Three decades of delight

Even as the National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA) launches an Opera Festival to showcase the best of Western operas, the Beijing Peking Opera Company is celebrating its 30th anniversary with 19 popular shows of the best of Chinese performing arts.

Known as China's national opera, Peking Opera, which originated in the late 18th century, is a synthesis of music, dance, art and acrobatics. Based upon traditional Anhui Opera, it has also adopted from the repertoire, music and performing techniques of Kunqu Opera, Qinqiang Opera and traditional folk tunes, that have shaped its unique and highly stylized technique. The performance is accompanied by string and percussion instruments, which follow a fixed pattern but incorporate a variety of melodies and rhythms.

The four roles in Peking Opera are that of the male called sheng, the female called dan, the "painted face" called jing and the clown called chou. These roles are further classified by age and profession.