In multi-racial, multi-religious, multi-lingual Singapore, where East meets West, traditional Chinese opera stands as an important keeper of Singaporean Chinese heritage.

Traditional Chinese opera in Singapore has been documented in both Western and Chinese historical records over many years, the earliest being an 1845 account describing Chinese street opera during the Lunar New Year by Charles Wilkes (1798–1877), commander of the United States Exploring Expedition.1After that, Li Zhongjue (1853–1927), then the Chinese consul in Singapore, gave a more detailed account of what he witnessed in 1887 at a theatre performance in his book Xinjiapo fengtu ji (The Local Landscape and Customs in Singapore): “At a place named Niucheshui (Chinatown) in Dapo (South Bridge Road area), there are restaurants, brothels, and theatres… with male and female troupes. Four to five venues in Dapo and one or two in Xiaopo (North Bridge Road area) all perform Cantonese opera and occasionally stage Hokkien and Teochew opera for their respective kinfolk…”2

Theatres, teahouses, and amusement parks

Records show that before 1893, there were already eight theatres in Singapore: Lai Chun Yuen at 36 Smith Street in Chinatown; Pu Chang Chun, which later became Heng Wai Sun and Heng Seng Peng at 21 and 24 Wayang Street (now known as Eu Tong Sen Street) respectively; Ee Hng at 41 Merchant Road, the street at which Jing Chun Yuan, Yang Chun Yuan, Dan Gui Yuan, and Sheng Chun Yuan were also located; and Diet Hng at 61 New Market Road (also known as Feng Jiao Jie locally).3Among these early theatres, Lai Chun Yuen, Heng Wai Sun, and Heng Seng Peng performed Cantonese opera exclusively (though Heng Seng Peng also performed Hokkien and Peking opera later on), while Diet Hng and Ee Hng mainly staged Teochew opera.4

At the turn of the 20th century, two new theatres were built at Chinatown. The first was the Palacegay Theatre, which was established in 1921 at the intersection of New Bridge Road and Kreta Ayer Road and later renamed Oriental Theatre (known as Oriental Plaza today). The second was built diagonally across from the Palacegay Theatre in 1928 and called the Tien Yien Moh Toi. It was renamed Queen’s Theatre in 1938 upon leasing it when it was rented out to Shaw Organisation and specially screened Cantonese films, and subsequently Majestic Theatre (now known as The Majestic) when the lease was transferred to Majestic Film Company in 1945.

This historic building used to house Lai Chun Yuen. Photograph taken in 1999. From The Straits Times, reproduced with permission from SPH Media Limited.
The former Tien Yien Moh Toi, or the old Majestic Theatre, 2010. From Lianhe Zaobao, reproduced with permission from SPH Media Limited.

In the early days, traditional Chinese opera performances were often held in teahouses in the Chinatown area, such as at Da Dong Restaurant, Nan Tang Restaurant, and the Nam Tin Restaurant (now known as Yue Hwa Building), among others. The Nam Tin Restaurant, located in the Great Southern Hotel was built by tycoon Eu Tong Sen (1877–1941), a lover of Cantonese opera, and its rooftop terrace on the sixth floor was a teahouse where Cantonese and Peking opera were performed.

Built in 1923 along Serangoon Road and Kitchener Road, New World (1923–1987) was Singapore’s first large-scale amusement park, and staged free traditional Chinese opera, plays, and singing performances. In 1929, a local tycoon bought a piece of land in the Kim Seng Road area not far from Chinatown and built Great World (1931–1981), which also staged a variety of traditional Chinese opera performances and plays for free. In 1935, the final of the famous trio of amusement parks, Happy World (1937–1964), was built between Mountbatten Road and Geylang Road and later renamed Gay World (1964–2000). It had two arenas dedicated to performing various types of traditional Chinese opera, including Cantonese, Teochew, and Hokkien opera.

Hokkien opera

Early immigrants from Fujian, Guangdong, Hainan, and other regions from southern China introduced traditional Chinese opera to Singapore. As a province well-known for its opera, Fujian is home to many genres of traditional Chinese operas with a long history, including min opera, liyuan opera, gaojia opera, xiang opera (also known as gezai opera), and more, though none was ever known specifically as Hokkien opera. In fact, the term “Hokkien opera” emerged during the localisation process of Chinese opera in Singapore.

