▲Traditional Chinese opera is a popular form of drama and musical theater that dates back to the early periods in China.

▲In Cantonese opera, performers will often spend their entire career studying one character.

▲Though early forms of Chinese theater are simple, traditional Chinese opera incorporates various art forms including music, song and dance, martial arts, acrobatics, as well as literary art forms.

▲The composite performance art is the result of various art forms that existed in ancient China.

▲Incredibly ornate, Chinese opera costumes can cost small fortunes, so they are often passed from teacher to student.

▲There are over 360 different types of Chinese opera.

▲While women are paid more, men still often play female roles in comedic operas.

▲Black stands for neutral, but it also indicates integrity and can mean fierceness.

▲Yellows is ambitious, fierce, intelligent, and can also mean cruel, evil, or sly.

▲White represents sinister, evil, crafty, treacherous, suspicious, and hypocritical.

▲The color of a character’s mask stands for different feelings, with the dominant color offering insight about the identity of the character.

▲The makeup required in Chinese opera takes hours to apply, involving an intricate process that requires special techniques and lots of layering.

▲One of the most popular types, Huangmei opera is a form of rural folksong and dance that dates back at least 200 years.

▲Similar to what you would see in a commedia dell’arte, Chinese opera characters are often archetypal, so audiences generally know what their reactions to certain situations will be.

▲There are military, civil and female Ch'ous.

▲The ancient traditions gradually evolved over more than a thousand years, reaching its mature form in the 13th century during the Song Dynasty.

▲This variant dates back to the early 20th century and is characterized by the soft and beautiful voices of its characters, which are always women, who portray even male roles.

▲One example is the Ch'ou character in Beijing opera, who is a clown, normally of low status. They are the only characters to use slang and improvise speeches.

▲Special effects and tricks such as juggling acrobatics and fire breathing are common in Shanxi opera.

▲Blue stands for neutrality, but it can also mean stubborn, astute, and fierce.

▲Green represents characters who are violent, impulsive, and lack restraint or self control.

▲Traditional Chinese opera has regional variants including the Beijing opera, Shaoxing opera, Cantonese opera, kunqu, lüju and others.

▲Chinese opera is one of the few professions in China in which women consistently make more money than men.

▲Silver means a god or demon, and can also indicate a ghost or spirit.

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So much so, that some performers today use costumes from the 1940s!

▲This variant places a lot of weight on symbolism, in which footwork, gesture, and various kinds of body movements portray the actions of opening a door, climbing a hill, going upstairs, or rowing a boat.

▲Chinese opera is an ancient art that has been evolving for thousands and thousands of years. With changes came sophistication, but tradition was never lost, and the art of drama and musical theater remains as popular today as it was a millennia ago.

Browse the gallery and delve into the beauty and intricacies of this ancient art.

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Before the widespread introduction of formal education, operas often served as a vehicle to spread morals, virtues, and other civic messages.

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Purple represents justice and sophistication.

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Red stands for prosperous, loyal, brave, heroic, and intelligence.

The ancient art of Chinese opera: Breathtaking photos and curious facts

Delve into this ancient art and its intricacies

28/08/24 por StarsInsider

LIFESTYLE Chinese opera

Chinese opera is an ancient art that has been evolving for thousands and thousands of years. With changes came sophistication, but tradition was never lost, and the art of drama and musical theater remains as popular today as it was a millennia ago.

Browse the gallery and delve into the beauty and intricacies of this ancient art.