Introduction to the stage

Judging from the wooden structure of the stage, the stage usually has a bird stand on the four corner pillars, and four large horizontal beams are placed on the big stand to form a A huge square frame. Below the square frame is a performance area with a large space, and the upper part bears the weight of the entire roof. This square architectural shape is very beneficial to a stage that requires a larger opening.

In the Weicun and Wangqu stages in the early Yuan Dynasty, an auxiliary column was set up in the rear third of both sides. A gable was built behind the column to connect to the back wall. There could be an auxiliary column between the two auxiliary columns. The account divides the stage into two parts: the front stage and the back stage. There are no gables on both sides of the front stage, so it can be viewed from three sides.

This type of stage can be evidenced by the stage models in the Macun Golden Tomb and Houma Golden Tomb in Jishan County, Shanxi.

As for the separated tents in the front and back, you can see them in the Yuan Dynasty murals in the Minying King Hall of the Water Temple in Hongdong Guangsheng Temple.

However, this construction method changed in the Dongyang and Caogong stages in the middle and late Yuan Dynasty. Both gables were built up, and the audience watched from three sides instead of one.

This construction method was basically followed on the stages after the Ming and Qing Dynasties, except that the front stage was widened and the stage entrance was divided into three bays.

The Ningdu stage in Jiangxi Province was built in the second year of Guangxu. It is opposite the "Laoguan Temple" in the north and south. The stage is a wooden structure and is divided into two front and rear stages. The front stage is used by the actors when they sing, and the backstage is where the actors put on makeup. For accommodation purposes, the total length is about 10 meters and the width is 15 meters.

On the doorpost of the front desk, there is a wooden couplet with yang body, vermilion lacquer and gold gilding: "She may be a gentleman or a villain, or she may be a gifted scholar and a beautiful woman, you will see her when she comes out; sometimes it is calm, sometimes it is earth-shattering, and in the blink of an eye, everything is gone."

On the top of the stage, there is a horizontal plaque in red lacquer and gold: "The sound fills the singing tower."

The stage is generally used three times a year, that is, three plays are performed. One is the Flower Festival in February; one is the birthday of the old official in April; and one is the Hemiao Opera in August.

Each performance can take as long as one month or as little as half a month.

During the performance, people from all around will come. Some are just watching the show, some are doing business, some are gambling, some are prostitutes, and some are visiting relatives for free. The hotel is full every day and very lively.

These three performances every year are also called "line performances". The price of the performances comes from those who give birth to boys, those who get married, those who make a fortune in business, those who donate from various stores, those on the gambling table, etc.

The contents of the operas are mostly Hunan operas, which are the same every year.

Sometimes, some activities will be held in conjunction with other places. For example, in early August, a theater troupe from Ningdu will be invited to sing a tea-picking opera to commemorate Xu Jing.

Leping City, Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province, is known as the Chinese Ancient Stage Museum.

There are more than 412 ancient stages here, scattered in villages across the city. The construction time spans more than 500 years from the Ming and Qing Dynasties to the present day.

Leping ancient stage can be roughly divided into five types: courtyard stage, temple stage, guild hall stage, ancestral hall stage and Wannian stage, among which the ancestral hall stage and Wannian stage are the most common.

No matter what kind of stage they are, they all have the same layout: they are all traditional brick and wood structures, with archway-style fronts, ranging from third to fifth floors.

There is always a Fangtian painted halberd inserted in the center of the roof ridge, and some Fangtian painted halberds are inserted on the top of the colorful porcelain treasure. Both ends of the roof ridge are decorated with graceful turtles, and there are extremely tall and straight ones above the front. The cornices are upturned, and wind chimes and iron horses are hung under the eaves; in the center of the stage ceiling is a gorgeous caisson.

Almost all the wooden components on the stage are carved with exquisite reliefs: Qionghua Yaocao, auspicious birds and beasts, beams, side beams, three beams, first beams, interspersed beams and archways. Between each layer, many dramas are carved.

Among these dramas, the ones that appear most frequently are "Kui Xing Diandou", "Nine Lao Heavenly Palace", "Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea", "Ma Gu Presents Her Birthday" and so on.

The stage of the Chenghuang Temple in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province. In the past, in addition to the main hall and the back hall each having a large stage, there were also two small stages in the wings on both sides.

The existing theater in the main hall is the essence of the City God's Temple.

