Dancing in the Shadows

Three schools of shadow puppetry

After 1911, three schools of shadow play took shape: the western school which mainly referred to that in Shaanxi, the northern school dominated by artists in Luanzhou in Hebei and the southern school originating from Hangzhou in Zhejiang. With the development and integration of local music and culture, shadow play gained popularity in more than 20 provinces across China. Different counties even have their own unique shadow plays which incorporate local culture and flavor in terms of silhouette-making skills, singing and the images themselves.

(China Daily Africa Weekly 06/14/2013 page31)