Xiqu

The Monk Mulian Series of Qi Opera version gave birth to the gaoqiang repertory, and serves as a rich source to trace the development and evolution of this regional genre. It embodies a plethora of theatrical material, form and plays, but Monk Mulian Rescues His Mother is at its core. The staging is just as varied, as it embodies the acrobatics-oriented genre of “baiyi”, or “a hundred forms of performing arts”. Aesthetically it melds different sources into one, and shows diverse ethnological facets of the region. The story presents the Divine Rules (such as Heaven and Earth, Yin and Yang), allusions to supernatural beings, portrayals of human beings from all walks of life, and all kinds of strange happenings imaginable were enacted on the theatre stage. The performers were more than actors, but versatile acrobats who could walk on stilts, play fan tricks, wield broadswords and spears, perform the “human pyramid” act, etc. The production won an Award for Preserving an Intangible Cultural Heritage at the 2006 Hunan Arts Festival.

Mulian’s Family has been avowed Buddhists for three generations. When his father died, Mulian’s mother, Liu Qingti, breaks her fast and eats meat and is sent to the most abysmal hell where she suffers perpetually for her sins. Mulian goes through thick and thin and is willing to lay down himself in order to save his mother.