The entire building is decorated with traditional red and gold wood carvings, and the content is mainly about opera stories.

As important evidence of the "Hometown of Opera" and the "Birthplace of Southern Opera", Wenzhou's ancient theaters have a long history and are numerous in number.

There are 236 in Yongjia County alone, which is far more than Ninghai County in Ningbo City, which has only 120 remaining ancient stages and is known as the "Hometown of Chinese Ancient Stage Culture".

Recently, the book "Wenzhou Ancient Theater" was published by Zhejiang Ancient Books Publishing House as one of the "Wenzhou Third National Cultural Relics Census Results Series". This is also the first book in Wenzhou that specifically introduces the ancient theater. writing.

The Jin Dynasty stage of Erlang Temple in Wangbao Village, Gaoping City, Shanxi Province.

The stage was built in the 23rd year of Dading (1183 AD) of Emperor Shizong of Jin Dynasty. It is the earliest existing stage in my country.

Gaoping City is located in the southeast of Shanxi Province, subordinate to Jincheng City, and more than 300 kilometers away from Taiyuan City.

There are many high mountains in the territory, with an altitude of about 1,500 meters, and the highest ones are more than 2,000 meters. The famous mountains include Taihang Mountain, Wangwu Mountain and Zhongtiao Mountain.

The long history has left a wealth of cultural relics and historic sites in the southeastern part of Shanxi. The highlight is a large number of ancient temples and Taoist temples that are still well preserved, making the southeastern part of Shanxi the region with the most ancient temples in Shanxi Province.

The Niuwang Temple Stage is located in the Niuwang Temple in Weicun, 25 kilometers northwest of Linfen City, Shanxi.

The stage was built in the 20th year of Zhiyuan (1283). It was damaged by the Pingyang earthquake in the seventh year of Dade (1303). It was rebuilt in the first year of Zhizhi (1321). It was repeatedly damaged in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. There are velvet repairs.

The existing stage building is the original structure of the Yuan Dynasty, and the rest were built in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

The stage is built on a brick platform more than 1 meter high, with a width of 7.45 meters and a depth of 7.55 meters. The plane is nearly square, with a single eaves resting on the top of the mountain.

The beam frame structure is unique in that it has both load capacity and decorative effect.

The big bucket is placed on the four corner pillars. A cross bird is set at the mouth of the bucket to support the large forehead beam. There are 12 dougongs around the forehead beam. They are divided into two types: tween and corner. They are made of five pavilions and are heavy. The heavy arches are carefully constructed to support the eaves and upper beams. There are angled squares and angled beams at the corners of the dougong.

The beams and brackets are placed on the wellhead squares, and the upper supporting square squares form a rhombus frame. A vertical column is set up in the center of the square squares to set up a small balcony, forming a flat octagonal roof truss. There is a thunder pillar hanging in the center, which is unique to the caisson.

The stage is open on three sides, with only the rear eaves and the two mountain walls built at the back. The gable walls are about 1/3 of the total length of the mountain surface.

The front eaves and the front of the two mountains are both exposed, which is an inherent form of the early stage.

The Jiangxi Guild Hall is located on the north side of the middle section of Jiangxi Street in Huize County. It has a history of more than 280 years. The stage, main hall and back hall are connected at three points to form the main body of the guild hall.

Among them, the ancient stage can be regarded as a masterpiece among Yunnan’s ancient buildings.

There are a total of 22 doors and windows, which are exquisitely carved and rigorous in structure. They have survived hundreds of years of ups and downs and are still strong and solid.

It is said that the three stars of Fortune, Fortune and Longevity above the stage were carved from three sections of matches.

Secondly, the wood carving, stone carving, brick carving and other craftsmanship of the Zhenjun Hall, East and West Side Hall, Guanyin Hall and other buildings in the guild hall are also exquisite.

The entire guild hall is a representative of the guild hall and temple architecture in Huize County, and it can be called the best stage in Huize.

The ancient stage in Shaxi Ancient Town, Yunnan was first built in the Qing Dynasty. It is a three-story Kuixing Pavilion with a stage structure, a front stage and a back pavilion. It has a unique structure with overlapping eaves and 14 flying corners shooting out in the sky, standing in the blue sky. Under the white clouds.

I never imagined that there would be such a gorgeous and exquisite stage in this rural area with no traffic.

