in the characteristics of the play is a variety of diverse, diverse voice.

The actors who have been popular with the masses in the past half century include:

Yuan Yuk Kwan, Zeng Ronghua, Jiang Shangfeng and Xie Wenxin; Qiong Lianfang, Yang Youhe, Yang Yunfeng, Xue Yanqiu, Hu Shufang, Chen Shuifang, Xu Qianyun, Jinghua and Yang Shuying;

Chen Tamanran and Szeto Huicong; and Zhou Qihuo, Liu Chengji, Zhou Yuxiang, Chen Jinbo and Li Wenjie, all of whom have been playing the role of the clown. Peng Haiqing, a martial arts student. There are also famous drum masters Wang Guanfu and Su Mingqing.

References:

Baidu Encyclopedia: Chuanju Opera