Abstract
The 15 existing plays by the Yuan-Dynasty playwright Guan Hanqing reflect the playwright's originality in processing subject matter through transformation of conventional themes and his realistic concerns with profound thoughts. Guan Hanqing's plays, literally variety dramas in Chinese, demonstrate a variety of structural types with different dramaturgic techniques. The plot from suspense, misunderstanding, and discovery to return is well adapted into plays with each act comprising two sections, and this greatly promotes the expressiveness of the plays. His story is strengthened by his thoughtful construction of plot with added sections that broke through the "one-play-of-four-act" convention. In Guan's ingenious casting, one lead actor can play multiple characters and this greatly changes the convention of the one-actor opera at the time and improves the tension on stage. Guan Hanqing's plays highlight the woman lead characters, and can deploy more characters to enhance the plot centered round the woman lead actor, which eventually helps form Chinese opera performance convention centered round the woman lead actor. Guan Hanqing's plays may provide an example for the theorization of the structure in Chinese operatic plays.
First Page
87
Last Page
98
Recommended Citation
Xu, Jianzhong. 2020. "The Art of Guan Hanqing's Dramaturgic Structure." Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art 40, (5): pp.87-98. https://tsla.researchcommons.org/journal/vol40/iss5/15
