Yangzhou Local Theatre in the Second Half of the Qing

Abstract

Yangzhou is a major city on the confluence of the Yangzi River and the Grand Canal. In the eighteenth century it was a major economic hub as well as among the most important centres in China for the theatre. This chapter analyzes the styles of theatre prevalent in the city in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, both the popular theatre and that of the educated elite, as well as the salt merhchants who were among the richest men in China at this time. It argues that the role of patronage was crucial in sustaining the vitality of the theatre.