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Opening Programme
When Jingkun Met Cantonese Opera——
A Chinese Opera Exchange Project

Date

10/17(Fri)

7:30pm

10/18(Sat)

2:30pm

Location GuoGuang Theater
Ticket NT$300, 500, 800
Duration

Approx. 2 hours 20 mins,
including a 15-minute interval

Lang

Cantonese, Mandarin with Chinese subtitles

An Exchange of Artistry on a Shared Stage

The history of Chinese opera can be said to be a history of exchange and mutual influence between different folk traditions and styles. Many Chinese opera genres share similar development trajectories: absorbing the strengths from other genres, establishing its own distinctive characteristics and then gaining popularity. Three genres of Chinese opera: Peking Opera, Kunqu Opera and Cantonese Opera will be showcased in the programme. Their enduring charm lies partly in their ability to evolve and learn from other opera genres, testament to their status as vibrant, living arts forms.

The Chinese opera exchange project also marks the first-time collaboration between GuoGuang Opera Company of Taiwan and Lung Fei Cantonese Opera Troupe of Hong Kong. With Peking and Kunqu operas ringing up the curtain, Taiwanese audiences will be led from their familiar genres to the whole new world of Cantonese Opera. With a star-cast appearance, audiences are certainly treated to a feast for the eyes and the ears.

Renowned Hong Kong Cantonese Opera veterans Lee Lung and Sun Kim-long lead the troupe with emerging performers, while GuoGuang will be represented by the leading actor Wen Yu-hang, leading actress Chu Sheng-li, laosheng (elderly male role) Tsou Tzu-ai, Wang Ying-hua and actress Chu Ming-yue. Together, they will share the stage to exchange, collaborate and demonstrate the legacies of their representing genres of Chinese opera.



The Evolution of Cantonese Opera

Cantonese Opera belongs to the pihuang system in Chinese traditional theatre. In the transitional years between Ming and Qing dynasties in early 17th century, opera troupes arriving in Guangdong from other provinces, known as waijiangban (or ‘troupes from beyond the Pearl River’), had popularised vocal styles such as Yiyang qiang, Kun qiang, Hui diao, Han diao and Qin qiang. Between 1723 and 1821, a union of Cantonese Opera artists – Pat Wo Wui Kun – was formed. It brought together artists of the genre to write libretti for performance, which marked the emergent trend of local troupes performing in the local vernacular.

By early 20th century, local theatre had been almost completely dominated by local opera troupes. They had amassed enough performing experience to reinvent and localize the repertory, dialect, and the performing and singing styles of the waijiangban. In particular, they created new beat patterns other than the bangzi-erhuang and banqiang modes, and their male singers broke free from the traditional use of the falsetto to utilising more frequently their chest voices. The libretti were also often rewritten using the Cantonese vernacular.

By the 1910s, the staging also underwent drastic changes. A wider variety of costumes were permitted onstage, ranging from contemporary Chinese to Western, and even Qing style costumes. The Cantonese vernacular, local folk tunes and local narrative singing were freely incorporated into performances. These developments signified the emergence of Cantonese Opera as a truly local art form closely connected with the people.


Co-Presenters

Collaborating Partner

17 October (Fri)

GuoGuang Opera Company——Kunqu Opera

At the Toilette Table and Kneeling by the Pond from The Lioness Roars

A rare example of uproarious comedy in a genre traditionally known for its elegant restraint, At the Toilette Table and Kneeling by the Pond are two of the most popular excerpts in the Kunqu Opera repertoire. Its popularity derives from its charming story – the taming of a shrewish wife – and its demands on the actors’ physical, as well as vocal, performance.

Wen Yu-hangasChen Guichang

Chu Sheng-liasLiu (Chen’s wife)

Wang Ying-huaasSu Dongpo


Interval

Lung Fei Cantonese Opera Troupe——Cantonese Opera

Joining the Mount Liang Gang from Lin Chong

This well-known story from The Water Margin features Lam Tin-yau, student of the great Lam Kar-sing, in the title role. As Lin Chong, Lam Tin-yau proves himself as an all-round talent, singing, reciting and performing complicated martial art moves.

