Guan Hanqing was a major writer of Yuan zaju drama. His works address wrongful convictions, love, and social life; The Injustice to Dou E is one of his best-known plays. Zaju tells stories through songs, dialogue, and performance. Surviving texts also passed through later printing and need to be distinguished from their original performance setting.
Historical background
Guan Hanqing, art names Yizhai and Yizhaisou, was a Chinese dramatist, playwright, and poet of the Yuan dynasty. He has been described as among the most prolific and highly regarded dramatists of the Yuan period.
Guan Hanqing was undoubtedly the most productive and creative playwright of northern plays. Described by Jia Zhongming as "the leader of the Pear Garden" (liyuan lingxiu ), Guan was fully immersed in the theatrical scene of his time and was well known amongst both actors and his fellow peers. He is even said to have painted and powdered his face (mianfu fenmo ) while acting on stage. He is credited with the writing of 68 plays, of which only 18 survive, three in fragments. These were written mostly in the vernacular of the time. In some cases, attribution is highly disputed. In addition to playwriting, Guan Hanqing is also said to be a master of songs (sanqu ). 57 of his songs (xiaoling ) and 14 song suites (taoshu ) survive. Guan spent much of his later life in Dadu and to Hangzhou in the south. Above all, Guan Hanqing is celebrated for his uplifting portrayal of the downtrodden.
Historical background
Zaju was a form of Chinese opera which provided entertainment through a synthesis of recitations of prose and poetry, dance, singing, and mime, with a certain emphasis on comedy (or, happy endings). Although with diverse and earlier roots, zaju has particularly been associated with the time of the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368), and zaju remains important in terms of the historical study of the theater arts as well as Classical Chinese literature and poetry. Zaju is known to have been performed during the earlier Song (960–1279) and Jin (1115–1234) dynasties. The various particulars of the zaju multimedia performance were derived from many and diverse sources of musical, dance, poetry, and theater traditions.
The Yuan zaju were poetic music dramas comprising four acts, with the "act" (chu) defined as a set of songs following and completing a certain musical modal progression. Occasionally one or two "wedges" (xiezi), or short interludes in the form of an aria performed by another character might be added to either support or enhance the plot. Within the acts, lyrics were written to accompany existing tunes or set-rhythmic patterns; and, the major singing roles were restricted to one star per act. The zaju featured particular specialized roles for performers, such as dan (female), sheng (male), hua (painted-face) and chou (clown).
In addition to these main roles there were also a collection of side roles known as 'waijiao' (extra roles) and these consisted of: the jiatou (emperor), the beauty pining in her boudoir, the bawd, the coquettish young girl, the high official, the poor, the brigand, the government servant and those categories concerning immortals and Taoist deliverance, and family matters.
Background
On one hand, the zaju theater is the product of a long process of Chinese art, music, and poetry; on the other hand, the zaju also appears as a phenomenon resulting from a combination of cultures of Eurasia over time. Zaju had its genesis even before the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368). Zaju was verified as a variety play in North China in the course of the Northern Song dynasty. Zaju was performed during the Song dynasty (960–1279), particularly the Northern Song period (960–1127), as well as the Jurchen Jin dynasty (1115–1234), which succeeded it in northern China.
Zaju is now best known now from its high development during the Yuan dynasty, which was founded by the Mongol Empire under the leadership of Kublai Khan. Significant surviving literature exists from this period, including around two-hundred written scripts for zaju performances.