Peony transplanted: Pai Hsien-yung and the preservation of Chinese Kunqu
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Date
22/11/2011Author
Wei, Zhou
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Abstract
This dissertation examines the preservation of Chinese kunqu, one of China’s
indigenous operatic genres, in recent years with a special focus on renowned writer
Pai Hsien-yung’s new adaptation of classic kunqu play The Peony Pavilion (Mudan
ting). I use this adaptation as a case study to demonstrate how the actual shape of a
stage production can be determined by a producer’s choice between tradition and
innovation. The contention between the two variables can be identified in the
hundreds of years of kunqu history. The introduction provides a brief overview of the
ascension of kunqu to its dominance as a national opera between late Ming and early
Qing dynasties (late sixteenth century to early nineteenth century). The first two
chapters analyze the downfall of this genre and its struggle for existence and
development from mid-Qing through the turbulent twentieth century with particular
emphasis on exploring the interplay between tradition and innovation. The next two
chapters focus entirely on Pai Hsien-yung’s stage production of Peony and its wide
distribution. The last chapter examines the latest kunqu production modes developed
under the influence of Pai’s approach. Through this detailed analysis of Pai’s kunqu
production and its impact, this research identifies one of the most prominent trends in
kunqu preservation and development in the twenty-first century. It explores the
dialectical approach adopted in this trend to handle the relationship between tradition
and innovation, and the particular redefinition of audience construction.
A renewed wave of kunqu preservation efforts within China during the past
decade created a favourable environment for Pai’s productions. The success of his
works has drawn new attention to the opera and eased kunqu crisis to a fairly large
extent. The most significant contribution of Pai’s works to Chinese kunqu discourse
can be seen from the expansion of audience base, particularly among the educated
youth, and the increasingly varied and creative strategies for kunqu production and
distribution. These changes have greatly transformed the overall Chinese kunqu
scene, and ushered in a new era when new kunqu stage works are made into collages
of intrinsic kunqu aesthetics and certain traditional artistic values. Pai’s ability to negotiate a space for kunqu amidst fierce competition against the many different
forms of modern entertainment has restored people’s confidence in both kunqu and
Chinese cultural traditions at large. Pai’s experience of finding a particular balance
between tradition and innovation, between art and market, has contributed critically
not only to the emergence of more hybridized kunqu productions, but also to the
preservation and development of other forms of traditional Chinese performing arts
genres in the age of globalization and commercialization.