Traditional string puppet or marionette theater, also generally known as puppet theater, is the earliest known form of China’s various puppet theaters. Presently in northern China, string puppet theater exists only in Heyang, which is situated in the cradle of Chinese civilization, within the ancient State of Qin.
Heyang’s string puppet/marionette theater was traditionally known as xianhou, or xianhu, and formally labeled String Opera. It is also called the Heyang Operatic Tradition. Performers use string to manipulate the puppets, combined with singing, music, and dialogue. The facial features of Heyang’s traditional marionette puppets resemble those of Tang dynasty figures, providing some support for locals’ claim that their marionettes originated during the Tang.
After Fan Pen Li Chen conducted her first fieldwork on Chinese shadow theater from 1997 to 1999, with a Faculty Research Assistance Program B grant from SUNY Albany, she was able to return to Heyang, the only location where marionette theater has survived in northern China. The book Marionette Plays From Northern China is from her further research in 2004 in Heyang.
Following an introduction, the book is organized into three parts that include different marionette plays. Every play in the book also has a short introduction that gives brief information for each skit.
Part I, Post-Midnight Skits, focuses on the plays also known as extra, additional, or ribald plays, which are comical skits traditionally performed after midnight, when women, children, and elderly men have left. In Part I, there are three selections that are called “Lai Baozi,” “Baldy’s Wedding Night,” and “Peddling Notions.” The last one, for example, is a perennial favorite “extra playlet” or “post-midnight playlet” in Shaanxi and Henan. The author has personally seen “Peddling Notions” performed in Shaanxi’s shadow, rod, and string puppet theaters. The light-hearted skit portrays the flirtations between a village girl and a young itinerant peddler, which turn into mutual teasing and quarreling.
Part II, Historical Fiction, explores three plays presented chronologically: “Empress Lü Usurps the Throne,” “Yang Wenguang” and “Short Version of River Yang.” The first play, for example, follows historical facts somewhat closely to such an extent that it might be considered a fictional historical play. The second and the third plays give only a passing nod to history in that each contains the name of at least one historical character and is situated within a specific dynasty.
In Part III, Romance, there are two romantic plays: “The White Undershirt” and “Pavilion of the Immortals in Exile.” They are also the most sophisticated in this collection of marionette plays in terms of their language and use of literary allusion. The second play, for example, is a most unusual romantic play. It is about two beautiful and talented young ladies who are allowed to choose their own mates through personally interviewing and administering examinations to eligible young scholars.
In sum, containing a number of beautiful and colorful photographs of puppets, the book is well written. The author makes a significant contribution to the study of traditional puppetry in China.
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[Review length: 501 words • Review posted on March 4, 2019]