Lam Tin-yauasLin Chong

Lam Tsz-chingas Lin’s wife

Kong Wing-hungasJin’er

Kwok Kei-faiasOfficial Gao

Chan Wing-kwongasLu Qian

Ng Kwok-wahasFu An

Joining Forces to Defeat Cao Cao

A battle of wits within an action-filled play, Joining Forces to Defeat Cao Cao is set in the period of the Three Kingdoms, an unconventional choice for playwright Yip Shiu-Tak. The story concerns the wise Kong Ming, who engages General Zhou Yu in a game of intrigue and political manipulation.

Lee LungasZhou Yu

Sun Kim-longasKong Ming

Fragrant Sacrifice from Princess Chang Ping

Fragrant Sacrifice is a classic scene from Princess Chang Ping, perhaps the best-known work of renowned playwright Tong Tik-sang and opera artists Yam Kim-fai and Pak Suet-sin. Based on the tune Meditations in the Boudoir, with Tong’s beautiful and poignant libretti, Fragrant Sacrifice is a must-see for any Cantonese Opera fans.

Lam Tin-yauasZhou Shixian

Lam Tsz-chingasPrincess Chang Ping


18 October (Sat)

GuoGuang Opera Company ——Peking Opera

Revealing the True Identity from The Captive General Visits his Mother

One of the most important and challenging pieces in Peking Opera for laosheng actors, this scene tests the chemistry between the two leads, as well as their ability to portray the subtle relationship between husband and wife, as they experience complex emotions of suspicion, reconciliation and trust.

Tsou Tzu-aiasYang Yanhui

Chu Ming-yueasPrincess of Liao


Interval

Lung Fei Cantonese Opera Troupe —— Cantonese Opera

Lu An Zhou

Lu An Zhou tells the story of Lu, a general of the Sung dynasty, and his wife, who both bravely decide to remain and defend their city to their last breath. Providing ample opportunities for its actors to showcase their physical moves, the play also features plenty of percussion instruments in the style of Peking Opera. It is a perfect representative of how Cantonese Opera fuses together local and other genres’ traditions.

Lam Tin-yauasLu Deng

Lam Tsz-chingasLu’s wife

Kong Wing-hungasNanny

The Drunken Emperor Orders to Have His Brother Executed

As part of the dapaichang shibaben (18 traditional Cantonese Opera pieces from the Qing dynasty), The Drunken Emperor Orders to Have His Brother Executed is one of the oldest existing paichang pieces (or extracts) in the genre. It is also a rare example of Cantonese Opera where the libretti and dialogues are written in common speech rather than in the vernacular. Many of its physical moves have been very influential in the development of how later works of Cantonese Opera are choreographed.

Lee LungasZhang Zhong

Sun Kim-longasSima Yang

Kwok Kei-faiasMiao Xin

Chan Wing-kwongasLi Long

Ng Kwok-wahasEunuch

Chan Wing-kwaiasEunuch

*There will be an autograph-signing session at the end of this performance

Access

GuoGuang Theater
No. 8-1, Lane 66, Section 3, Mushan Rd, Wenshan District, Taipei

www.kk.gov.tw

Ticketing

Tickets now on sale


Booking Hotline

GuoGuang Theater

(886) 2 2938 3567 ext. 406

ERA Ticket (886) 2 2341 9898

Discount Details and Online Booking

Era Ticket www.ticket.com.tw

Programme Enquiries

Lung Fei Cantonese Opera Troupe

Phone

(886) 2 2720 0858 / (852) 2357 9316

Website www.kk.gov.tw

Discount

  • 10% off for military, police veterans, Eslite Bookstore Members, Tai Shin Bank Arts Card, Volunteer Service Card, Youth Travel Card, YH International Youth Hostel Card
  • 50% off for students, residents of Wenshan District, seniors and disabled
  • 20% off for package of 2 performances