N. A. KUZMIN

(Moscow City Pedagogical University)

Keywords: China, traditional Peking opera

Beijing Opera is relatively young. Its history spans no more than two hundred years. In addition to the Beijing opera, there are a large number of regional operas that are almost unknown outside of China. Among them are the Shaoxing (Yueju), the ancient Kun (kunqu) opera revived in the XX century, the Cantonese (Yueju), and others. In many areas of China, there are local forms of this genre. To a foreigner's eye, they seem very similar, but in fact they differ in the language of performance and costumes. And yet they are close in their plots and manner of execution.

From the end of the 18th century, dynasties of Peking opera actors began to take shape, each with its own performance traditions. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the attitude towards traditional Peking opera changed, the new government considered many of its plots "outdated". The new, or "revolutionary", Beijing opera adopted new subjects, and the costumes became identical to the everyday clothes of the Chinese of that time. It was only with the beginning of Deng Xiaoping's policy of reform and opening up that the traditional Beijing opera began to gain popularity, moreover, it became one of the symbols of China, along with the Great Wall of China and the Tiananmen Grandstand, and received the honorary title of China's National Art Treasure.

In Peking opera, there are four main roles of actors-sheng, dan, jing, chow. Each has its own distinctive features. Sheng is a male role, which in turn is divided into more highly specialized ones: wu sheng - "military sheng", xiao sheng - "sheng junior", lao sheng - "sheng senior", etc. Tribute - female role: hua dan - "young girl", lao dan - "old woman", Qing yi - "girl from a rich family". Jing is a "hero with a strong character", usually the main character or a warlord. And Chow's role is "comic character".

The peculiarity of this type of theatrical art is the use of a large number of "imaginary" props. For example, if the heroine is engaged in embroidery, then for this she does not need to have real threads and needles on the stage. If an actor enters the stage holding a cane with tassels, it means that he is riding a horse. Knowing the meaning of the main movements, the viewer can guess the general plot of the production even at the beginning of the performance.

The main subjects of the Peking opera are various folk stories about ancient heroes, strong friendship and eternal love, and often they reflect real stories. "Intoxicated Lady-in-waiting", "Farewell of the almighty Bavan to his beloved", "Maneuver in an empty city" - these popular performances are based on real historical facts. The most popular performances based on love stories are "Hongniang", "White Snake", "Raised Jade Bracelet" and many others.

THE HERO FALLS IN LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT

While studying in China in 2009-2010, I was lucky enough to study in the group of an excellent teacher, an avid fan of Peking opera - Shi Shiqing.

The history of Peking opera began in 1790. The Qing Emperor Qianlong, on the occasion of celebrating his eightieth birthday, invited performers of various regional operas to the capital to give a performance in his honor. The Sanqing (Three Festivals) troupe from the southern Chinese province of Anhui was so popular with the emperor that he ordered them to stay in Beijing to develop and perfect their art. This event is the beginning of the Peking Opera.

Over time, Peking opera is gaining popularity among ordinary Chinese. One of the factors that contributed to this was the shortening of the presentation time, although the performances for the nobility were longer. This genre was loved by all subsequent emperors of the Qing Dynasty. In 1860, during the Second Opium War, when there was a real threat of British and French troops seizing Beijing, Emperor Xianfeng fled the capital, ordering the imperial Peking Opera company to follow him. And in exile, the emperor continued to enjoy her performances every day.

One day, he invited me, another student from Russia, and a student from Italy to participate in a small production. Strictly speaking, this production was not a Peking opera in the full sense of the word. However, the costumes, makeup, and plot were almost identical to those in this genre. The main difference, perhaps, was only that we did not sing, but simply pronounced the words of our role. The production was called "Raised Jade Bracelet".

The play takes place during the Ming Dynasty, in a small village. The main character is a young peasant girl, Sun Yujiao, who lives with her mother. One day, the mother went to the temple, leaving her daughter to look after the house. After finishing all the work, she sits down in front of the house and embroider. At this time, a young man passes by, Fu Peng, who, as often happens in such cases, falls in love with a girl at first sight. There is a small problem, at that time, communication of unmarried girls with strangers was unacceptable. The young man looks for an excuse to talk to her and decides to give her a jade bracelet. The girl shyly hides in the house, and our hero comes up with a trick, he puts the bracelet right in front of the house of his beloved, and he hides nearby. At this time, Mama Liu passes by and catches this scene. She decides to bring these young people together, to become their matchmaker.

I was to play the role of Fu Peng, a student from Russia - Sun Yujiao, and an Italian-Mama Liu. Rehearsals began, where Shi Shiqing taught us the secrets of the Peking Opera, where everything is important: hand movements, gait, facial expression, and pitch of voice. Finally, the day of the performance arrived. I can't say that I was very worried, although I had to put on a costume and play on stage in Chinese in front of a large audience.

Two masters from the Shanghai Theater Institute came to help us. One of them was responsible for the costumes, the other for the makeup. The most difficult part was Sun Yujiao's makeup, which was played by Hua dan. First, the first layer of makeup was applied to her face, then the eye contour was applied over it, then the face was covered with a layer of special powder. Anyone who saw photos of the Peking opera actors in the role of Hua dan or "Sheng Jr." in full dress could not help but notice the unnaturally raised eyebrows. This effect is achieved by using special strips of fabric, which, pulling up the skin of the forehead, raise the edges of the eyebrows. As a result, the eyes become more expressive. As a wig, special artificial hair is applied to the head, and on top of them, jewelry is attached in a certain order. When grimiro-

the competition is over, and the actor puts on a stage costume.

My role did not require such a complex make-up, but my eyes were also given expressiveness with the help of strips of fabric. Finally, everything was ready. I felt an amazing transformation: from a foreign student of the XXI century. I was transported to Ming China.

The performance was a success! After its completion, it is no exaggeration to say that we became "heroes of the university". Later, people often came up to me and asked if you were the one who played The Raised Jade Bracelet. When they were answered in the affirmative, they would smile and raise their thumbs up and say: "Good! You played great!" After this performance, the Peking Opera ceased to be an abstract concept for me, it became concrete, real and something very close. As soon as I hear the melody of the Peking Opera performed on the Chinese er-hu violin, I am overwhelmed by memories and emotions, it is an incomparable feeling.

I became a frequent spectator at the Shanghai Tianchan Opera Center in Beijing. In addition to the Beijing Opera, I also got acquainted with the Kun Opera, Shaoxing Opera, and Hu Opera (the local Shanghai opera). Knowing the basic techniques and main plots helped me a lot in their perception.

What is the attitude of modern Chinese people to their national treasure?

Based on my observations, I could divide the audience into three parts. The first group consists of avid opera lovers. Most of them are already quite advanced in age, but when the actor performs some difficult element, this audience explodes into a storm of applause and shouts of " Hao! "("Good!"). The second group consists of middle-aged people who attend opera performances occasionally to diversify their lives. They often come with children, thereby introducing them to the national performing arts. The third and smallest group consists of young couples who usually choose their seats in the gallery.

Despite the state's support for the Beijing Opera and its recognition as a UNESCO Intangible Heritage Site, it unfortunately remains not very popular among the broad masses of the Chinese population (although the situation, as I mentioned, is changing for the better). I had a Chinese friend who went to the Peking Opera with me for the first time in his life.

Many young Chinese people do not like to visit the Peking Opera because of its specificity. They say that the music is very slow, and the plot is boring, it lacks dynamics. In my opinion, the main reason is that they didn't have "their" Shi Shiqing in their life, who could infect them and attract them to the Peking opera.

Shanghai - Moscow

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