Ying Aifang

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Ying Aifang, Female, Han, from Pingyang, Zhejiang, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Puppetry (Ⅳ-92). The tradition is documented in Pingyang, Zhejiang. Within the regional tradition and school record of Puppetry in Pingyang, Zhejiang: Pingyang puppetry is transmitted in the area of Pingyang County, Zhejiang Province, taking shape no later than the Song dynasty and reaching its height in the Ming and Qing dynasties. The Qihai Suotan of Jiang Zhun in the Ming dynasty says that puppet performers of the Pingyang area such as Huang Zifu at that time "were skilled of mind in devising puppets, moved them by mechanism, no different from living men"; it was still very flourishing in the Republic period, and in the early years after the founding of the People's Republic of China the county still had more than one hundred troupes, of which 42 were mainly string puppetry, 75 mainly bag puppetry and one mainly rod puppetry, with more than five hundred people working in the art. It combines the four kinds of performance — string, rod, bag and hand puppetry — into one with string puppetry as the principal, and sings the six vocal systems of gaoqiang, Kun, Hui, luantan, shidiao and tanhuang. It has been transmitted in Pingyang County, Zhejiang Province for a very long time, taking shape no later than the Song dynasty and reaching its height in the Ming and Qing dynasties. The Qihai Suotan (Miscellaneous Talks at the Forked Sea) of Jiang Zhun in the Ming dynasty says that puppet performers of the Pingyang area such as Huang Zifu at that time "were skilled of mind in devising puppets, moved them by mechanism, no different from living men... their voices were clear and ringing, surpassing all others of the time". The Chuantun Yuchang (Fishing Songs at the Boat Village) of Zhang Zuanwu in the Qing dynasty in turn sings: "children shape gong and shang on their lips, having learned Kunshan and Yiyang. In the Republic period Pingyang puppetry was still very flourishing; in the early years after the founding of the People's Republic of China the county still had more than one hundred troupes, of which 42 were mainly string puppetry (marionette), 75 mainly bag puppetry and one mainly rod puppetry, with more than five hundred people working in the art. The figures of Pingyang puppetry are distinctive in design; the puppet heads and costumes made since the Ming and Qing dynasties are finely worked, are preserved complete and carry a strong local colouring.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

The bearer record for Ying Aifang is anchored in the documented technical standards of Puppetry in Pingyang, Zhejiang. Within the documented technical tradition of Puppetry in Pingyang, Zhejiang: The verse "one need not set a banquet to watch Baolao; performed here, the dancing sleeves are just as apt" depicts the state of Pingyang puppetry performance at that time. From the verse it can be seen that performances of puppetry at that time already sang both Kunshan tune and Yiyang tune. Pingyang puppetry sings in six vocal systems — gaoqiang, Kun, Hui, luantan, shidiao and tanhuang — and both its singing and its recitation make use of Mandarin, the O (Wenzhou) dialect and the Min dialect. Its performance forms are varied, combining the four kinds of puppet manipulation — string, rod, bag and hand puppetry — into one, with string puppetry as the principal. In long performance Pingyang puppetry accumulated a large repertoire: traditional plays alone number more than three hundred and their subjects touch every aspect of society. Plays such as Shuiman Jinshan (The Flood over Mount Jin) and Shizhen Feizhuan (The Turning of the Clock Hand) have won awards many times, and the art has four times gone to Beijing for performances and four times gone abroad for exchange performances, being renowned at home and overseas. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Shuiman Jinshan (The Flood over Mount Jin)": In long performance Pingyang puppetry accumulated a large repertoire: traditional plays alone number more than three hundred and their subjects touch every aspect of society. Plays such as Shuiman Jinshan (The Flood over Mount Jin) and Shizhen Feizhuan (The Turning of the Clock Hand) have won awards many times, and the art has four times gone to Beijing for performances and four times gone abroad for exchange performances, being renowned at home and overseas. "Shizhen Feizhuan (The Turning of the Clock Hand)": In long performance Pingyang puppetry accumulated a large repertoire: traditional plays alone number more than three hundred and their subjects touch every aspect of society. Plays such as Shuiman Jinshan (The Flood over Mount Jin) and Shizhen Feizhuan (The Turning of the Clock Hand) have won awards many times, and the art has four times gone to Beijing for performances and four times gone abroad for exchange performances, being renowned at home and overseas.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

In 2025, Ying Aifang was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Puppetry, with Pingyang, Zhejiang as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Puppetry in Pingyang, Zhejiang: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2008 (batch 2), with Pingyang, Zhejiang as its declared area, and Pingyang Muouxi Safeguarding and Transmission Center as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.

04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier

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.

06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography

1. Yingaifang (Pingyang, Zhejiang) · China ICH Official Project Archive
2. Yingaifang · China ICH Official Archive