Kunqu Opera actors instill appreciation of ancient form in children

The annual Gateway to Arts Summer Festival in Beijing is known for its live performances and mini-summer camps for children, who come to learn about art forms like classical music, traditional Chinese folk music and traditional Chinese opera.

This year, the festival introduced a new mini-summer camp program focused on Kunqu Opera. More than 100 children aged 6 and over participated in a two-day training course, held on July 26 and 27, that featured Kunqu Opera actors from the Northern Kunqu Opera Theater－the only professional theater in northern China dedicated to the Chinese opera style that dates back some 600 years.

Born in the regions south of the Yangtze River, which included today's Suzhou city in Jiangsu province, Kunqu Opera is performed in the melodic Suzhou dialect.

Combining singing, dancing and acting, the art form was listed as an Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2001. Kunqu was among the first to be included on the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of China, which was released by the Ministry of Culture (now the Ministry of Culture and Tourism) on May 20, 2006.

One of the teachers giving classes was actress Wang Liyuan, who is known for playing graceful female roles, or dan.

On the first day, she introduced Kunqu Opera, teaching the children about its history, costumes, makeup and style.

The next day, Wang taught students to move, dance and sing like a Kunqu Opera actor, having them learn different styles based on the roles they would later perform.

The camp ended up with a show featuring a joint performance by students and teachers, including Wang.

"It was the first time I'd given classes to children," said the 34-year-old actress who graduated from the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts in 2013 with a master's degree in Kunqu Opera. "Most had never seen a Kunqu Opera performance before and didn't know about it. They reminded me of myself when I first started learning as a child."

After graduating, Wang joined the Northern Kunqu Opera Theater, studying under Zhang Yuwen, a national inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage.

On July 27, together with other actors from the theater, Wang performed the classic Kunqu Opera piece, Romance of the West Chamber, one of the most famous Chinese dramas written by playwright Wang Shifu during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).

It tells the story of young lovers Zhang Sheng and Cui Yingying, the latter played by Wang, who consummate their love without parental approval.

"We want children to get to know Kunqu Opera, which is a brilliant ancient art form," Wang said. "It's old, but it's still vibrant and making progress. Maybe some of them will become loyal fans in the future."

Xu Jian, general manager of the Forbidden City Concert Hall and organizer of the annual festival, said:

"We were concerned about feedback from audiences before we launched the summer camp. Since Kunqu is a very old art form known for its elegance and beauty, we were not sure whether the children would have the patience to concentrate on it. But many people applied to participate, and the camp was full. We were very excited."