Hebei Province, Ding Xing County Xianyu Opera Investigation And Research

Advantageous geographical location, natural environment, a long history and splendid culture made Xian Yu opera as "Civil society opera" in Ding Xing County,Hebei Province. The reason why call it "Civil society opera" is that this small opera category developed in civil society. It based on bounce opera and local folk song and the local dialect, absorbed quite a little nutrition from Hebei Bangzi,Peking Opera and other local popular operas. Represented by "return to the Dragon," "Yuhuan mind," "blood and tear feud", "over years", etc.,Xian Yu opera not only has greatly met the spiritual need of the local people, the need of cultural spread and education, the need of folk activity, but also promoted the development of harmonious society a lot. What's more,it used to contribute enormously to the anti-Japanese propaganda, publicity of the policy of the party.Although Xian Yu opera used to be a rage in the southern part of Beijing and the Dingxing dialect area in northern Baoding, it has always been a small opera that mainly entertained the local farmers. Xian Yu opera players did not found professional troupes because of the nature of Xian Yu opera as " Civil society opera " and the low social status the professional performers, as well as the relatively affluent life of local people.From "xiao che hui", "lao zi hui" to "tong le hui", and then theater, with the changes in the names of organizations, Xian Yu opera experienced a transfer from generation to development and then to a relative maturity. The motive of this process is the healthy competition among the Civil society-music fight. In addition, government support also played an important role as "icing on the cake". Its economic support came from the mass contribution of and "official belongings."After 1948, especially from the beginning of Cultural Revolution, under the influence of the Peking opera,the Xian Yu opera gradually faded out in the society and became a representation of major cultural "eating"a small culture. With the change of times and social environment, traditional opera is faced with a crisis, the situation of Xian Yu opera, while living between the major dramas, is more serious.During Cultural Revolution,no one cared it. Under the condition of no notation, no sound or films recordings, local farmers forgot the tune of Xian Yu. Now the only several seventy-year-old men who can recall a little of Xian Yu opera, can not sing the whole of it. Now, the residue of singing in the memory of some people are not convincing. The role and function of the Xian Yu opera have been very different, but the old people in the Xian Yu seniors'school still regard it as spiritual food. As Non-material cultural heritage of Hebei Province protection work of Xian Yu opera has not progressed much. This become a concrete manifestation of the fact that Chinese Non-material cultural heritage emphasizes only Re-declaration, not protection.Banqiang is the major form of Xian Yu opera with the simple singing and vigorous and easy lyrics. The tune-pattern of Pingju opera, the rhyme of the Bangzi and rhythm of peking, together with the tone and intonation of Dingxing, make it a unique local small drama with high artistic value. Thus, Xian Yu opera should be protected and inherited. At this point, the functional departments of government should assume the primary responsibility. Therefore, to effectively protect and inherit it, we should strengthen the protection of the heritors, make it enter the primary and middle schools, fully make use of the theaters of Xian Yu and local custom, change the traditional concept of the Xian Yu people and mix Xian Yu opera with the existing custom.