What is the cultural history of puppet shows?

1. The general view is that puppet shows originated in the Han Dynasty and flourished in the Tang Dynasty. Zuo Lei was recorded in the Han Dynasty (206- 220 BC) (Records of the Five Elements in the Later Han Dynasty). During the Three Kingdoms Period (AD 220-265), Ma Jun's water-to-hundred plays were obviously imitations of the dramas of the Han Dynasty. During the Northern Qi Dynasty (550-577 AD), Woodenhead, a hydrodynamic artist, made it with superb skills, especially the puppet art of performing The Story of Guo Tu, which hinted at the formation of Chinese puppet shows. Unfortunately, there are few written records.

2. In the later dynasties, there were many stories of "Guo Rabbit" in puppet shows, and the role of "Lai Baozi" (steamed stuffed bun) and the shadow of "Guo Rabbit" still existed in Heyang Line of Shaanxi Province. According to historical records, "At the latest in the Northern Qi Dynasty from 550 to 577 AD, puppet shows were formally formed in China, which were directly manipulated by people, and puppets dressed up as specific characters and performed simple stories in public".

3. In the Sui Dynasty (AD 58 1-6 18), there were many "water ornaments" in the "hundred operas", and "official statues" performed the myths, legends and stories of the Three Kingdoms, which had a direct impact on the production and performance of puppet shows. The Tang Dynasty (6 18-896) witnessed an extraordinary cultural prosperity. Musicals compete with legionary teleplay, and official figures can drink and sing blowing sheng. Performance and production are unified. According to the Tang Dynasty murals, poems and songs collected in Cave 3 1 of Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, it is inferred that there are puppet types such as lifting strings, cudgels, cloth bags and "bell-ringing puppets" at this time.

4. After thousands of years' uninterrupted inheritance and accumulation, Quanzhou puppet show has preserved more than 700 traditional repertoires and more than 300 tunes, including ancient musical instruments such as "Foot Drum" and "Gong Ju" and the corresponding playing techniques, and formed a set of exquisite and mature "traditional basic line rules" for playing lines, as well as exquisite puppet sculpture, idol plastic arts and production.

5. Due to the special geographical, historical and cultural relations between Quanzhou and Taiwan Province Province and Southeast Asia, Quanzhou puppet show began to spread to Taiwan Province Province and Southeast Asia in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, and took root and blossomed there. It has played an important bridge role in spreading Minnan dialect and culture, continuing the inheritance of national culture, communicating the feelings of compatriots on both sides of the strait and overseas Chinese in Southeast Asian countries, and enhancing national cultural identity.