A seminar discussing the future of Liuzi Opera was held on Dec 2, following a performance of Lu You Xiu Qi (Lu You to Divorce His Wife), at the 2016 Xiqu Opera Black Box Festival at Beijing's Star Theater.

Representatives from Shandong Liuzi Opera Troupe, scholars, and opera researchers attended the seminar to discuss ways of developing the ancient art, absorbing modern elements to fit the interests of today's audiences.

Lu You Xiu Qi provided a reference for the attendees, who agreed that Liuzi Opera is more suited to being performed in smaller venues so as to retain its intimacy with the audience.In this way, greater vitality can be injected into the performance and hopefully help the opera to reach a broader audience.

Performed by the Shandong Liuzi Opera Troupe, Lu You Xiu Qi tells a poignant tale of love and loss. The performance was well-received by the audience, who enjoyed the enchanting arias, stage effects, and modern interpretation, which made the ancient opera glow with a new vitality and the vigor.

Liuzi Opera is a combination of folk melody and liuzi tunes. It is usually accompanied by a sanxian (a three stringed instrument), a flute and a sheng (a woodwind instrument). The opera has absorbed elements of other folk operas, such as gaoqiang, qingyangqiang and luantan.

Sometimes known as "Beidiaozi" or "Kangbozi", it is popular in Shandong and Henan province, northern Jiangsu, southern Hebei, and northern Anhui.

The opera was first developed from folk music of the central plains with "Liuzi" was taken as its representative tune, and so it became known as Liuzi Opera. Its popularity peaked during the mid-Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

The opera was added to the list of national intangible heritages on May 20, 2006.

The 2016 Xiqu Opera Black Box Festival runs from Oct 19 to Dec 30, staging many performances such as Peking, Kunqu, Shaoxing, Cantonese, and Tibetan operas.

The Liuzi Opera Lu You Xiu Qi (Lu You to Divorce His Wife) is staged at the 2016 Xiqu Opera Black Box Festival at the Star Theater in Beijing. [Photo/Cultural Shandong]

A seminar on the future of Liuzi Opera is held in Beijing on Dec 2. [Photo/Cultural Shandong]

A poster for the 2016 Xiqu Opera Black Box Festival.