Wudang Shenxi

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: Wudang Shenxi

Applicant: Danjiangkou City, Hubei Province

Project No.: 1111

Project No.: Ⅳ - 149

Time of publication: 2011 (the third batch)

Category: Traditional Drama

Region: Hubei Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Danjiangkou City, Hubei Province

Protected by: Danjiangkou Cultural Center

Introduction to Wudang Drama:

Applicant: Danjiangkou City, Hubei Province

Wudang divine drama is a kind of folk drama which is well preserved in Qingtang village, Xijiadian Town, Danjiangkou City, Hubei Province. It is a unique drama evolved by Wang family in Qingtang village, Xijiadian Town, Danjiangkou City, Hubei Province on the basis of Wudang culture, local folk opera and folk songs. It belongs to the family inheritance drama. According to Wang Derong, one of the 20th generation inheritors, Wudang divine drama has been handed down orally by Wang's ancestors since the end of Ming Dynasty. The characteristic of Wudang divine drama is its close combination with Wudang Taoist ritual. Before the ceremony of Taoism, it is necessary to sing the drama of worshiping gods to show piety. Gradually, it has developed into pilgrim assembly, vow making and even gang activities, all of which have to sing the "drama of worshiping gods".

Wudang God drama is mainly composed of big opera and liantai opera. It focuses on historical stories and is good at singing. Before the founding of new China, there was a doggerel in wangjiaying Wudang divine drama troupe: "wanrang can sing, liusi can wave, and Ma Changchun can swell". Here, singing refers to singing Huadan, wave refers to acting, and swell refers to singing romantic (love) drama. "Singing, wave, swell" has become the pronoun of the image of wangjiaying Wudang divine drama. The historical repertoire and folk drama performed by Qingtang Wudang God drama troupe have the characteristics of integrating the repertoire with the East, the west, the north, the south, and the content of the plot, blending myth and reality. It is a unique sacrificial drama performance in Wudang Taoist activities.

In the 1950s, there were more than 400 people in wangjiaying village, including more than 100 people who could sing opera. They had toured Xiangyang, Yunyang and other surrounding areas and won many honors. At present, more than 30 traditional operas of Wudang Shenxi in Qingtang village, Xijiadian Town, Danjiangkou City, Hubei Province have been excavated and sorted out, with 9 tunes and 24 tunes.