Puppet show (Yingyang puppet show)

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: puppet show

Applicant: Shaanxi Province

Item No.: 236

Project No.: Ⅳ - 92

Time of publication: 2006 (the first batch)

Category: Traditional Drama

Region: Shaanxi Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Shaanxi Province

Protection unit: Heyang Xian Xian Qiang Puppet Troupe

Brief introduction of puppet show (Yingyang puppet show)

Applicant: Shaanxi Province

Puppet opera, known as "puppet opera" and "puppet", is a form of opera in which puppets perform stories by artists.

China's puppet opera rose in the Han Dynasty, to the Tang Dynasty has a new development and improvement, can use puppets to perform song and dance drama. Song Dynasty is an important period for the development of puppet show in China, and the puppet production technology and manipulation skills are further mature. With the development of social economy, the puppet show of Ming Dynasty has been popular all over the country, and the puppet show of the economically developed southern provinces and regions is more prosperous, so there is a saying of "good puppet in the South". After the Qing Dynasty, puppet show entered its heyday. It was not only popular in a wide range, but also showed more and more vocal performances. There appeared western Liaoning puppet show, Zhangzhou puppet show, Quanzhou string puppet show, Jinjiang puppet show, Shaoyang puppet show, Gaozhou puppet show, Chaozhou Tiezhi puppet show, North Sichuan puppet show, Shiqian puppet show, yangstring puppet show, Taishun YaoFa puppet show There are many branches such as opera, Lingao puppet show and so on. As far as the form of performance is concerned, it can be summarized as five kinds: string puppet, stick head puppet, bag puppet, iron branch puppet and medicine hair puppet.

The art of puppet is so beautiful that it's amazing. In addition to the wonderful performances of the artists, the perfect puppet plastic arts and operating equipment are also an important aspect to attract the audience. Plastic arts focus on the carving and design of puppets. Generally speaking, the modeling of string puppets is relatively high, mostly about 2.2 feet. Key parts are decorated with lifting lines, up to more than 30, at least more than 10, such as stunt performances also need to add a number of auxiliary lifting lines. The level of puppet performers' various dance movements and martial arts skills completely depends on the artist's operating skills, which is the key to the level of puppet performance art. The head of the staff puppet is higher than the string puppet. Generally, the height of the puppet is about 3 feet. It is equipped with three operating lines, two of which pull hands, and one dominates the head and body. The puppet with the smallest shape, only about 7 inches, relies on the artist's two hands to hold up the performance. The operation skill is special, which is different from the string and stick puppet.

Since the founding of the people's Republic of China, puppet shows have become more colorful. In addition to performing traditional opera programs, they also perform drama, song and dance drama, series, and even advertisements. At the same time, puppet show is also facing fierce competition with other art forms. Traditional puppet shows contain the ideology, morality and aesthetic consciousness of the people of all regions and nationalities, which should be supported and protected.

Yingyang string puppet show (also known as "Yingyang string Hu"), located on the Bank of the Yellow River in Weinan, adjacent to the western region of Shanxi Province, is a unique show of string puppets in northern China. At the end of Ming Dynasty and the beginning of Qing Dynasty, Yingyang Juren (Xiang Ruo), one of the eight high officials in Guanzhong, made great reforms in the aspects of singing, music, repertoire and puppet making, making it more complete and dramatic. During the reign of Qianlong, Jiaqing and Tongzhi of the Qing Dynasty, they performed in Suzhou, Yangzhou and Beijing many times, which had a great influence. This kind of drama includes the skills of lifting, pulling, hooking, picking, twisting, swinging, flashing and shaking, and the unique creative special effects, which endows the puppet with artistic life and makes it lifelike. The singing and music of the line play are desolate, solemn and stirring, euphemistic and delicate, which have the characteristics of the Qin Dynasty. Musical instrument performance has special musical instruments such as Zhengzi and Jiezi, which are unique and distinctive. The artistic conception of traditional plays is beautiful, the writing is beautiful, and it has high literariness.

After liberation, some plays were transplanted and adapted into stage plays, enjoying a good reputation both inside and outside the province. At present, the lack of talents and the depression of the market directly affect its further development. How to protect this traditional drama is a very important task at present.

Chinese PinYin : Mu Ou Xi Xia Yang Ti Xian Mu Ou Xi