Watching Magic Face Changing Show

Sichuan opera is one kind of opera drama, and opera masks are the most important component element in Sichuan opera. Magical face changing is a visible stunt used to express the character's invisible mood in Sichuan Opera. Magical face changing should not be missed when enjoying Sichuan opera.

In the tune development, Sichuan Opera is formed by high tune, Kun tune, Huqin tune, Tanxi and Xideng. Except Xideng, the other four tunes were spread from other places into Sichuan Province between late Ming Dynasty and middle Qing Dynasty. Chuan Opera is the feature of Sichuan culture. And Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan, is the hometown of Sichuan Opera.

Watching Sichuan Opera is something must-do when traveling to Sichuan or on a Chengdu tour. As one of the most popular opera in China, Sichuan Opera is a gorgeous display of Sichuan culture and fine arts. It is featured with vivid, humorous narration, singing, puppetry and acrobatics. Most of the acts take the derivation from legend, folktales, and Chinese classic novels, which make Sichuan Opera a great way to learn the local history and culture. Changing faces, Rolling Light, and Spitting Fire are the most famous acts in Sichuan Opera. 

Ideal Place to Experience Sichuan Opera

• Shufeng Yayunthe most popular opera in Chengdu: Add: Qintai Road, Qingyang District, Chengdu. Time: 20:00-21:30.

• Fu rong guo cui Opera: Add: Jinjiang Theatre,No.54 Huangxing Zheng Street of Chengde. Time: 19:30-21:00 .

• Teahouses like Xilai Shuyun Garden in Wide&Narrow Alley, Yuelai Teahouse in Huaxing Zheng street, Jinli Old stage in Jinli Street etc.

• Restaurants like Huangcheng Laoma Hootpot, Damiao Hotpot, Lixue Hotpot, BaguobuyiRestaurant etc, where you can have dinner while enjoy the show.

What will you enjoy during the show

◆ Sichuan opera Music Gaoqiang
Sichuan Opera combines five different sonic systems, which are gaoqiang, huqin, dengdiao, tanxi, and kunqu. A single theater piece of Sichuan Opera usually combines two or three of the musical styles. Only very rarely do all five systems appear together. The gao qiang style is the most frequent and its structure is most clearly developed.
The best-known style with most distinct characteristics of southwestern China is called gaoqiang, which is distinguished by solos that are usually accompanied by sparse rhythmical accentuations played with wooden clappers. This highly ornamental vocal style is distinguished by brilliantly artful glissando links, skillfully implemented vibrato embellishments around a single tone in the form of a delicately elegant yet energetically melodic ornamentation. The simplicity of the folk songs' melodic structures is often retained. 

◆ Rolling lamp
The last segment of the opera, Rolling lamp, is a classic clown play. Audiences are often so impressed that they often hold their breathes when they see the performers doing complex physical comedy while successfully balancing a flaming bowl on their heads. 
The whole performance involves two actors: the "husband" and the "wife", who argue over the husband's gambling. The wife keeps requiring the husband to do strange and dangerous stunts over the course of the argument. Throughout the routine, the husband struggles to do what his wife asked while keeping the flaming bowl on his head.
More often than not, the requirements of his stunts are so intense that his flexibility in performing the stunts will make the audience wonder whether he is made of rubber!

◆ Water Sleeve dance
Dance in China has a long recorded history. Some Chinese dances today, such as dancing with long sleeves, have been recorded at least as early as the Zhou dynasty (c. 1045–256 BCE). The art of dance in China reached a peak during the Tang dynasty (618–907 CE) but declined later.
Shuixiu can be translate literally to be water sleeves, which refers to a suit of skills to perform various movements with double white-silk sleeves attached to the cuffs of a costume. It is one of the most skillful stunts in Peking and its function is to exaggerate actors’ mood. Totally there are about hundreds of gesticulations in shuixiu, such as sleeves quivering, throwing, wigwagging, casting, raising, swinging, tossing, whisking, rolling, folding, crossing and so on.

◆ Hand Shadow play
Hand shadow show is also known as Chinese shadows, for it originates in ancient China. The show is magical, yet its basics are simple and easy to learn. A light source, a blank background (wall, screen etc.) and your hands are all you need to play with shadows.
To deliver a knock-out performance with these seems unlikely. The hand shadow show in Sichuan Opera will never fall flat, however, for it is delivered by top notch artists in this field. Check out by watching a show!

◆ Face Changing Show
Chinese mask changing is the highlight of Sichuan Opera. It is called "bianlian" in Chinese, which literally means "changing faces". It is an art performance that uses a technique of changing face masks amazingly fast. 
Legend has it that people in Sichuan put on colorful masks to scare predators away in ancient times. Gradually, those masks became a tool of entertainment. They are designed to represent different emotions of characters on stage.