Performing Hybridity in Colonial-Modern China [Hardcover]

In Shanghai in the early twentieth century, a hybrid theatrical form, wenmingxi, emerged that was based on Western spoken theatre, classical Chinese theatre, and a Japanese hybrid form known as shinpa. This book places it in the context of its hybridized literary and performance elements, giving it a definitive place in modern Chinese theatre.Introduction: Modernity, Interculturalism, and Hybridity 1. Emergence of the National Theatrical Discourse 2. Hybrid Sources: Western, Japanese, and Chinese 3. Hybridization in Shanghai 4. Literary Hybridity: Scripts and Scenarios 5. Translative Hybridity: Acculturation and Foreignization 6. Performance Hybridity: The Search for Conventions

Performing Hybridity in Colonial-Modern China fills a crucial gap in studies of modern Chinese theater by providing an in-depth study of the genre of wenmingxi (civilized drama) . . . [an] impeccably researched volume. - Modern Chinese Literature and Culture

Liu's Performing Hybridity in Colonial-Modern China challenges the traditional/modern dichotomy that has dominated intercultural and postcolonial theatre studies in the past. Instead, the author adopts a model of hybridity that allows him to explore the evolving layers of influence that combined to shape the fascinating genre of wenmingxi performance in early twentieth-century China. - Bruce McConachie, Professor of Theatre Arts, University of Pittsburgh, USA

A substantial and original contribution to modern Chinese drama and performance history with historical scope and cross-cultural perspectives, this book provides insights into a wide range of issues such as self/other, nation/state, modernism, collective consciousness, and gender politics. This meticulous study breaks new ground in our understanding of Chinese performance culture in global contexts and its complex heritage. A must read for students and scholars of modern Chinese theater and its lasting impact on the formation of a 'nelóŸ