Ancient City Grand Theater

Ancient City Grand Theater

[The world's largest wooden theater • Ancient City Double-Sided Grand Theater]

Narration: There’s a saying: History is like a play, life is like a play, and time is the stage. The Ancient City Grand Theater is such a historical stage that has spanned a thousand years.

The Ancient City Grand Theater is located in the Ancient City area of Caotang, Weng’an. It covers an area of 2,158 square meters, with a construction area of 4,650 square meters, a depth of 48 meters, a width of 41 meters, and a height of 26 meters. It features 26 double-eaved, upturned-roof structures, and the grand theater, shaped like an eight-petal lotus, is supported by 399 wooden pillars that require two people to hug—creating a majestic and breathtaking presence. Inside the theater, there is a carved wooden beam adorned with thousands of figures, sculpted from a single piece of rosewood, which is known to be the largest rosewood beam in the world to date. The theater houses countless exquisite carvings, including relief carvings, openwork carvings, wood carvings, brick carvings, stone engravings, and murals—all showcasing exceptional classical craftsmanship. Themes range from nature and humanity to legends, myths, landscapes, flowers, birds, insects, and fish. It has been calculated that if all the fine carvings inside the theater were lined up, they could stretch all the way from Houchang to Zunyi. History is truly fascinating: this millennia-old grand theater has witnessed a grand drama in the history of the Chinese revolution.

When visiting the Ancient City Grand Theater, we must briefly revisit the history of Chinese theater. The origins of Chinese opera can be traced back to the songs and dances of primitive times. The Book of Documents · Canon of Shun states: “I strike stone against stone, and all beasts dance.” The phrase “strike stone against stone” refers to creating rhythm by striking stones together or hitting them with hands. This dance may have been a primitive religious ritual before going hunting or a celebration upon returning. All art originates from labor, and theater and song-dance are no exception.

The Nuo Opera of Weng’an is a form of folk drama developed on the basis of Nuo Dance. Nuo Dance is a type of dance from ancient Nuo rituals, originating from totem worship in primitive society. By the Shang Dynasty, it had evolved into a fixed ritual for exorcism and worship. After the Zhou Dynasty, it became known as Nuo. During the Zhou era, there were not only folk “village Nuo” performances but also “grand Nuo” and “state Nuo” ceremonies held by the Son of Heaven and feudal lords. By the Northern Song Dynasty, court Nuo dances began featuring performers dressed as generals, door gods, and judges. The performances also developed certain plotlines and moved toward entertainment.

Weng’an Nuo Opera – The Living Fossil of Chinese Drama

Weng’an Nuo Opera has evolved through various dynasties, with both form and content continuously changing. Today’s Weng’an Nuo Opera is characterized by performers wearing blue scarves over their faces, battle skirts around their waists, and wearing masks on their foreheads. They wield weapons such as spears, swords, and halberds while singing spontaneously and dancing responsively. The singing consists of seven- and ten-character rhymed verses, accompanied by a single gong and drum, with one lead singer and a chorus. The dance primarily depicts scenes of battle and combat. The themes include beloved heroes from the Three Kingdoms and the Yang Family Generals favored by locals. Weng’an Nuo Opera not only showcases the complete form of primitive drama but also illustrates its different developmental stages, thus earning the title “Living Fossil of Chinese Drama.”

Lantern-Clapper Opera – Included in the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List

Weng’an Lantern-Clapper Opera, listed as a national intangible cultural heritage, is an innovative development based on Nuo Opera and is a form of flower lantern and colorful tune drama. After the Song Dynasty, complete dramatic scripts emerged, and by the Ming and Qing Dynasties, court theater became part of the lives of royalty and nobility, gaining official recognition and being referred to as “elegant.” In contrast, local operas based on regional dialects were called “colorful” (hua). The flower lantern and Sichuan opera forms included in Weng’an Lantern-Clapper Opera belong to this category of local drama. A distinctive feature of Weng’an Lantern-Clapper Opera is the insertion of Sichuan opera performances during breaks between flower lantern acts to avoid dead air, allowing alternating makeup and performances by both troupes, achieving a dual theatrical effect. This represents a rare development and innovation in folk theater. The opera is typically accompanied by folk instruments such as gongs, drums, erhu, banhu, jinghu, clappers, and flutes, blending and alternating sounds according to the characteristics of flower lantern and Sichuan opera, creating a rhythmic flow. The drummer, holding sticks in both hands, strikes the drum while conducting the band, bringing the performance to life. Beyond celebrating harvests and prosperous business with its exquisite performances, Lantern-Clapper Opera also carries strong religious significance. Every year on the ninth day of the first lunar month, a worship ceremony is held, a remnant of the ancient Nuo ritual—the precursor to Nuo Opera—demonstrating that Lantern-Clapper Opera shares lineage with Nuo Opera and has evolved innovatively from it.

