May I ask: What is the origin of Cantonese opera?

1. Introduction:

Cantonese Opera, also known as "Guangdong Opera" or "Guangfu Opera", is one of the traditional operas of the Han nationality. It originated from Nan Opera and has been performed in Guangdong since the Jiajing Period of the Ming Dynasty. , appeared in Guangxi, is a performing art that combines chorus, chanting, playing, music by musicians, stage costumes, and abstract shapes. Each profession in Cantonese opera has its own unique costumes.

Cantonese opera is the largest local opera in Guangdong Province. With the immigration of Cantonese-speaking Chinese and their love and singing of Cantonese opera, it has been spread to the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Southeast Asia and other places where overseas Chinese in Guangzhou gather. For example, Singapore is known as the “second hometown of Cantonese opera”.

2. Origin and development:

It is generally believed that Cantonese opera began to sprout in the middle of the Ming Dynasty and was conceived in local classes. Generally speaking, the sources of local classes are quoted from the "A Brief History of Guangdong Drama" written by Mai Xiaoxia. According to the "Historical Brief": "Yongzheng succeeded to the throne... and the famous Beijing actress Zhang Wuhao fled... He came to Guangdong and lived in Dajiwei, Foshan Town... He taught the Red Boat disciples with Peking Opera and Kunqu Opera, changed its organization, and expanded its scale. He founded the Qionghua Guild Hall, which is the origin of records of local Cantonese opera troupes. As for the history of local Cantonese opera classes, Qionghua Guild Hall was not founded until the Yongzheng period. According to historical records, as early as the Jiajing to Wanli years of the Ming Dynasty, local classes in Foshan and Guangzhou had already established the Qionghua Guild Hall as an industry organization. After continuous development, it was formed by combining Yiyang and Kunqiang with folk tunes such as Nanyin, Dragon Boat, Muyu, Cantonese Acura, Xianshui Song and Guangdong instrumental music that are popular in Guangdong. Until the end of the Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China, it gradually evolved into a fusion of northern and southern, Chinese and foreign singing music, sung in Cantonese, thus forming a local drama with distinctive Lingnan characteristics - Cantonese opera. Cantonese opera is unique from other provincial operas in that it not only belongs to the category of Chinese freehand drama, but also has a light, smooth, and new and changeable personality, and enjoys the reputation of "Red Bean of the South".

Cantonese Opera originated from Nan Opera, formerly known as "Guangfu Opera", also known as "Da Opera" or "Guangdong Opera", and originated in Foshan. As early as the Han Dynasty, Foshan's performing arts were very popular. Cantonese opera began to appear in Guangdong during the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty. Cantonese opera is a performing art that combines chorus, chanting, beating, music by musicians, stage costumes, abstract shapes, etc. It integrates Haiyan, Yiyang, Kunshan, Bangzi and other tunes that have flowed into Guangdong since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and absorbs folk music from the Pearl River Delta to form a major opera genre in southern my country, mainly Bangzi (called Xipi in Peking Opera) and Erhuang.

The language in which Cantonese opera was originally performed was Central Plains phonology, also known as theater Mandarin. In the mid-1840s, Cantonese opera spread from Hong Kong to Southeast Asia (Singapore and Malaysia). At the end of the Qing Dynasty, intellectuals changed the singing language to Cantonese in order to facilitate the propaganda of the revolution, making it easier for Guangzhou people to understand. Although the name of Cantonese Opera only appeared during the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, its origins can be traced back to the mid-Ming Dynasty more than 400 years ago. In the thirty years before the founding of the People's Republic of China, Cantonese opera was basically divided into two factions: the "Provincial and Hong Kong Taipan" and the "Guoshan Troupe" (or "Luoxiang Troupe").

In the Ming Dynasty, Nan Opera - Yiyang tune was already popular in Guangdong, and Kun Troupe, Hui Troupe and Jiangxi and Hunan opera troupes often performed in Guangdong. Influenced by foreigners, Cantonese people also learned acting, and then formed theater troupes with locals as the main body, and transitioned to theater troupes with locals as the entire body. "In order to distinguish the two, the former was called the "Waijiang Class" and the latter was called the "Local Class". During the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty, Mr. Yang Zhangsheng believed: "The Guangdong Music Department is divided into two: the Waijiang Class and the Local Class. "Class". "In general, the Waijiang class is close to the Hui class, and the local class is close to the Spanish class. The situation is completely different." Despite this, in the early days of the establishment of the local class (Ming Dynasty), the main difference between it and the Waijiang class was that It refers to the different voices, and mainly refers to the fact that the troupe is composed of local people. In a narrow sense, it refers to a professional theater troupe composed of local artists; in a broad sense, it can also include farmers and craftsmen who perform seasonal performances. A temporary performance group was formed at the end of the Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China. Stars shone brightly, and famous actors appeared in large numbers, such as Qianliju, Xiao Lixiang, Xiao Shengcong, Zhou Lingli, Li Xuefang, etc., all of whom were famous at home and abroad. Known as the "King of Huadan", Li Xuefang was praised by Kang Youwei as "The Snow in the South and the Plum Blossom in the North", and was mentioned together with Mei Lanfang.

The 1930s was called the "Xue Ma vying for supremacy" in the history of Cantonese opera. Xue Juexian is close to the style of Peking Opera, and his performance skills are relatively comprehensive.

He can do anything when he is born and clean. He is nicknamed the "universal old man", but he is excellent at playing niche roles. His representative plays include "Hu Bu Gui" and so on. The jockey of the Four Great Tragedies wins as a buffoon.

In the drama with the "solitary" (miser) as the protagonist, he fully exposed the ugliness of the feudal rich and capitalists, in the style of Molière. It is not only popular among audiences in Guangdong, Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macao and Southeast Asia, but has also been very popular in the United States for many years.