Performance Conventions

 

 

Throughout the years, the bulk of inquiries that this website solicits about Chinese shadow puppetry tend to be questions about 'performance conventions'. While there are certainly trends in performance that could possibly be generalized throughout the country's vast roster of regional shadow puppet traditions, the most important convention is simply that Chinese shadow puppetry is, at its heart, a folk art form. Which means, its most important convention is that its performances are given to the community that it was created within, by members of that community in a way that serves that community best. And, that every member of the community is welcomed into the shared experience of the performance. 

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Beyond this, it would be difficult to draw any convention that applies to the comprehensive art form labeled as 'Chinese shadow puppetry.'

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