Dragon and Lion Dance – Dancing Out the Hometown of Dragon and Lion Culture

Another frequently performed folk program on the Ancient City Grand Stage is the Dragon and Lion Dance. With both dragons and lions, the name itself is quite impactful. Since the dragon is the totem of the Chinese nation and the lion symbolizes strength, the combination of the two in the Dragon and Lion Dance holds cultural significance and historical depth. Historical records confirm that the tradition of dragon lantern dancing and lion dancing in Houchang, Weng’an, dates back to the Tang Dynasty. Common types of dragon lanterns in Houchang include the Big Curve Dragon, Colorful Dragon, Sow Dragon, Bench Dragon, Bamboo Dragon, Fire Dragon, and Water Dragon, among which the “Fire Dragon” has been listed as a national intangible cultural heritage. Dragon and lion performances in Houchang were traditionally held during the Spring Festival, attracting people from nearby counties, cities, and villages, filling the entire Houchang area with joy and auspiciousness. Today, it has become a regular performance at Ancient City Square. With the development of tourism and the establishment of China’s only “Dragon and Lion Cultural Square” in Caotang, Weng’an now hosts a “Dragon and Lion Culture Art Festival” every two years. In 2005, Caotang Town was named the “Hometown of Dragon and Lion Culture and Art” by the Guizhou Provincial Government.

Culture is like a seed—once sown, it yields fruit. The frequent performances of folk dramas at the Ancient City Grand Theater have also promoted the development of drama and culture in Weng’an. In the past, the theater was packed with audiences, often drawing crowds so large that streets were emptied. Among them were many children who came to watch the plays. Two of these children later became renowned dramatists and literary figures in Guizhou and even China, becoming a source of pride for Weng’an. They are the Qing Dynasty dramatist Fu Yushu and the famous Red Army general and writer Chen Jing.

Founder of Guizhou Drama – Fu Yushu

Fu Yushu, a native of Caotang, Weng’an, came from a family of scholars. His grandfather, Fu Shichen, was appointed as a literature official in Shibing during the middle years of Emperor Kangxi’s reign. His father, Fu Longguang, was a renowned scholar and poet in Guizhou during the Yongzheng and Qianlong eras of the Qing Dynasty. Fu Yushu was naturally gifted, dignified, respectful of rituals, studious, and diligent from a young age. At the age of fifteen, he “received the original meanings of the Book of Changes from his father,” and as a youth, was already regarded as a Confucian scholar by local teachers. By twenty, he had “gained widespread literary fame” and “devoted himself even more to reading, studying the principles of life.” In 1765, he passed the imperial examination and served as magistrate of Fu’an County in Jiangxi. After returning to his hometown, he lectured at academies in Zhenyuan, Huangping, and Guiyang. His creation, The Legend of the Mandarin Ducks and Mirror, is the first drama in Guizhou’s history and has been recorded in the annals of Chinese opera. It is also one of only two dramatic works from the Qing literary scene (the other being Ren Xuan’s The Legend of the Plum Blossom). His compiled work, A Record of Local Tales, spanning 10 volumes, documents various historical aspects of Weng’an and is China’s first privately compiled county chronicle. Before Fu Yushu, there had been no privately written chronicles in the country, yet he pioneered this effort in a remote, culturally underdeveloped region—an extraordinary achievement. He was the first to collect, organize, and compile the anthology of Qing and Ming poetry from Guizhou, entitled Records of Old Tales of Qianfeng, consisting of two sets totaling 24 volumes. It brought together the early poetry of Guizhou, bringing it to national prominence. “Thus, the poetry of Qian [Guizhou] began to gain significant recognition, and scholars across the land all knew that the people of Qian could write poetry!” He was also recognized as the “first person in the Qing Dynasty skilled in both poetry and prose in Guizhou” and the “earliest Tongcheng School prose writer in Guizhou.” The Republican-era Weng’an County Annals described Fu Yushu as: “The foremost figure in the county for hundreds of years.”

China’s Only Miao Ethnic Red Army General Playwright – Chen Jing

Chen Jing is China’s only Miao ethnic Red Army general and writer. His mother “could sing a thousand mountain songs and tell a thousand stories,” and his childhood was deeply influenced by the Ancient City Theater in his hometown. In 1935, when He Long and Ren Bishi led the Second Front Army of the Red Army on the Long March through Caotang, Weng’an, Chen Jing joined the Red Army as a cultural propagandist. During the Long March, he created propaganda poems that were later compiled into a poetry collection titled On the Long March. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, Chen Jing continued to serve in senior leadership positions in the People’s Liberation Army while persisting in literary creation. He produced numerous literary works, including novellas, the film script On the Banks of the Jinsha River, novels such as The Red Army Is Not Afraid of the Long March and Deep Feelings of Yesteryear, totaling several million words. Among them, the film On the Banks of the Jinsha River is one of the earliest and most influential films on the theme of the Long March.

Films and TV Dramas Inspired by Events in Weng’an

Chinese drama, after undergoing a series of developments and transformations such as Yuan zaju, Ming and Qing chuanqi, Peking opera, and regional operas, entered the film and television era in the 20th century. In this technologically advanced era, Weng’an remains a standout and leading presence on the screen. Numerous film and television programs inspired by Weng’an include representative titles such as the films On the Banks of the Jinsha River, Breaking Through the Wu River, and The Long March, as well as TV dramas such as The Granary of the Nation and Lady She Xiang. Through these films and dramas, we see a Weng’an that stands on the world’s grand stage—a Weng’an that has stepped out of history and is moving toward the future. This is also the embodiment and continuation of the cultural essence of the Ancient City Grand Theater in the new era.

As one of the cultural cores of Weng’an, the Ancient City Grand Theater has been enshrined in history.

Weng’an Caotang Millennium Ancient City

Qishan Academy

Qianshan Jinshi Tower