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Modern day theatre performance in china. Dora Chang Johnson December 2, 2010 UW-Baraboo. Dora chang johnson. Chinese language Instructor at UW-Richland Director, Playwright and Blogger Contact Info: e- mail:dora.johnson@uwc.edu. Dynasty vs drama/theatre. Shang Dynasty : (100BC)
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Modern day theatre performance in china Dora Chang Johnson December 2, 2010 UW-Baraboo
Dora changjohnson • Chinese language Instructor at UW-Richland • Director, Playwright and Blogger • Contact Info: • e-mail:dora.johnson@uwc.edu
Dynasty vs drama/theatre • Shang Dynasty: (100BC) • theatrical entertainment often involved music, clowning and acrobatic displays • Tang Dynasty: (600AD) • The Age of 1000 Entertainments • Emperor Tang Ming Huang established an acting school known as “The Pear Garden” to produce a form of drama that was primarily musical.
Song Dynasty: (1000AD) • many popular plays involving acrobatics and music • Yuan Dynasty: (1279 AD) • First Golden Age for Chinese Theatre • more sophisticated form with a four or five act structure • Yuan drama spread across China and diversified into numerous regional forms, the best known of which is Chinese Opera (Beijing Opera)
Ming Dynasty: ( 1368 AD) • Ming drama works remained to be performed as Chinese opera • different from Yuan drama: Ming drama is Southern-styled 'kun qu',hence is termed as Southern drama • also known as marvel dramas 'zhuanqi',inheriting its characteristics of exploiting the strange & fantastic of the Tang and Song dramas
Qing Dynasty: (1644-1911) • Regional theater/drama forming, most important of all: Beijing Opera • Theatre became more politized
Beijing opera (京剧, Jing ju) • Character: • Sheng: (生) is the main male role • Dan :(旦) refers to any female role • Jing: (净) is a painted face male role. • Chou:(丑) is a male clown role.
Monkey king (video) • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VOCDFIW4xg
Modern drama:huàjù 话剧(spoken play) • Introduced towards the end of Qing Dynasty • Five different stages • Western dramatic style
First stage:new dramaRepulbic of china (1907-1919) • (Towards the End of Qing Dynasty) • “Spring Willow Society” performed the first Western Play, Hua Ju (spoken Play): Black Slave’s Cry to Heaven (adapt from Uncle Tom’s Cabin) • Translation of Western dramas or novels • Social commentary, mainly political
HuajuSinicization: • Sinicization, Sinicisation or Sinification • 中国化 Zhōngguóhuà or 汉化 Hànhuà)
second stage: huaju(1919-1929)May fouth movement(5.4.1919)(New culture movement) • Hu Shi (1891-1962)
New culture movement (continued) • Called for the creation of a new Chinese culture based on global and western standards, especially democracy and science • Vernacular(common form of expression) literature • The re-examination of Confucian texts and ancient classics using modern textual and critical methods
Hongsen(continued) • FirstChineseTheatrestudentinUS,studiedatHarvardUniversityDramaClassin1919 • Introduced“script”,“director”,“stagesystem”andadvocatefemaleandmaleactingcollaboration • FirstChineseCinemaScript • PavedthefoundationforModernDrama,HuaJuandChineseCinema
ThirdStage:leftwingera(1929-1937) • Red storm striking globally in the 30’s • LedbytheCommunistParty • 1929FoundedShanghaiArtTheatre,advocate“proletariat” (lower social class,people with no wealth except their children) • HuaJunow is not only for intellectuals, but also for the “common people” • Many young playwrights emerged, Cao Yu’s Thunderstorm was a representataion
曹禺CáoYǔ 1910-1996 • China’s most important playwright • “Thunder Storm” (1934), milestone in Chinese theatre of 20th century
fourth stage: sino-japanese war (1937-1945) • KMT (National Party) and CPC(Communist Party of China) worked together to fight the Japanese • HuaJu entering it’s Golden Era using “drama” as a tool to join force and express nationalism • First Theatre Festival was founded • Massive amount of original plays by Chinese playwrights such as Song Zhide, Laoshe, Xiayan, Caoyu etc….
Director Jiao juyin (continued) -1935 Studied in France -1942First director to -Translated large amount of European Plays -Explored HuaJu and Xi Qu with nationalism
Fifth stage:People republic of china (1949-Present) • Established: • Chinese Youth Art Theatre (1949), celebrated Republic’s founding, later 2001 ) • Beijing People’s Art Theatre (1954) • The Central Academy of China (1950) • Shanghai Theater Academy(1956)
Beijing People's Art Theatre • Established in 1952 • First rate national theatre in China
National theatre of china • Directly under Ministry of Culture • Largest state-level performing art organization • Founded in 2001(Former China National Youth Theatre and China National Experiemental Theatre) • Drama, Comedies and Experimental Form
National Theatre of China (continued) • Actor System • Full Contract • First Agent • Qualification exams: memorization, characterization • Minimum of Fourth Class • State provides First Class actors with special stipend