The ancient stage occupies a position due east of Sifang Street, facing the Xingjiao Temple to the west.

Climb the ancient stage. Along the steep wooden stairs, there is an exhibition of cultural relics unearthed in Jianchuan on the second floor and Kuixing Pavilion on the third floor.

The Qimen Ancient Stage in Anhui Province occupies a very important position in the history of Chinese opera stages. In particular, the 11 ancient stages that have survived from various periods since the Ming and Qing Dynasties are a complete history of Huizhou stage and physical examples. One aspect reflects the accomplishments and achievements of Huizhou's architectural art.

The Qimen Ancient Stage is mainly distributed in Xin'an Township in the west of the city, Wangjia Village in Shanli Town, and the Wenshan River Basin. Historically, literary style flourished in this area.

As a performance venue, the ancient stage not only has an entertainment function, but also has a clan education function: on the one hand, it can maintain the blood relationship of the clan. Huizhou people pay attention to loyalty, filial piety, justice, respect for their ancestors, and open their eyes when performing. The partition door of the Xiangtang allows people to have fun with their ancestors and make people feel the glory of the clan; on the other hand, it reflects the majesty of the clan.

The ancestral hall is a place for law enforcement. Through performances, tribesmen who break laws and violate village rules and regulations are punished, and they pay for troupes to perform. It also educates the whole village and serves as a warning.

The ancient stage was mainly set up in the front part of the ancestral hall, opposite to the Xiangtang. This is one of the typical characteristics that is different from the stage settings in other areas.

The stage is divided into a front stage and a backstage.

The bright room of the front stage is the performance area, the second room is the literary and martial arts room, and the second room is the cloister. There are theater viewing buildings on both sides of the corridor. The front facade and components of the stage are all exquisitely carved with patterns. , making people feel beautiful and peaceful.

The more typical ancient stages in Anhui are: Yuqingtang ancient stage, Huiyuantang ancient stage, Dundiantang ancient stage and Jiahuitang ancient stage.

The Yuqingtang ancient stage is located in Zhulin Village, Xin'an Township. It was built around the early Xianfeng period of the Qing Dynasty (1851-1853) and is a provincial-level key cultural relic protection unit.

This ancient stage is part of the Yuqing Hall of the Zhao family ancestral hall.

Yuqing Hall was built into a stage. The gate of the ancestral hall is the backstage of the stage. If people enter the ancestral hall, they must lower their heads and pass under the stage.

On both sides of the patio are theater viewing buildings, which are integrated with the main stage.

The stage's architectural craftsmanship is very particular, with carved beams and painted buildings, and it is magnificent.

The ancestral hall faces east from the west, and the stage faces east from the west. The ancestral hall covers an area of ??504 square meters, of which the stage and theater building occupy an area of ??136 square meters.

On the walls and panels of the stage, there are ink marks on the walls of troupe artists from various periods who performed here.

Huiyuantang Ancient Stage is located in Hangkou Village, Shanli Town.

Huiyuantang is the ancestral hall of the Chen family in Zhuyuan. It was built in the 15th year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty (1587). It consists of three parts: the stage, the enjoyment hall and the sleeping hall, with a total area of ??600 square meters.

The stage faces south and faces north, covering an area of ??97 square meters, and the two-sided stands and patio are 206 square meters.

The foundation in front of the stage is made of bricks and stones, the table top is supported by wooden pillars, and the upper platform is paved.

The back wall of the stage is the south wall of the ancestral hall. There is no gate, which is a major feature of the ancestral hall.

The open room at the front desk is the performance area, and there is a private room on each side for the band accompaniment.

There is a stone-carved barrier in front of the stage, and there are stairs on both sides connected to the stands.

There is a dome-shaped caisson on the top of the center of the stage. The beam structure is a hard mountain purlin type. The beams, moon beams, diagonal braces, sparrows, etc. are decorated with various relief patterns and three-dimensional wood carvings. The entire stage is carved with Liang Caiyu is highly decorative.

The front eaves of the gallery stands on both sides are square stone columns, with rhombus-shaped brackets on the columns.

The eaves, pillars, and diagonal supports are all carved with exquisite patterns and figures.

The patio is paved with bluestone slabs and is very regular.

The ancient stage of Dundian Hall is part of the Dundian Hall of Chen’s ancestral hall in the village.

