Yuanben

Yuanben
A tile depicting an actor from the Jin or Yuan Era
Chinese	院本
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Yuànběn Wade–Giles Yüan-pên

Yuanben was an early form of Chinese opera which thrived in northern China during the 12th and 13th centuries under the Jin and early Yuan dynasties. Unlike the contemporary nanxi operas, which flourished in East China, no yuanben play has survived.^[1] Nevertheless, 691 yuanben titles are listed in Tao Zongyi's c. 1366 Nancun Chuogeng Lu.^[2][3] Yuanben might have been very similar to the zaju under the Southern Song and it eventually evolved into the zaju of the Yuan dynasty.^[4]

Role types

There were five role types in yuanben:^[5]

• Fujing (副淨), derived from the canjun role type in canjunxi, a clown^{[clarification needed]}
• Fumo (副末), derived from the canghu role type in canjunxi, a jester
• Yinxi (引戲), a playleader
• Moni (末泥), an actor-director
• Guzhuang (孤裝), a mandarin

References

Citations

1. Jin (2005), p. 21.
2. Tao (c. 1366).
3. Mackerras (1983), pp. 22–23.
4. Kuzay (2018).
5. Mackerras (1983), p. 20.

Bibliography

• Mackerras, Colin (1983). Chinese Theater: From Its Origins to the Present Day. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press. ISBN 0-8248-0813-4.
• Jin Dengcai (金登才) (2005). Zhōngguó Xìqǔ Jīnghuá Shǐ 《中国戏曲精华史》 [Essential History of Chinese Opera] (in Chinese). Sichuan Literature and Art Publishing House (四川文艺出版社). ISBN 7-5411-2325-0.
• Kuzay, Stefan (2018). "A Concise History of Theatre in Imperial China". Asian Traditional Theatre and Dance. Theatre Academy of the University of the Arts Helsinki. ISBN 978-952-7218-23-5.
• Tao Zongyi (c. 1366), Náncūn Chuògēng Lù 《南村輟耕錄》 [Records from a Southern Village after Retiring from the Plow] (in Chinese).