Fledgling group offers view of Beijing opera
A taste of Beijing opera - a Chinese performance art that combines song, dance, theater, mime and martial arts - will take center stage this weekend in Naperville.
The Naperville-based Skyland Chinese Opera Arts Association makes its formal debut Sunday, Nov. 16.
"We're going to perform select scenes from nine plays," performer Lanshi Xia said.
Xia said members of the newly formed group have appeared several times during the past year at venues that include Naperville's 95th Street Library and the College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn.
But Skyland, a volunteer ensemble that incorporates both amateur and professional performers, has never before mounted a show as a group.
That will change Sunday with the free show at North Central College's Pfeiffer Hall, 310 E. Benton Ave., Naperville.
"We started out as a casual singing club," said Xia, who describes herself as an amateur. "We took turns to host parties at our houses."
As the performance level rose, several members proposed the idea of forming a nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing Chinese opera to the suburbs.
"We really want to present our Chinese culture to the people here," Xia said. "We'll have Chinese and English subtitles so it will help people understand."
Most members live in the Western suburbs; a few travel from Chicago for Naperville-area rehearsals, said Aurora resident Lianquan Liu, one of the group's founders. Liu said the organization has 20 to 30 members, with a core of about 10 who rehearse weekly.
The association received a cultural grant from the city of Naperville to help fund its artistic pursuits, Liu said. Skyland also has received funding from private donors, he said.
"We try to promote cultural understanding," Liu said. "Chinese opera is really a very symbolic form of art in the Chinese culture."
Xia said Skyland focuses on two types of Chinese opera: Beijing opera and Kunqu opera.
Kunqu opera, she said, is a highly stylized form that has a larger fan base in Europe and other Western cultures. Beijing opera, also known as national opera, is more popular in China.
Xia said a Wheaton College student who studied at Beijing University will be one of two emcees at Sunday's two-hour performance.
Several performers are expected to travel from abroad for the show.
"We invited professional actors and actresses from Beijing and professional musicians from New York City," Xia said.
If you go
What: Beijing opera performance presented by Skyland Chinese Opera Arts Association
When: 4 p.m. Nov. 16
Where: North Central College's Pfeiffer Hall, 310 E. Benton Ave., Naperville
Admission: Free
Info: (630) 416-8875 or skylandchinesearts.org