Peking Opera: The Persistence of Tradition in the People's Republic of China .

Peking or Beijing Opera, the theatre of the capital, as it is literally translated, has dominated China for the past 100 years. All the others, being regional in nature, reflects adaptations of music, content, acting style and dialect. Despite variations, which are important to scholars, performers and regions, all forms of Chinese Opera shares so many similarities that we can consider Peking Opera as generic. It was said that the persistence of theatrical and cultural traditions which reflect the national identity of Mainland China can be seen in Peking Opera. The surface strangeness of Peking Opera to most foreigners indicates their imperfect knowledge and understanding of the Chinese, who in turn cannot comprehend what excites others in films and theatre. Every aspect of Peking Opera reflects the psychological makeup of the Chinese people. At first the foreigner believes that Peking Opera must function as grand spectacle. The glorious costumes and makeup of stage dress imitate Chinese court dress ranging from the seventh-century Tang dynasty to the twentieth-century Ch'ing. Only occasionally would a bright color show up, just as it might stand out today amid the standard communist navy blue or black costume. To the outsider, this contrast between the brilliant, magnificently costumed stage creatures and the drably clothed audience implies that the performance functions as pure spectacle and escape. It was said that nowhere is the persistence of this theatrical tradition seen more vividly than during the cultural revolution of 1966-76, China's holocaust years.