Gender-bender genre retains charm
One of Chinese opera's many delights is the age-old convention of cross-dressing, with men and women swapping roles
CROSS-DRESSING HAS a long history in Beijing opera, dating back to feudal times when women were not allowed to perform on stage and male opera singers had to perform female roles.
It was only during what many term 'Chinese opera's golden age', in the 1920s and '30s, that women were allowed to openly make an appearance on stage. The move toward gender equality among the intelligentsia in that era encouraged some female singers to take on male roles, just as male singers had traditionally taken on female roles.
Audiences of the Hong Kong Arts Festival will see a demonstration of this Chinese opera tradition in two performances by two masters - Liu Zheng and Wang Peiyu - in collaboration with the Tianjin Beijing Opera Theatre, on February 17 and 18.
It is important to keep in mind that cross-dressing in the Chinese opera culture is an accepted part of the genre and has never been thought of as ironic.
'People did not go to the theatre to see men play women's roles,' said female impersonator Liu. 'Some audience members would have guessed that you were really a man, but they wouldn't have paid much attention to your gender during the performance. It was important that the male be made up to be really beautiful and that his gestures and mannerisms be really feminine.'
Liu will play female dan roles in a rare programme of double gender-switching in selected excerpts of Beijing opera including The Truth Revealed and The King Bidding Farewell To His Concubine.
His co-star, female opera singer Wang Peiyu, will perform as a lao sheng, or scholarly male. Asked how difficult it was to assume a male persona, Wang said she had never given the matter serious thought.
'I had 10 years of training, and it was thorough and systematic,' she said. 'I never really thought about my gender when I was performing. I was just playing a part.'
After a decade-long ban during the Cultural Revolution, Beijing opera was restored in 1978 but has never truly regained its former popularity. Modern audiences understand neither the historical contexts nor the literary allusions, and they are not familiar with the highly stylised conventions that can make the genre all but unintelligible to the uninitiated.
Arts festival audiences will be able to understand the storyline with the help of Chinese surtitles and English scene synopses.
Symbolism is a major element in Beijing opera. The colour of the painted face indicates the personality of a character. Red is a sign of loyalty, purple is resolution and resourcefulness, black is tied to honesty and uprightness, white connotes treachery, cruelty and bossiness, blue means bravery, green evokes justice and chivalry, yellow suggests brutality and ferocity, and grey represents old heroes.
Beijing opera combines singing with drama, music, dancing and martial arts. Elaborate costumes and exquisite face-painting are an integral part of the spectacle. Sets are basic and props are kept to a minimum.
Simple gestures and movements convey much of the action. The audience knows when a certain movement or gesture indicates that the performer is changing clothes, walking through a door or riding a horse.
To the uninitiated, Beijing opera can seem overwhelmingly complex. Wang and Liu advised those new to the genre to focus on enjoying the performance rather than trying to understand the technical aspects.
Liu said: 'The music, the singing and the costumes are beautiful. How can anyone not enjoy them? People should just sit back and enjoy the show.'
Learning a few basics - such as how to distinguish between characters by their face colours - can be fun and would heighten your enjoyment.
