Chinese Shadow Theatres

In the early history of Chinese shadow Theatres the medium was mainly used to portray spirits,the presence of gods and were often facilitated by buddhist shamans.The art has been evolving together with religion in China, meaning that in periods and dynasties where religion was rejected so were the performances.

In the past thousand years shadow puppet performances have been a major part of religious festivals  including those of religious holidays, house clearings and exorcisms of plagues and bad spirits all round the country. These festivals were funded by the community and were open for anyone to attend.

Shadow puppetry has also been a central element in ones personal life, being a part of personal celebrations such as birthdays and weddings, which were usually funded by the family hosting the event. Invited guests would enjoy a show, as well as a meal and other activities at these performances.

In the new secular culture shadow puppetry struggles to find relevance due to the constraints of religious activity that occurred during the communist revolution.

Traditionally the puppets are flat and crafted from leather. The definition in clothing and facial features are made by punching out certain areas of leather. Each element is separate (legs, torso, arms, etc.) and joined together using wire or string.

This photograph shows a person carving a leather puppet which will be used in a shadow play

The puppets are controlled using rods attached to different elements, the puppets are placed behind a white, translucent screen which is usually made from paper or cloth. The light is provided by a lamp which is situated on puppeteer’s side of the stage meaning that the audience sees the moving shadows.

This photographs shows how the puppets are controlled and how shadow puppetry works