The Glory of Beijing Opera

The four main roles of Beijing Opera (from left clockwise): Sheng, Dan, Chou, and JIng.

By Nahomy Vega, Staff Writer
February 13, 2023

One morning, mindlessly scrolling through YouTube, I stumbled across a specific video titled, “Enjoying the classic Peking Opera Drunken Concubine at Mid-Autumn Festival.” The thumbnail of this video alone left me interested, with the performer wearing a costume and makeup completely foreign to me.

The Discovery

Clicking on the video, I was so curious! The performers’ dancing, their voices and their costumes had me surfing through the comment section, and later the internet, for even more information on what this genre of performance arts was. This was when I first discovered the Beijing Opera.

Beijing Opera, also known as Chinese Peking Opera, is the dominating form of Chinese opera. Its costumes, actors, instruments, and stories told through performances have left an extreme impact on me and how I view music overall.

Its Presence in Media

The origins of the Chinese Peking Opera go back to a one-time event for the emperor’s birthday in China during the late eighteenth century. According to the website chinaculturetour.com, the opera truly flourished when the Four Anhui Troupes came to be in 1790. Since then, the opera became extremely popular in China, taking its influence all over the country. These performances make great tourist attractions, and more and more people share their experiences and even documentaries about these beautiful stagings.

Character Design Inspiration

As an artist and one who creates their own characters, I seek inspiration for my work everywhere. Learning about different cultures from all over the world helps me diversify their characteristics, like clothing and personality. For example, I have created several characters for my story based off Greek mythology and Ancient Japan.

Beijing Opera was clearly an excellent choice for me. The colors and jewelry worn by the performers have helped me improve my assortment of characters.

Costumes and Roles

When it comes to the performers, they play several different roles. According to the website mybeijingchina.com, these are Sheng, the male role; Dan, the female role; Jing, the painted face; and Chou, the comedic role. They all have several different subtypes depending on their ages and social status in the performance, as well as distinct voices.

The Sheng consists of subtypes with many occupations, like scholars and warriors. The elder roles (like the Laosheng) wear beards, have gentle and firm voices, and wear more uniform clothing. Meanwhile, younger roles like the Xiaosheng, have higher-pitched and sharper voices with costumes bearing headdresses and flags matching their shoulder pads.

The Dan also consists of similar subtypes. The most prominent being the Qingyi, the main female role in the performances. They play serious and dignified characters who are also wives and moms. The Qingyi have clothing with a lot of yellow and have a little range of motion with high-pitched and pure voices to accompany their personalities.

The Jing role is a character in high social status. They have broad and gruff voices with self-assertive mannerisms and heavily painted faces. The Chou also has a painted face but is only a small patch of white in the center of their faces. A very well-known Chou character in Chinese Peking Opera is the Monkey King, with his quick movements and agile body.

The Opera’s Influence on Me

The opera has greatly aided me in character design, and my view on performance arts has changed. It makes me think of how beautiful every country is with its cultural traditions involving dance and music. They’re all so unique and so intriguing with no exception. This makes me think of how there are probably many other countries with traditions we have never heard of before and are just as astonishing as any other.

The Beijing Opera deserves so much more recognition, even when it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. The opera being known worldwide can open the minds of so many people, especially those who are interested in music and theatre.