Wang Jinwen
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Wang Jinwen, Female, Han, from Ningbo, Zhejiang, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Yongju Opera (Ⅳ-107). The tradition is documented in Ningbo, Zhejiang. Within the regional tradition and school record of Yongju Opera in Ningbo, Zhejiang: Its area of circulation was early concentrated in Yin county and Fenghua and later spread through the whole Ningbo region and the townships of the Zhoushan area. Early troupes worked the villages of Yin county and Fenghua; after entering Shanghai in the 1930s they formed the “reformed Yong opera” Western-suit and qipao plays and were very active in both Shanghai and Ningbo around the War of Resistance; after the founding of New China the Ningbo city Yong opera troupe was set up and remains the only professional performing body. After 1938 the genre came to be formally called “Yong opera” or “reformed Yong opera”. Yong opera suits Qing-dress plays, the 1930s Western-suit and qipao plays and modern plays and is very close to real life; its traditional plays The Half Pair of Scissors, If Heaven Wants Rain the Mother Will Remarry and The Twin Jade Cicadas and its modern plays Wang Kun and The Bright-Eyed Man all give outstanding expression to reality and are welcomed by audiences.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Wang Jinwen is anchored in the documented technical standards of Yongju Opera in Ningbo, Zhejiang. Within the documented technical tradition of Yongju Opera in Ningbo, Zhejiang: Yong opera is a local genre sung in the Ningbo dialect of Zhejiang, its musical vocal style belonging to tanhuang. As its repertory changed it passed successively through the periods of the male dan, the female dan and reformed Yong opera. Before the founding of New China it was very active in Shanghai and Ningbo, where many performing bodies appeared. Its tunes are rich, including the “basic tune” and “Siming nanci” evolved from country field-side and antiphonal mountain songs and sung news, the “fast erhuang” and “slow erhuang” brought in from luantan troupes and various local ditties. The “basic tune” is used mainly to narrate plot, “Siming nanci” mainly to express a character's feelings, “erhuang” mainly to express ringing and vehement emotion, and the ditties special feelings. Over the past fifty years the various tunes have cross-fertilised, producing some new composite tunes. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "The Half Pair of Scissors": A classic traditional play of Yong opera, excellent in reflecting reality. "If Heaven Wants Rain the Mother Will Remarry": A classic traditional play of Yong opera, excellent in reflecting reality. "The Twin Jade Cicadas": A classic traditional play of Yong opera, excellent in reflecting reality. "Wang Kun": A classic modern play of Yong opera, excellent in reflecting reality.
The Half Pair of Scissors
A classic traditional play of Yong opera, excellent in reflecting reality.
If Heaven Wants Rain the Mother Will Remarry
A classic traditional play of Yong opera, excellent in reflecting reality.
The Twin Jade Cicadas
A classic traditional play of Yong opera, excellent in reflecting reality.
Wang Kun
A classic modern play of Yong opera, excellent in reflecting reality.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Wang Jinwen was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Yongju Opera, with Ningbo, Zhejiang as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Yongju Opera in Ningbo, Zhejiang: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2008 (batch 2), with Ningbo, Zhejiang as its declared area, and Ningbo Yong Troupe Co., Ltd. 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
Historical origin
After 1938 the genre came to be formally called “Yong opera” or “reformed Yong opera”. Yong opera suits Qing-dress plays, the 1930s Western-suit and qipao plays and modern plays and is very close to real life; its traditional plays The Half Pair of Scissors, If Heaven Wants Rain the Mother Will Remarry and The Twin Jade Cicadas and its modern plays Wang Kun and The Bright-Eyed Man all give outstanding expression to reality and are welcomed by audiences.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yang Liuting | Ningbo, Zhejiang | 04-1678 | Same declared area |
| Wang Jinwen | Ningbo, Zhejiang | — | This page |
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。