ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 19 ก.ย. 2024
- My first encounter with streets Chinese Opera was in Penang Island on Lorong Seck Chuan during the 2013 Hungry Ghosts Month. A Thai troupe gave a few shows. The leader had allowed me backstage to capture great make up moments. After, I was very surprised that there were virtually no one watching the show. A local told me that it was not meant to be for humans but for the ancestors back on earth for that month. Since I have documented extensively Chinese Opera around West Malaysia from Kajang to Penang and from Gopeng to Bukit Mertajam witnessing from basic local show to highly professional one with troupes from Hong Kong. Most troupes these days are coming from Thailand. Before the pandemic there were Chinese artists coming too. Sadly and ironically, there are very few Malaysian opera performers while temples wants to keep the tradition going.
Chinese opera together with Greece tragic-comedy and Indian Sanskrit Opera are the three oldest dramatic art forms in the world. During the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907), the Emperor Taizong established an opera school with the poetic name Liyuan (Pear Garden). From that time on, performers of Chinese opera were referred to as 'disciples of the pear garden'. Since the Yuan Dynasty (1271 - 1368) it has been encouraged by court officials and emperors and has become a traditional art form. During the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911), it became fashionable among ordinary people. Performances were watched in tearooms, restaurants, and even around makeshift stages.
It evolved from folk songs, dances, talking, antimasque, and especially distinctive dialectical music. Gradually it combined music, art and literature into one performance on the stage. Accompanied by traditional musical instruments like the Erhu, the gong, and the lute, actors present unique melodies - which may sound strange to foreigners - as well as dialogues which are beautifully written and of high literary value. These dialogs also promoted the development of distinct literary styles, such as Zaju in the Yuan Dynasty. For Chinese, especially older folks, to listen to this kind of opera is a real pleasure but slightly less for me.
What appeals to me most is, I guess, be the different styles of facial make-up, which is one of the highlights and requires distinctive techniques of painting and the dedication to it by the actors. Exaggerated designs are painted on each performer's face to symbolize a character's personality, role, and fate. This technique may have originated from ancient religions and dance. Make up sessions may last over an hour before the dressing up.
