n Chinese Opera, there are generally four main categories of roles: sheng (the male roles), dan (the female roles), jing (the painted face roles), and chou (clowns). Each category is further subdivided into distinct types. An actor typically trains for a single type of role within one category. Actors who can play multiple types of roles within a single category are considered especially talented. An actor almost never plays roles outside his or her category.
Sheng: There are three main male roles that an actor trains for. The first is Lao Sheng, a middle-aged or old man. The Lao Sheng are high level scholors or officials -- dignified gentlmen of rank -- and wear a black hat with fins on either side. The are also military officials and generals. The Lao Sheng wears a beard (black or grey, depending on age).
The second type of role is Xiao Sheng, or young man -- like our handsome scholar, Xu Xian! The Xiao Sheng sings in a warbling voice to indicate adolescence, and does not wear a beard.
The third type of role is Wu Sheng, or acrobat, who performs much of the most exciting elements of Chinese Opera. A special Wu Sheng role is that of the Monkey King, featured in a number of operas based on the famous story A Journey to the West.
Dan: There are twice as many female role types as there are male. They are divided according to character, status, and age. Lao Dan is the old woman role. The costume is subdued, no make-up is worn, and the singing voice is natural and therefore lower than that for the other Dan roles.
The Wu Dan is the female acrobat, and is equivalent to the Wu Sheng role for the men.
A Qing Yi actress is the noblewoman, of good quality and character. She is the model or ideal of the Chinese woman -- faithful, proper, shy, and graceful.
The Hua Dan is a more feisty, flirtatious young woman -- like Bai Su and Xiao Quin.
Finally, there is the Dao Ma Dan, or warrior woman. This character typically wears full armour and great peacock feathers in her hat. The famed military heroines of China are all played as Dao Ma Dan. There are far more female generals in Chinese opera than there ever were in Chinese history!
Jing: The Painted Face role is the most recognizable part of Chinese Opera. This part is reserved for high-ranking army generals or bandits, warriors or officials. All Jing characters have their faces painted elaborately, the colors on the face indicating the personality and temperment of the character. A white face means treachery, black means uprightness, red indicates courage and virtue, blue denotes cruelty or wild temperment. A mix of multiple colors indicates a more complicated personality.
Chou: Male clowns are easily recognizable because they all wear a distinctive white patch of make-up around the nose and eyes. This same make-up is sometimes used for mean-spirited villains as well. Female clowns do not have the white make-up patch but instead have a reddened face with black eyebrows.
The Four Opera Character Types
By The Shores of the Lake
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The Zhulong Teahouse
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