The ancestral hall faces south and is composed of a gate tower, a stage, a patio, a dining hall and a sleeping hall.

The total building area is 340 square meters, and the stage, patio, and verandah area are 170 square meters, of which the stage area is 86 square meters.

The bottom layer of the stage is supported by movable short columns, and the top is covered with a platform board. It is a detachable movable stage.

The front desk on the second floor is the performance area. There is a dome-shaped caisson on the top of the center (the function is equivalent to today's amplification equipment). There are two rooms on both sides of the backstage for the band accompaniment area.

In the Ming Dynasty, the forehead beams were engraved with "Five Blessings and Longevity" and other decorations. The capitals, diagonal braces, sparrows, beam camels, flat plates and buckets, and the reliefs on the column bases were all carved to the best of their abilities.

The ancient stage of Jiahui Hall faces south and has three entrances and three bays.

The ancestral hall was built during the Tongzhi period of the Qing Dynasty, and the ancient stage and sleeping hall at the back are now existing.

The ancestral hall covers an area of ??505 square meters and is composed of a foyer, a stage, an upstairs wing on the side corridor, a front patio, an ear door, a Xiangtang, a back patio, a sleeping hall, and an upstairs hall.

This ancestral hall is one of the examples of the traditional Huizhou ancestral hall and stage combination. Except for the patio and the stone floor along the steps, most of the entire floor is square tile floor or large floor.

The main door of the temple is entered from the south. The front eaves column is sealed with a brick wall. The main door is set on the brick wall in the middle of the eaves column. It also has water-polished bricks and bluestone door frames and a gate tower.

Entering from the gate is the stage part, which is also the foyer part.

In addition to borrowing the main structural pillars of the ancestral hall itself, the platform columns are also equipped with short columns to support the platform according to the needs of the tabletop setting.

The entire building is simple and elegant, with a high horse head wall, which looks dignified and pleasant. It fully embodies the unique characteristics of Huizhou architecture and has high architectural artistic value.

Dongba Theater is located on the north bank of Xuhe River in Dongba Town, Gaochun District, Nanjing City.

It was originally an advanced building of Dongyue Temple, with brick and wood structure, single-eaves resting-mountain style, surrounded by walls on three sides, and a theater on one side.

The theater building is divided into two floors, the upper floor is a stage, and the lower floor is used for theater troupes to live in.

The theater building has a "convex" shape in plan, with a width of three rooms, a height of 11.5 meters, and a hard top.

The area is 159 square meters.

In the middle of the stage, pillars are used to separate the front and backstage. The front stage is used for acting, with an octagonal caisson on top, and makeup on the backstage.

There is a horizontal plaque with "Zhu Yue Qingtian" hanging on the sky wall facing outward, with dark green couplets on both sides. The horizontal plaque and couplets were written by Wang Jingbin, a famous calligrapher from Jieyuan and Gaochun in the late Qing Dynasty.

On both sides of the main stage, two sub-stages are separated by wooden boards with leaning columns. The left stage is for the band to play, and the right stage is for guests to watch the show.

The "diagonal braces" under the left and right pillars of the front platform are carved into inverted phoenixes and Taishi lions. The shapes are lifelike and exquisite.

In front of the theater is a slope-shaped square with a low front and high back. It covers an area of ??more than 1,600 square meters and can accommodate thousands of spectators.

During the Ming and Qing dynasties, due to the rise and development of Kun Opera in the Suzhou area, in addition to the above-mentioned tile roofs and railings, performance venues included palaces, official offices, garden pavilions, guild halls, mansion halls, shrines, temples, etc. There are performances by opera troupes in the teahouses, theaters and boat fields.

Actors are active on the red duvet, on fixed stages or on temporary or semi-temporary stages, and the performances are colorful and unprecedented.

During the Kangxi and Qianlong tours in the south, they stayed at the Zhizhi Mansion. In the palace, there was a Xieshan Mountain Stage, a theater hall, and an inner and outer theater room.

There are also multiple stages in the Prince Zhong’s Mansion of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

Li Hongzhang wrote in a book to his younger brother He Zhang: "There are three or four gardens and two or three stages in Prince Zhong's Mansion, which is a state that has never been seen in his life."

The Liyuan Troupe in Prince Zhong’s Mansion once opened here.

It was also common for government officials to perform plays at banquets. Except for the Zhizao Mansion, which had a stage, most performances were performed on the ground floor of the hall.

