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Title:
Inheritance and Innovation: A Study of Jingju Master Li
Abstract:
Li Weikang is one of the most famous performing artists of Jingju which is Peking Opera, in contemporary China. She is
deeply loved by the audience and her fans come from all walks of life. Li Weikang has outstanding talents, she has solid fundamentals and innovative spirit. She adheres to the artistic concept of inheritance and innovation. Her vocal style, performing, make up, costumes, stage arts and lighting sets during the performance are all unique. This paper will focus on two questions that why Jingju Master Li Weikang has a large number of fans and whether she can form a new school. From the three aspects, which including her acting career, the characteristics of her vocal style and performing arts and the conditions required for forming a new school, this paper analyses and discusses Li Weikang’s inheritance and innovation of Jingju arts, as well as her contribution to the development of Jingju.
This paper will analyse and discuss Li Weikang’s singing skills, vocal style, performance, makeup, costumes, stage scenery, lighting sets and other aspects in combination with the analysis of her signature repertories. Based on the above analysis, this paper will compare and contrast the subjective and objective conditions of forming Jingju schools, from the literatures on the development of Jingju, to evaluate and analyse whether Li Weikang meets the conditions of forming an independent school. Meanwhile, in light of the social environment of contemporary China, the dynamics and resistance of forming of a new Jingju school are further evaluated. This paper concludes with answers to the two questions raised at the beginning, based on the above analytical conclusions.