On December 18th 2016, Shuoba! held an Experience Beijing Opera at Shuoba! Tianjin Centre.

Students arrived around 2pm, and under our teacher’s guidance, we watched footages of the movie Farewell My Concubine, which showcased the difficulties which children faced when learning Beijing Opera. The experiences of the main movie character under the historical background of that time, made a deep impression on our students.

With an initial impression of Beijing Opera, the teachers then explained the mysteries behind Beijing Opera masks; why do we distinguish it with colors? why is there a hand on the mask? why are there so many Suns on it? how do you figure out one’s personality through the way eyes are drawn? Our teachers answered all of these questions, and more.

With this knowledge about the opera mask and music, the teachers and students sang the Shuo Chang Lian Pu together. The catchy melodies of this classical song reminded the students of the characters they had just learnt, even practicing on their own, with a few even saying that they would choose this song when they next go singing at a KTV.

Our Experience Beijing Opera ended in cheers and laughter! All the students felt that they had spent a meaningful afternoon, as they now have a further understanding of Beijing Opera culture.