The Origin and Development of Suzhou Puppetry

Introduction

Suzhou commentary is the general name of Suzhou commentary and Suzhou play lyrics, is the use of the Wu language spoken in the performance of traditional Chinese opera and storytelling theater form. It is produced and popularized in Suzhou, as well as Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai.

In 2008, the Suzhou Players were selected as one of the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage extension projects.

Two, origin and development

1, Suzhou commentary

Suzhou commentary originated in the Song Dynasty talking kabuki. Qing Dynasty playwright Li Yu's "Qingzhong Spectrum", the second fold of the "book haunted", describes the end of the Ming and early Qing dynasties in the Suzhou storytelling in the speech "Yue Chuan" scene, there are table, there are white, there are similar to the fuzhan rhyme, and Suzhou commentary on the same.

Liu Jingting, a famous story-telling artist in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, used to tell stories in Suzhou and its neighborhood, and had a close relationship with the Suzhou story-telling.

In the middle of the Qing Dynasty, Suzhou commentary entered its heyday, and the earliest guild organization of Suzhou commentary was established, the Guangyu Society. During the reigns of Xianfeng and Tongzhi, there were famous critics such as Yao Shizhang, who said "Water Margin".

2, Suzhou play lyrics

"Play lyrics" is a term that was first used in the 26th year of the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty (1547) in Tian Rucheng's "West Lake Excursions", which recorded that Hangzhou's tidal wave was observed in August: "At that time, there were a hundred games, batting, Guanpou, fishing and drumming, and play lyrics, and the sound was booming. "

In the early Qing Dynasty, with the economic prosperity of the city of Suzhou, play words have been prevalent in Suzhou. Dong Shu, a native of Wuxing, Zhejiang Province, who settled in Suzhou at the end of the Kangxi period, depicted in his novel "Westward Journey Supplement" a blind girl's performance using the Suzhou dialect. By the Qianlong period, there were more and more accounts of the formation of the Suzhou play-word.

Jiaqing (1796--1820), the rapid development of Suzhou playwords, at this time the engraved and printed bibliography of the world, such as the "three laughs", "Japanese robes", "the righteous demon biography", "double gold ingots", etc.; well-known playword artists increased, playword development of the history of the "first four famous" appeared at this time. They developed the book art of Wang Zhoushi, enriched the bibliography, created a genre of singing, broadened the skills of ideas, and laid down the basic form of today's Suzhou play lyrics.

Daoguang, Xianfeng period (1821-1861), the emergence of Suzhou women's libretto to Changshu people for the most part, playing and singing the beginning of the bibliography, tunes and the circulation of the time is largely the same, but most of them will not sing the whole part, will only be said "a paragraph in the book".

In the Republic of China, the number of performers in Suzhou increased dramatically. According to the statistics of the 16th year of the Republic of China (1927), the Guangyu Society had 200 members at that time, and there were nearly 2,000 artists who did not belong to the Guangyu Society, which made the competition for the art very fierce. The competition was fierce, with new bibliographies, new singing styles, innovative performances, and new venues for performances.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China **** and the State, in 1956 to participate in the registration of Suzhou pop lyrics artists have 600 people, of which 480 people in the city of Suzhou. After registration, these artists participated in the local theater groups, according to the "blossom, push the new" policy, the bibliography, singing and other artistic reforms.

Expanded

Suzhou commentary on the international influence of the art

In the fourth Chinese Kun Opera and commentary on the art festival, twenty-eight commentary on the brilliantly being staged, the Suzhou Guangyu book hall and commentary on the Museum of the book every day full of listeners, many of them blue-eyed, high-nosed "" foreign listeners "", they are not only a good example, but also a good example. foreign listeners", they listen to the flavor, as if intoxicated.

A New Zealand listener said, although I do not understand the content of the song, but this does not affect the appreciation of the beautiful melody, in this deep alley, hear such a soft Wu language, finally found the real "Oriental" music flavor.

Suzhou commentary in overseas Chinese and compatriots in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan is quite influential. In May 2005, a concert honoring the 100th anniversary of Chen Yun's birth was held in New York's Chinatown, attended by about 100 people from the overseas Chinese community.

In the same year, Suzhou's famous actor Sheng Xiaoyun held a concert in Taiwan to achieve full success, that night, another top theater in Taipei, "National Grand Theater" concert hall, Berlin Philharmonic "Beethoven's Night" is also being performed, the formation of the same city against the situation, Sheng Xiaoyun concert. The concert ticket sales of Sheng Xiaoyun's concert were not affected by the situation, but sold out, and the enthusiasm of the Taiwanese audience was comparable to that of the Berliner Philharmoniker.

August 2006, the review of the "Four Beauties" Hong Kong premiere sensational audience is not yet finished, the praise is overwhelming.

Suzhou commentary sung out of the country, foreigners for the fall. In Italy, the first performance of Suzhou commentary in the grand theater, a sensation in the city of Rome; held in Paris, France, "China Arts Festival" Suzhou commentary on special performances, the organizers of the special performance venues set up as a teahouse bookstore with the characteristics of Jiangnan.

During the 28th World Heritage Conference held in Suzhou, Ms. Noriko Aikawa, Director of UNESCO's Heritage Division, came to Suzhou and was impressed by the "most beautiful sound in the world", and praised the art of jingmao.