![]() ![]() It has entertained the Chinese for centuries, bringing joy to them and raising their hopes. Shadow theater is a popular form of drama in China. They may help promote Chinese culture and contribute to the creation of new art forms,” said Sun Jianjun. We should preserve not only the puppets and props but also the theater texts and music. “We should preserve the tradition of our shadow puppetry. ![]() Ruffians and treacherous characters always have exaggeratedly large eyes and bushy eyebrows. The young male and female roles, for example, usually have an elegant, noble slant of forehead and nose. Their facial features are often exaggerated. The faces of the shadow figures – representing as they do human, supernatural, and animal beings – pose an intricate and interesting problem. Figures with faces represented in profile are more expressive and can be better animated and manipulated. Most of the faces of the shadow figures are depicted in profile. Shadow plays are a two-dimensional form because the puppets, scenery, and other props are all flat. ![]() Many of these are based on items existed in the past,” said Sun Jianjun. These include clothes, ornaments, towers, pavilions, furnishings, and scenery. The shadow puppeteers' property trunks contain most objects found in everyday life. “Chinese shadow puppetry shows a strong Chinese opera influence. The principal colors used are red, green, black, and yellow. The method of dying is derived from Chinese New Year's pictures. Chinese shadow puppetry, also called Shadow Play or palace performance, can be defined as one of the remarkable theatrical art performances common in China, involving the use of the shadows of puppets that are cast on a large screen. The hair and remaining flesh are scrapped off, leaving a thin, translucent skin that makes an ideal raw material for creating a shadow puppet.Īfter the puppets have been carved, they are dyed in bright colors to enhance the puppets' appearance and make them more eye-catching. Then it is stretched tightly across a wooden frame and left to dry until it is flat and even. First, the raw pelt is soaked in clear water or limewater. Preparing a hide that will be used to make a shadow puppet requires special tanning and processing techniques. The puppets are made of ox, sheep, or donkey skin. It was Buddhism that helped shadow puppetry spread in China,” said Sun Jianjun, associate professor of School of Fine Arts of Tsinghua University. Religious art was a major influence on the shapes and manufacture of shadow puppets. Its birth, development, and spread were closely related to religious culture. “Chinese shadow puppetry had much to do with religion. Shadow puppets are not only essential elements of stagecraft but also lovely handcrafted objects of art in their own right. Shadow puppetry is a combination of performing arts and the art of carving. It has been a popular form of entertainment in China for centuries. Shadow puppetry, one of the oldest performing arts in the world, appeared in China long before the invention of motion pictures and television. ![]()
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