The Imperial Emperor of Heaven Holding CourtThe Chinese Artists Association of Hong Kong10th Anniversary of Inscription of Cantonese Opera on UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity
The Imperial Emperor of Heaven Holding Court
The Imperial Emperor of Heaven is holding court. The immortals report signs of unrest in the mortal world. So the Emperor dispatches a heavenly host to descend from heaven to save the mortals. The plot of this drama exemplifies the Chinese people’s traditional view of the universe: Heaven above is mindful of the well-being of mortals; whenever there is disaster in the mortal world, heaven will send forces to their rescue. It is the usual practice of operatic troupes to perform The Imperial Emperor of Heaven Holding Court as a show opener for matinee shows. It is often staged alongside Eight Immortals Bestowing Longevity and A Fairy Returns Her Son to the Mortal Father.
Eight Immortals Bestowing Longevity
A standard playlet in the traditional repertory of Cantonese Opera, Eight Immortals Bestowing Longevity describes the Eight Immortals – Han Zhongli, Lu Dongbin, Zhang Guolao, Cao Guojiu, Tieguai Li, Han Xiangzi, Lan Caihe and He Xiangu – coming to the Queen Mother of Heaven’s birthday party and offering their well wishes. The spoken lines of this play are delivered in the ancient official dialect of the Central Plains (guanhua).
Blessing by the God of Fortune
Also known as Promoting to High Officialdom, this is a traditional playlet which can be found in the stock repertory of many regional theatrical genres of ancient provenance. It functions as a ritual performance for the gods. The wusheng (military male) actor in the martial role of the God of Fortune dons a mask (keeping it in place by biting a small piece of wood on the underside). He holds an official tablet in his hands, delivers flamboyant stylised movements, and ends with a scroll showing words of blessings.
A Fairy Returns Her Son to the Mortal Father
The destitute Dong Yong sells himself into bondage to give his father a proper burial. Moved by his filial piety, the Seventh Fairy secretly descends to the mortal world to marry him. When the Imperial Emperor of Heaven learns about this, he orders her to return to heaven, and husband and wife are separated. Dong Yong later earns the honour of Top Scholar in the civil service exam, while the Seventh Fairy gives birth to a son in heaven. By His Majesty’s order, Dong would have a parade in his honour for three days. The Seventh Fairy pleads with the Imperial Emperor to let her descend to the mortal world with her six sisters to give Dong their son. Having accomplished this, she returns to heaven. A Fairy Returns Her Son to the Mortal Father begins with the episode in which she hands back her son. The entire performance is delivered in an ancient official dialect of the Central Plains (guanhua). The six fairies would do a transformation stunt with the ‘flipping the court dress’ technique, which shows the consummate choreography of traditional playlets as well as the exquisite tailoring and costume designs of old-style theatre.