Introduction What Is Jingju, and Why Should We Care about It?
In: Inscribing Jingju/Peking OperaSearch for other papers by David L. Rolston in
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Abstract
The Introduction first lays out the history of Jingju through the names it has been called and the importance that it has had, then explains how it works as a theatrical system. Jingju began as just another popular form of Chinese indigenous theater closely tied to one locality (Beijing) that was able, primarily through appropriating and assimilating attractive elements from other forms of theater, to develop into something many called the “national theater” of China. Despite only becoming a mature theatrical form with its own characteristics in the middle of the nineteenth century, Jingju has been able to convince many that it is older and more “classical” than it really is. For many, it “represents” China.