Introduction
If Shakespeare is a piece of warm sunshine in the history of Western theatre, then Tang Xianzu [1] is a jewel in the history of traditional Eastern opera. I once went to Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre during my studies in England. These works, written hundreds of years ago, are still alive and well on the stage. I took a good look at the audience and was struck by the fact that these ‘Ancient’ plays are still very popular with young people and even children. After leaving the theatre, I began to ponder.
“Xi Qu” is a unique term for traditional Chinese opera, dating back to the Qin Dynasty. It originated from the primitive song and dance and is a comprehensive stage art style with a long history. As it is known around the world, Beijing opera is one of the most popular forms of opera. In addition to Beijing opera, there are also the “Guangdong Cantonese opera”, “Sichuan opera” and “Shanghai opera”, depending on the musical melody, voice and local dialect. The tragedies and comedies of ancient Greece, Traditional Chinese opera(Xi Qu) and Indian Sanskrit drama are known as the three oldest theatre cultures in the world.
Video Link： One of the categories of Xi Qu：Beijing Opera
But such a valuable cultural heritage, in today’s China, for various reasons [2], does not receive the attention and love of young people. As a result, the heritage of opera culture is in crisis. How can I bring traditional opera culture into the lives of young people, so that traditional culture can be brought to the attention of young people and at the same time make it a vehicle for young people to express their individuality, achieving the effect of 1+1>2, this is the change I want to see. This also inspired me to combine Chinese opera culture with school uniforms.
About one of the elements of Xi Qu – Face Painting
Opera face painting, which refers to the painting of the faces of traditional Chinese opera performers, is the art of make-up modelling during stage performances. One of the most important features of face painting is that the different colours represent the different personalities of the characters.
For example
Red Face: Symbol of fidelity and valour. Representative figure: Guan Yu
Black face: Symbol of integrity, selflessness. Representative figure: The Lord of Pao
White Face: Symbol of insidiousness, cunning. Representative figure: Cao Cao
Yellow Face: Symbol of fierceness, brutality. Representative figure: Dian Wei
Blue Face: Symbol of untamedness and valour. Representative figure: Dourton
Gold Face and Silver Face: Symbols of mythological figures such as demons and monsters. Representative figure: Sun Wukong (Monkey King)
How can I incorporate traditional Chinese opera elements into the lives of young people? I have made the following assumptions.
About Chinese School Uniforms
Unlike the uniforms of Japanese, Korean and some Western schools, the first impression of Chinese primary and secondary school uniforms is that they are often “ugly” and “rigid”.
One of the main factors is that Chinese education administrators want students to focus more on their studies by standardising student grooming. For example, by requiring girls to cut their hair uniformly short in order to reduce the time taken to style it. By asking students to all wear loose-fitting school uniforms, to cover up the differences in their body shapes, thus reducing the body anxiety of certain students, etc. While there are some advantages to such a uniform approach, it also hinders the development of young people’s individuality.
In Harry Potter, the magical robes of different colleges have different colours and totems, representing the personalities of the students of the different colleges.
- Gryffindor： Bravery, energy and chivalry.
- Ravenclaw： Quick-witted, witty and knowledgeable
- Hufflepuff： Integrity, loyalty, honesty, not afraid of hardship, low profile
- Slytherin：Loyal to friends, proud, elegant, strict, intelligent
Like Hogwarts, the colours and totems of the traditional Chinese Opera face symbolise different characteristics, so could it also be combined with these ‘featureless’ Chinese school uniforms to allow young people to express their own individuality at school? To this end, I have developed some hypotheses.
1.Combine traditional Chinese Opera Face painting with the film characters that young people love.[3]
2. Add these New Faces to the school uniform (it can be designed by the students themselves, and let them show their individuality, the following pictures are only an assumption.)
For example:
[1]Tang Xianzu was a Chinese opera singer and literary scholar of the Ming Dynasty. He was a man of many accomplishments and is best known for traditional Chinese Opera compositions. His dramatic works, The Return of the Soul, The Purple Hairpin, The Book of Nanke, and The Book of Handan, are collectively known as the Four Dreams of Linchuan, of which The Return of the Soul (or The Peony Pavilion) is his masterpiece.
[2]For specific reasons, please go to the cause analysis page
[3]All images are from the internet & The Design Circle
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