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Cartoon "Fengguantai |
Due to financial problems and a lackof professional performers, many Chinese opera troupes in China todayfind it hard to continue and have to disband. The type of Chineseoperas reduced sharply from 368 in 1950s to 267 in 2005.
Chinese operas, noted for slowness andelegance, can seem behind the times when life in the fast lane is thedominant theme of today’s people. In particular the younger generationis prone to chic modern entertainment ranging from TV series to films,computer games, and karaoke.
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Jinju Opera "Fengguantai" |
Where are the traditional Chineseoperas going? How to arouse interest from the younger generation toprevent this artform from extinction? This has become a compellingconcern for both top cultural officials and folk artists in the country.
Two years ago, Ren Xieyong, the vicepresident of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference(CPPCC) in Hunan province, submitted a motion on how to save thehighlight repertories of local operas at the forth session of the TenthCPPCC National Committee. Meanwhile, China Association PromotingDemocracy also submitted a similar motion to CPPCC. Ministry of Culturegave positive response to the two motions, saying local operas shouldkeep pace with the times.
Under the guideline of the Ministry ofCulture, in 2007, China Art Academy and a Hunan-based animation companyinitiated a project which aims at re-creating Chinese theatricalrepertoires in the form of animated cartoons. They have a big plan.According to Zhang Lei, the director of digital art creation center ofChina Art Academy, the first part of the project includes 100 series,covering 54 types of Chinese operas.
