英文摘要
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The Dramas of Luantan Musical Systems (”Flower Drama”, huabu) were very popular in the Qing Dynasty and have formed specific characteristics in different areas. Focusing on the musical drama piece of ”Attack on Dengzhou City”, we look for the source of the dramatic text in some historical novels. However, we cannot find the similar plot between novel and drama; this plot is probably created by the performer. To distinguish the Beiguan theatre from another forms of theatre, we reconstruct a more complete performance text of Beiguan theatre by combining different manuscripts and based on the artists' oral histories. Then, we compare this performance text of Beiguan with those of Peking Opera and Saoxing theatre. Finally, we try to explain why the plot of ”Clown Disguised as Psychic” is presented in Taiwan Beiguan theatre.
Both Taiwanese Beiguan theatre and Saoxing theatre of Shanghai uses dialects to buffoon and we can find the local codes in them. However, it's difficult to find any local color in Peking opera, which is the most popular musical drama in the Chinese culture circle. The plot of ”Clown Disguised as Psychic” emphasizes the Clown's performance in Beiguan theatre therefore it raises this comedy to a higher level. This plot should have appeared on stage before 1920s when Taiwan was a colony of Japan. At that time, the psychics were controlled by law and the Japanese authorities imported western conceptions of science and hygiene to Taiwan. As a result, more and more people could not be certain if the psychics could truly transmit the divines' suggestions to them or not. This dramatic scene reflected their doubts on psychics in the heart.
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