Zhu Lizhen
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Third-generation transmitter of Zhangjiajie Yang Opera. She studied under the veteran artist Tuo Songxia. Within the regional tradition and school record of Zhangjiajie Yang Opera in Zhangjiajieshiyongding, Hunan: Zhangjiajie Tujia yangxi is an operatic genre based on the Zhangjiajie dialect and formed by combining Tujia mountain chants with folk ditties, circulating mainly in Zhangjiajie city, Hunan, and its surroundings. Its singing feature distinguishing it from other local yangxi is the method of “a golden thread dangling a gourd”, that is the combination of true and falsetto voice in singing, the lyrics in true voice and the trailing phrase leaping an octave in falsetto. Zhangjiajie yangxi originated in the mid-Qing and has a history of more than three hundred years, belonging to the northern-road yangxi.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
Female, Tujia ethnicity, born in January 1940 in Dayong County, Hunan Province. In 1956 she took part in founding the Zhangjiajie Yang Opera Troupe and successively served as director of its Art Research Committee, as stage director and as artistic adviser. After retiring in 1986 she was engaged by the Yang Opera Troupe as a teaching instructor. She specialized in the dan role and was adept at combining the performance characteristics of Yang Opera with her own experience, forming a stage style of distinct personal character. In her directing practice she boldly fused the arts of opera and dance drama into Yang Opera performance conventions, enriching the artistic content of the genre. She is a Yang Opera artist who unites playwriting, directing and acting with make-up and costume design. Within the documented technical tradition of Zhangjiajie Yang Opera in Zhangjiajieshiyongding, Hunan: Its stage performance is based on the Zhangjiajie dialect, with clear level and oblique tones and many retroflex rhymes. Its arias belong to the folk-song structure and divide into the two great categories of “zhengdiao” and “xiaodiao”, with male and female not distinguished by register but with such ban variation as daoban, gunban, sanban, shouting and aizi, this manner of singing being evolved from the Tujia people's singing. Its performing feature is much doing and little combat, mostly civil plays, family plays and tragedies, with a rich flavour of life; the dan role stands first among the roles. Its arias consist of the zhengdiao and xiaodiao parts, with seventeen qupai in all; the zhengdiao arias are all sung with a combination of true and falsetto voice, the final phrase suddenly leaping up an octave, called “narrow voice” in the trade, and the flavour of Dayong yangxi lies precisely in this narrow voice. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Zhengdiao and Xiaodiao (Seventeen Qupai)": Zhangjiajie yangxi's arias consist of zhengdiao and xiaodiao, with seventeen qupai in all; the zhengdiao arias are sung with a combination of true and falsetto voice, the final phrase leaping an octave, called “narrow voice” in the trade. "A Golden Thread Dangling a Gourd": The singing method distinguishing Zhangjiajie yangxi from other local yangxi, combining true and falsetto voice, the lyrics in true voice and the trailing phrase leaping an octave in falsetto. "The White Snake": One of the representative plays led and directed by the inheritor. "Sister Jiang": One of the representative plays led and directed by the inheritor.
Zhengdiao and Xiaodiao (Seventeen Qupai)
Zhangjiajie yangxi's arias consist of zhengdiao and xiaodiao, with seventeen qupai in all; the zhengdiao arias are sung with a combination of true and falsetto voice, the final phrase leaping an octave, called “narrow voice” in the trade.
A Golden Thread Dangling a Gourd
The singing method distinguishing Zhangjiajie yangxi from other local yangxi, combining true and falsetto voice, the lyrics in true voice and the trailing phrase leaping an octave in falsetto.
The White Snake
One of the representative plays led and directed by the inheritor.
Sister Jiang
One of the representative plays led and directed by the inheritor.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
National representative bearer of Zhangjiajie Yang Opera, a fifth-batch national intangible cultural heritage project. She starred in and directed more than a hundred traditional and modern plays, her representative works including The Legend of the White Snake (Baishe Zhuan) and Sister Jiang (Jiang Jie); she won first prize for performers of the Xiangxi Autonomous Prefecture for her leading role in Ding Gui Lectures on the Classics (Ding Gui Jiang Shu).
04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier
Historical origin
Zhangjiajie yangxi originated in the mid-Qing and has a history of more than three hundred years, belonging to the northern-road yangxi.
05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage
National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.
| Bearer | Declared area | Roster code | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zhu Lizhen | Zhangjiajieshiyongding, Hunan | 05-2473 | This page |
| Chen Yongxia | Youyangtujiazumiaozuzizhi, Chongqing | — | Other regional school |
| Li Dafu | Guangyuanshizhaohua, Sichuan | — | Other regional school |
| Zhouchangzhi | Guizhou | — | Other regional school |
| Liang Houfang | Huaihuashihecheng, Hunan | — | Other regional school |
| Li Gang | Guizhou | — | Other regional school |
| Yao Weiyun | Guizhou | — | Other regional school |
06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records and the associated project dossier, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。