LIU JIANYANG: Monkey King master in Shao Opera

LIU JIANYANG: Monkey King master in Shao Opera

Shao Opera, originally known as “Shaoxing Luantan”, is one of the three main regional operatic genres of Shaoxing, and it has even been listed as intangible national cultural heritage. The singing is mainly presented in the styles of erfan and sanwuqi. This lengthy style of singing is compared to waves rolling at the bottom of the sea; it is sonorous, bold and touches the heart.

lt is recorded that initially Shao Opera was considered a ritual performance, which can be traced back to the period of Yu the Great. Now people can still enjoy the opera during temple fairs.

Shao Opera Monkey King Thrice Beats the Bony Ghost, which was adapted from the famous Journey to the East, was made into a fi lm in 1960. Since then, Shao Opera Monkey King plays have become widely popular across the country.

Liu Jianyang, a master monkey actor, famed as“The New Monkey King of Jiangnan”, insisted that this opera is made by and for locals.

Among over 400 plays, Monkey King Thrice Beats the Bony Ghost lead-acted by Liu and his peers, is a milestone in the Monkey King Plays of the Shao Opera. ln the 1950s, the Shao Opera Art Research lnstitute of Zhejiang was invited to perform this play to some of the top leaders in Beijing several times. Later, the play was made into a fi lm and has generated a huge impact both at home and abroad.

56-year-old Liu lived near the Shao Opera Art Research lnstitute of Zhejiang, and when he was young, he was unconsciously affected by the Shao Opera and just could not help imitating the actors. When he happened to fi nd out about recruitment at the institute at the age of 11, he immediately applied for it.

Compared with many other candidates singing Peking Opera and Yue Opera, which was more popular, Liu made himself stand out by presenting his daily imitations of the Shao Operas he had witnessed in the past and fi nally won the opportunity to enter the institute.

ln Liu's opinion, the performance of Monkey King incorporates both the qualities of a deity and the qualities of a monkey. An emphasis is placed on“human” qualities, while the “human, deity and monkey” characteristics are fused into one.

While in costume, the mask of Monkey King in Shao Opera is primarily painted red, white, black and gold over a red face in the shape of an inverted peach. The eyes are outlined with black and framed by a gold border to highlight the glittering eyes of the Monkey King. This special eye makeup projects the aesthetics of sharp and bright eyes, which are able to be seen from a very long distance. “Rolls and Flips” are very frequently performed in the Monkey King Plays of the Shao Opera; they are also one of the best parts of the show.

Now Liu has become a representative of the Monkey King Play of the Shao Opera, with the title of “The New Monkey King of Jiangnan”.