Baizi Opera

The dialects in some regions of South China's Guangdong Province are called Baizi or Baihua in Chinese to distinguish them from the widely-used Cantonese. The local operas in Chaozhou, Haifeng and Lufeng in Guangdong are sung in dialects and all of them used be called Baizi Opera since its emergence at the end of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) in these regions. Later on, Baizi Opera grew to be an accepted title for local operas in Haifeng and Lufeng counties, while the one in Chaozhou was named the Chaozhou Baizi Opera.

Baizi Opera gradually formed its own styles and features. Its aria structure is not just limited to one type, with fair-sounding melody and diverse forms. Its performance pattern is fixed but, if needed, its subject to change.

Traditionally there were usually seven musicians accompanying a Baizi Opera troupe. Among these musicians, two of them beat drums and two beat gongs. Later on, more musical instruments were added into the performance. In addition to the four roles similar to those of the Peking Opera, sheng (male role), dan (female role), chou (comedic male role), and jing (painted-face male role), Baizi Opera in Haifeng and Lufeng in Gongdong has three more roles.

Depending on the dominance of a small or a big gong, Baizi Opera plays can be classified into two major kinds, small gong opera and big gong opera. The former type is full of lively atmosphere with bright and happy arias while the latter is grand and elegant.

Baizi Opera is so closely connected to Zhengzi (referring to the official Cantonese) Opera that it spawned an interesting performance custom. The first half of a play is performed in Cantonese, and the second half in the Baizi dialect.

In the mid 20th century, Baizi Opera developed and became very popular. However, with the development of the entertainment industry and the diversification of people's tastes, its market has shrunk. Therefore, more effort is needed to protect this traditional art form from dying out.