Government Intervention And Control In Sichuan Opera Performances From Late Qing To The ROC(1902-1949)

Sichuan Opera, as a representative of local operas in China, formed in the late Qing dynasty, and prospered in urban and rural temples and Guild Halls. However, since the late Qing Dynasty with traditional social structure disintegrated, the forces of the clan and the guild hall began to be weakened, the economic base of the Temple performances has also weakened. So their activities has been on the decrease. Meanwhile the town rise of commercial theater, then part of the temple opera performers trans into such theater, this provided Sichuan Opera performance a fixed sites, and set higher requirements. Along with the birth of commercial theater, the government has also gradually interfere in the activities of the opera performance.Previous researchers either do that like out-line study lays out a large process of historical development, either focus on Tune, in the form of art, well-known artists, such as renowned social classes. The interaction between Opera and the social is with fewer references. This study hope to be able to comb the process of these from the view of official point: how the government managed the performance of Sichuan opera from the late Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China, what are the results and failures of these controls, and meanwhile how the control process of the artists, social class, the theater has changed.The paper touched on the following aspects ;First, by the end of the Qing Dynasty, Liang Qichao first proposed the idea that the "fiction" and "opera" traditional culture "drama" can support the improvement of social custom , and this idea started to spread. More educated men and officials have recognized that, so there came a nationwide movement to improve the opera. Sichuan region also take a part in this movement. Zhou xiaohuai and other improvers set up a "modified Opera Association", and hoped to convert the social custom. The main measures were on the improvement of the content of the dramas, review and re-creation. Prohibited "pornographic show" and "fierce drama", transcript classic plays, and created the new fashion shows.Second, This trend of the improvement were accepted by the official and intellectuals later, they continued their predecessors footsteps, from two aspects, the ban and the establishment, to improve opera's contents. However, the result is not very successful, the so-called "pornographic and violent, bootlegging" dramas were still perform in the community, the temples, and theaters or the stages. Fashion plays had not been widely welcomed, many new scripts without entering the performance space. This reflects the modern literati attempt to push the "small traditional" opera activities into "traditional" cultural areas to support the community education and social custom improvement. But the results reflected that the old were still performing in the stage, and the new left in the desk. And of course, there are rendered ineffective government elements.Third, the official forces in the drama had a different form that is the protection and management control of the opera performances. Forces between the "PaoGe" and the warlords were in the rise and fall of contention. They protected opera performances together, and also have mutual antagonism.Fourth, the government got profits in the protection of opera performances, that is collected taxes. The drama taxes emerged by various different names. It is perceived that the theater was a profitable, which had a considerable audience market.New Deal period of the late Qing dynasty established "opera improved Association", the Republic of China founded "The Chengdu Opera and Song Editorial Board", and Police Office managed and quelled the entertainment place. The historical process of development reflects that the management of the opera performance by the government became gradually tighter and more detailed.