MONGOLIAN PLAYERS.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume X, Issue 10, 11 March 1893, Page 229

MONGOLIAN PLAYERS.

THE ODDITIES OF CHINESE ACTING. The actor occupies a strange and anomalous position in the Chinese social order. While acting his part upon the stage the character he essays lives again in him in the estimation of his countrymen, and he is for the while the object of their admiration and applause. While pursuing his calling he may administer, without fear of consequences, rebuke to emperor, king or viceroy. It is to the keen satire and covert reflections of|their]actors that the Chinese owe much of the reformation of abuses and the righting of grievous official wrongs. But when off the stage the actor is met by the barriers of ostracism. He cannot mingle with his countiymen except those of bis own calling. This custom goes so far as to prevent him from associating with his own family outside of his wife and children. The player, like the leper, is the Chinese outcast. The roles of Mongolian drama are anything but easy to essay. The drama, tragedy or comedy is drawn only in outline, and to conform with it the Chinese player is required to compose his own part. He conceives the character allotted to him, and he voices those sentiments which he feels will not fail to receive the appreciation of his audience. Bombast and bravado are pleasing to Mongolian ears, and are the rounds upon which the Chinese actor climbs up thejadder o' popular appreciation to consequent fame. Although in our estimation the Chinese actor overdraws his part and would be treated to howls of derision if he appeared on a civilized stage, yet he exhibits a keen appreciation, from the standpoint of his countrymen, of the role be essays. Visitors to the Chinese theatres in San Francisco are usually astonished to find that the Mongolian is not a novice in the art of imitation. Even genius is to be found on the Chinese boards. When it is considered that the mechanical effects of the Chinese stage are of an exceedingly crude order, the player is deserving of all the credit for keeping alive in the hearts of his countrymen their great love of theatrical display. The crudities of the Chinese stage are responsible’for some very amusing incidents which are evidently not appreciated by Mongolian audiences. For instance, the lack of a curtain frequently relieves a tragedy from a tinge of melancholy. r,lt is not an infrequent spectacle on the stages of the local theatres to see the victim of the tragedy, who is supposed to be lying cold in death while the victor is bombastically proclaiming his triumph, coolly get up and walk into the dressing room without the least attention being paid to him’by the audience. In fact it was only recently,

in a Chinese tragedy where a good and wise king slew ten rebellious generals by his own hand, that the slain nonchalantly arose from the floor and walked out. tlf course the Chinese do not see any violation of the proprieties in this, but such conduct on a civilised stage would turn the most thrilling tragedy into a side splitting farce. The lack of scenery and absence of curtain cause a juggling together of the various parts of the play which requite a very vivid imagination and a patient audience to intelligently separate. There is a considerable display of the natural about Chinese acting which serves to enshroud the veriest tragedy in a light veil of comedy. For instance, should one of the player’s garments become disarranged or his grotesque headgear require firmer fastenings, he has those defects remedied in full view of the audience. An attendant steps out of the group, which lines each side of the stage like a chorus, and performs the necessary task. The play meantime is suspended until matters are satisfactorily arranged. The orchestra in the interval hammers away at an ear-splitting sonata that probably serves to blind the audience until the play can proceed. When several star actors are engaged in the same piece they make things ‘hum,’ to the evident enjoyment of the audience. As expressed by a Texas visitor, as he opened his eyes in astonishment at the procedure, ‘ Why, these fellows all get on the stage at once, and they run each other close to see who can get in the most chin.’ And it is a fact when the ‘stars’ get together. If the piece had any natural arrangement it is transformed into a ‘ free for all ’ contest, and a flow of bombastic words is the result of the contest, which sets the audience wild with delight. The character of Chinese dramatizations is such that it is permissible for the actor to introduce his specialties just when he will. The California hoodlum is a type that has come under the favourable notice of the Chinese actor for his character drawing during the past year or two. And thatcharacter, with his boldswaggeranddefiantstrut is aptly imitated by the Mongolian actor, and the audience, who have all more or less suffered at his hands, greet the representation with continuous laughter. As women are debarred by Chinese customs from entering on a theatrical career, their parts are well taken by female impersonators. Actors assuming such characters as a specialty can and do command the highest salaries on the Chinese stage. Their imitations of the coyness of maidenhood and the shrewishness of old age are astonishing. The deception in dress and acting is so perfect in this regard that one not knowing the immutability of Chinese customs would readily believe that they were, in fact, what they pretended to be. In some of the plays these female impersonators display a coyness and affectation in making love that is wonderfully realistic. The prim and sedate mother is another role that receives realistic treatment at the hands of Chinese actors.

In the lighter roles the Chinese actor will bear contrast with his more advanced and civilised brother in the same profession. But in heavy drama the Chinese characterisation rims too much toward vainglorious boasting and bravado, which they evidently misinterpret for the virtues of dignity and self reliance. In the estimation of the Chinese actor the king is always represented as a supercilious and cynical braggart who can conquer with but a wave of the hand or a stern glance of the eye. The ‘ rebellious generals ’ rebel for no higher purpose lhau the evau escent glory of temporary power. They are made to vie with the kingly character in their contemptuous swagger and offhand braggadocio. The Chiuese comedian is a role that is usually well sustained and would bear representation on the civilised stage. There is a droll humour about the Chinese that when acted even naturally is worthy of appreciation. The Chinese comedian takes his part well. He continues in his little by play while the leading general and the heavy king are engaged in a banter of words. The comedian falls over a chair as if by mistake, and then looks about with such a droll expression on his grotesquely-painted face that even the more stolid of his race are forced to sn.ile at his antics. Of course, the comedian’s part merely consists of boyish pranks and child like tricks. A common feat is dropping a stone on the foot and then indulging in a series of gyrations supposed to be caused by the pain. Sticking out the tongue and making fantastic grimaces are other standbys with the Chinese comedian. They are simple enough, but are well carried out and demonstrate the fact that the Chinese actor who essays the role of comedy realizes that laughter should reply to his antics. The Chinese are frequenters of the theatres. If they cannot raise the money to get a peaceable admittance they fight their way in, as has frequently been the case in San Francisco. The two local theatresareerowded nightly from pit to dome. The patron „of these resorts are criiical and discerning and, as a result, the management is constantly on the alert to provide a good entertainment, and to do this they have to secure the brightest stars in the Chinese theatrical heavens. These ‘ stars ’ are ‘ engaged at an enormous outlay,’ and have to be supported by a company of two score or more.