Celebrities and dignitaries entertained themselves, and performances were often performed in the halls by Jiale or Yanxi troupes.

According to the script illustrations in the Ming Dynasty, the chairman is located in front of the screen door, the hall is covered with red carpet as a performance area, the music scene is located on the side of the red carpet or in front of the pavilion, and the characters still maintain the upper left and lower right positions. The upper and lower stage gates are the reason why later generations called the stage "Hongyushu".

There are also performances at the prestigious Suzhou Garden Villa.

In the Ming Dynasty, Fan Changbai's family was active in Tianping Villa.

In the early Qing Dynasty, the Humble Administrator's Garden was the residence of Wu Sangui's son-in-law, Wang Yongning.

The western part of the Humble Administrator's Garden in the late Qing Dynasty was owned by Zhang Luqian. In addition to the temporary stage set up in the remaining Ming Dynasty hall, there were also buildings with the names of "Eighteen Mandala Flower House" and "Thirty" The Yuanyang Hall of the "Liuyuanyang Pavilion" is often used to make music and sing here.

There are ear rooms at the four corners of the hall, which are used for entry and exit, dressing and waiting, which is extremely rare.

Fuding Dieshi Township, at the junction of Fujian and Zhejiang provinces, has many ancient stages.

Because it is located at the junction of the two provinces, the ancient theaters here not only retain the characteristics of Fujian theaters, but are also influenced by the neighboring province of Zhejiang. They show us that the long-standing Chinese opera culture "has not changed at every step" "Shape" is beautiful and handsome.

Its charming charm makes people intoxicated.

The several existing ancient stages in Dieshi Township all have a distinctive feature. They were all built in palaces and temples. So far, no stages built in ancestral halls have been found.

The reason has a lot to do with the family's weak financial resources at the time.

In ancient Taishun, Zhejiang Province, families with relatively strong economic strength often owned theaters alone.

Due to lack of funds in the adjacent Dieshi Township, several families had to jointly fund the construction of the stage in a public building - a palace temple.

In this way, not only can a relatively decent stage be built, but the funds for hiring a theater troupe to perform all year round can also be guaranteed.

Another characteristic of most of the existing ancient stages made of stacked stones is that when rural stages were built, the stage openings often corresponded to the main temple in the village.

This is derived from a view of Feng Shui: facing the temple can prevent wind and rain from invading the altar, and also metaphors the performance's function of entertaining the gods.

After the changes of the times, the function of the stage has evolved into a cultural space where rural customs and folk songs and music are integrated.

Theaters built in palaces and temples also have a close relationship with religion.

The ancient stages in Cangbian, Kukou and Chetou Village in Dieshi Township are all located in the Yangfu Palace.

During folk festivals, these places become a sea of ??joy: listening to operas, watching lanterns, and singing tunes are very lively.

In the early days, opera troupes were usually invited to perform on the 18th day of May, the birthday of Mr. Yang. The purpose was to invite Mr. Yang to watch the play and pray for good weather by "entertaining the gods".

The eaves of the ancient stage in Dieshi Township are all made in the shape of a mountain, which looks very solemn.

The detailed decoration is mainly shown on the capital brackets and caisson wells. Most of the capital brackets are decorated with auspicious flowers and auspicious animals.

There are two ways to build caissons on the ancient stage in Dieshi Township. The caissons on the ancient stages in Cangbian Village and Kukou Village use eight-sided brackets stacked one above another, with up to eight layers of brackets.

In the caissons of the ancient stage in Cangbian Village, on the first floor of the four wells, the four bracketed pillars exposed are carved with images of the Eight Immortals. Each pillar is carved in a group of two, which is exquisitely carved and vivid. Lifelike.

There are a pair of flower baskets and auspicious grass wood carvings embedded in the joint between the first and second floor brackets of the caisson on the ancient stage in Kukou Village.

The caisson of the ancient stage in Chetou Village is made of five layers of bucket arches, and then the top is made into a flat roof, with a slight pattern on the flat roof.

It is said that there were exquisite paintings of the "Eight Immortals" on the caisson of the front stage. Although it was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution, some of the paintings are still faintly visible.

Fragments of Su Shi's "Ode to the Former Red Cliff" were also found in some of the patterns, but most of the characters, flowers and plants in the patterns have been blurred.