Traditional Chinese opera 

 Xiqu, is a form of musical theatre in China with roots going back to the early periods in China. It is
an amalgamation of various art forms that existed in ancient China, and evolved gradually over more
than a thousand years, reaching its mature form in the 13th century, during the Song dynasty (960–
1279). Early forms of Chinese theater are simple, but over time various art forms such as music,
song and dance, martial arts, acrobatics, costume and make-up art, as well as literary art forms were
incorporated to form traditional Chinese opera. Performers had to practice for many years to gain an
understanding of the roles. Exaggerated features and colors made it easier for the audience to
identify the roles portrayed.

There are over a hundred regional branches of traditional Chinese opera today. In the 20th century
the Peking opera emerged in popularity and has come to known as the "national theatre" of
China, but other genres like Yue opera, Cantonese opera, Yu opera, kunqu, qinqiang, Huangmei
opera, pingju, and Sichuan opera are also performed regularly before dedicated fans. Their
differences are mainly found in the music and topolect; the stories are often shared and
borrowed. With few exceptions (such as revolutionary operas and to some extent Shanghai operas) the
vast majority of Chinese operas (including Taiwanese operas) are set in China before the 17th century,
whether they are traditional or newly written.

For centuries Chinese opera was the main form of entertainment for both urban and rural residents in
China as well as the Chinese diaspora. Its popularity declined sharply in the second half of the 20th
century as a result of both political and market factors. Language policies discouraging topolects in
Taiwan and Singapore, official hostility against rural religious festivals in China, and de-Sinicization in
Taiwan have all been blamed for the decline of various forms in different times, but overall the two
major culprits were Cultural Revolution — which saw traditional culture systematically erased,
innumerable theatre professionals viciously persecuted, and younger generation raised with far lesser
exposure to Chinese opera – and modernization, with its immense social impact and imported values
that Chinese opera has largely failed to counter. The total number of regional genres was determined to
be more than 350 in 1957, but in the 21st century the Chinese government could only identify 162 forms
for its intangible cultural heritage list, with many of them in immediate danger of disappearing. For
young people, Chinese opera is no longer part of the everyday popular music culture, but it remains an
attraction for many older people who find in it, among other things, a national or regional identity.

Musical Characteristics
The musical components of Chinese opera are created as an inseparable entity from voice and
dance/movement. Both the musicians and the actors contribute to composing musical
accompaniment. This collaborative process is reflected within the production by the immaculate
synchronicity between the actors' movements and the sounds of the orchestra. The musicians are
required to flawlessly support the actors with sound, often waiting for vocal cues or physical signals
such as the stomp of a foot. Traditionally, musicians often performed from memory - a feat made
even more impressive considering pieces or sections of compositions were subject to infinite
variations and often repeated.
The orchestra utilized a pentatonic scale until a 7-note scale was introduced by Mongolia during
the Yuan Dynasty. The two extra notes functioned similarly to accidentals within western negotiation.

Instruments
The instruments in the orchestra were divided into two categories:

wen - string and wind instruments: characterized as clear, soft, or gentle and typically used during vocal
pieces

wu - percussive instruments: led dancing and movement, kettle drum "conducts" the whole orchestra,
gongs signal audience to sit, appearance of female lead, anger, and fighting.

Located in

88 Austin Road West,

Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon
(near China Hong Kong City)

Designed Xiqu Centre

Designed by the Joint Venture team of Revery Architecture and Ronald Lu & Partners, the seven-storey
building houses a 1,075-seat Grand Theatre, a Tea House Theatre with around 200 seats, eight
professional studios and a seminar hall.

The Xiqu Centre is the first performing arts centre in Hong Kong's new West Kowloon Cultural District
(WKCD) dedicated to performing the rich heritage of xiqu. a joint venture between Revery Architecture
Inc. (Revery) (formerly Bing Thom Architects) and Ronald Lu & Partners (Hong Kong) Ltd.

Face paint plays a significant role in portraying the internal complexities of the performer's character
with hundreds of combinations of colours and patterns. Below are some general meanings which may
be further focused on extremely specific details depending on the facial location of the colour.

Red - bravery, fidelity, loyalty, chaste

Black - impatient, straightforward, vulgar, rude

White - cunning, treachery, villainous, traitorous

Blue - ferocity, courage, uncontrollable, cruel, violent

Yellow - clever, secretive, mysterious, evil

Purple - loyalty, filial piety, age

Green - evil spirits, brave, purposeful

Gold and silver - gods, supernatural (monsters, spirits, demons)