Ou opera (), originally known as Wenzhou luantan () or Yongjia luantan (), is a regional form of

Chinese opera Traditional Chinese opera (), or ''Xiqu'', is a form of musical theatre in China with roots going back to the early periods in China. It is an amalgamation of various art forms that existed in ancient China, and evolved gradually over more tha ...

from

Yongjia County Yongjia County (; Wenzhou dialect: yon2ko1/ yu3 ''ion ko'') is a county in Wenzhou in the southeast of Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China, located north of the city proper of Wenzhou Wenzhou (pronounced ; Wenzhounese: Yuziou �y33 ...

Wenzhou Wenzhou (pronounced ; Wenzhounese: Yuziou �y33–11 tɕiɤu33–32 ), historically known as Wenchow is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Zhejiang province in the People's Republic of China. Wenzhou is located at the extreme south east o ...

in southeastern

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Ji ...

province. In addition to Wenzhou and parts of neighboring

Lishui Lishui (; Lishuinese: ''li⁶ syu³'' ) is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China. It borders Quzhou, Jinhua and Taizhou to the north, Wenzhou to the southeast, and the province of Fujian to ...

and Taizhou (all in Zhejiang), it is also influential in parts of northern

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its ...

and northeastern

Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...

. In 2008, it was included in the national

intangible cultural heritage An intangible cultural heritage (ICH) is a practice, representation, expression, knowledge, or skill considered by UNESCO to be part of a place's cultural heritage. Buildings, historic places, monuments, and artifacts are cultural property. I ...

list.

History

was the birthplace of '' nanxi'', a Chinese opera form of the 12th century. The earliest form of Ou opera, however, emerged only after the end of the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

in the 17th century, when the singing styles of ''gaoqiang'' (高腔) and '' kunqiang'' gained popularity in southern

. The ''luantan'' style arrived later and was co-opted by locals in their performances along with ''gaoqiang'' and ''kunqiang''. In the beginning, performances took place on temple stages only during special occasions such as the one-month Nuo religious festival, temple fairs,

dragon boat A dragon boat is a human-powered watercraft originating from the Pearl River Delta region of China's southern Guangdong Province. These were made of teak, but in other parts of China, different kinds of wood are used. It is one of a family of ...

racing in Ou River, weddings, harvests, or other celebrations. As demand increased throughout the region, several farmer-performers in

became full-time performers. In the mid-

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

, they also performed Hui opera, ''tanhuang'' (灘簧, a precursor of Xi opera), and ''shidiao'' (時調). Because ''luantan'' proved the most popular vocal style, it dominated the form which gradually became known as Yongjia luantan or Wenzhou luantan.

References

Chinese opera Culture in Wenzhou {{Chinese opera