Cross-dressing in Chinese opera / Siu Leung Li.

Author/creator Li, Siu Leung, 1958-
Format Book
Publication InfoHong Kong : Hong Kong University Press, ©2003.
Descriptionx, 294 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
Subjects

Contents Lu Xun's straight words and the queer world of Chinese opera -- A theatre of cross-dressing: a revisionist history -- A theatre of desire: the concubine and the hegemon king -- (Cross-)Dressing up to power: woman warriors -- Un/queering the latently queer and transgender performance: the butterfly lover(s) -- The crisis of gender representation: the Yuan Theatre mural -- Gender and performance: crossing reality/fiction and acting the other sex -- Aesthetics and politics of the performing body: female scholar and male queen -- "The last female impersonator": Wen Ruhua and his aesthetics of male transvestism -- Epilogue -- Glossary.
Abstract The enchantment of the figure of the "male dan"--female impersonator--remains a residual element in the cultural imagination of many contemporary Chinese societies. The various kinds of interpretive possibilities in the commanding tradition of cross-dressing Chinese opera have yet to be examined in-depth. In order to discuss "mistaken identity" and gender issues as they relate to cross-dressing on the Chinese operatic stage, this book examines a wide range of materials, including traditional dramatic texts, modern literary writings, critical writings (for example, quhua), opera paintings, and contemporary movies. The book explores gendering and gender differences that are constructed, reproduced, dismantled, and contested in this particularly rich site of Chinese culture.
Bibliography noteIncludes bibliographical references (pages 219-280) and index.
ISBN9622096034

Availability

Library Location Call Number Status Item Actions
Music Closed Stacks - Ask at Circulation Desk ML1751.C4 L5 2003 ✔ Available Place Hold