Min opera, also known as Fuzhou or Fuqing opera, is the local traditional opera in Fujian that is sung or recited in the Fuzhou dialect. The accompanying music for min opera evolved mainly from the yiyang vocal style, siping vocal style, anhui opera, and kun opera.

In Singapore, what was broadly referred to as Hokkien opera was called gaojia opera in the early days.5Gaojia opera was popular in the vast southern Fujian area where the min dialects were spoken, Taiwan, and Chinese-populated areas in Southeast Asia. Its origins can be traced back to folk festivals dedicated to deities that were popular with southern Fujian folk in the late-Ming and early-Qing period. It evolved from simple martial arts performances to shows with intricate storylines, such that by the end of the Qing dynasty, it had cemented itself as a unique genre of local opera, containing elements from kun opera, hui opera, yiyang tune, and Peking opera, among others. It was then that it received the name of gaojia opera, gao referring to the tall stages it was performed on and jia referring to the armour and spears that were part of performers’ costumes.

Historically speaking, gaojia opera was the earliest traditional Chinese opera genre from Fujian that came to Singapore.6Before 1843, gaojia opera troupes from Nan’an in Fujian had already been to Singapore to perform. Later, other troupes arrived, such as Fu Jin Xing (1844–1850), Fu Yu Xing (1851–1857), Fu Quan Xing (1855–1860), and Xi Dong (1862–1866).7Gaojia opera in Singapore thus gradually rose to prominence, reaching its peak in the early 20th century.8

At the turn of the 20th century, a huge wave of Chinese immigrants from Fuzhou headed south to Singapore, bringing along Fuzhou opera (min opera). Between 1920 and 1940, Fuzhou opera troupes that came to Singapore to perform included Xin Sai Yue (1928), Qun Fang Nu (1927), and others.9Following that, the earliest homegrown Fuzhou opera guild, See Mee Club (1930), was formed under the Singapore Foochow Association and exclusively performed min operas from China.10

Gezai opera is another Chinese dialect opera genre belonging to the Minnan language family. During the late-Ming and early-Qing period in the 17th century, immigrants from the Minnan region introduced jin songs, which originated from folk songs, to Taiwan. Its lyrics were translated into Taiwanese dialects, and the genre was known as gezaidiao, gezaizhen, and more, before finally spreading throughout Taiwan as gezai opera. In 1928, the Taiwanese gezai opera troupe San Yue Hsuan brought the genre back to the Minnan region by performing widely in Longxi and Xiamen. During this period, especially in the area near Zhangzhou’s Xiangjiang river basin, there were more than 250 gezai opera schools.11 In 1954, this particular type of performance was officially named xiang opera by the China government.12

In 1930, the Feng Huang troupe arrived in Singapore and performed at Heng Seng Peng. Thereafter, other gezai opera troupes like Feng Wu She, Sai Feng Huang, Xin Feng Huang, Tong Yi She, De Sheng She, Dan Feng She, and others, arrived to perform at theatres, amusement parks, kampongs, and other locations.13

In 1936, gaojia opera troupe Fu Yong Xing, which had already taken root in Singapore, also began to perform gezai opera, changing its name to the Xin Sai Feng Weiji Minju tuan (Sin Sai Hong Gwee’s Hokkien Opera Troupe). Gaojia opera troupes gradually lost influence in Singapore and the genre’s hundred-year legacy and popularity came to an end in 1942 with the dissolution of Tong Fu Xing, with gezai opera taking its place. This marked a unique milestone in Singapore’s Hokkien opera scene. Evidently, the evolution from gaojia, to min, to gezai or xiang opera reflects the transformation and maturation of local Hokkien opera through the integration of the strengths of different opera genres.

Teochew opera

Traditional Teochew opera, also known as Chaozhou opera, chaoyin opera, and Chaozhou baizi opera, is one of the three major genres of traditional opera from Guangdong (the other two being yue opera and Guangdong han opera) and also one of the 10 major types of traditional Chinese opera. With a history of over 400 years, Teochew opera is one of the oldest local Chinese operas and belongs to a branch of southern operas dating back to the Yuan and Ming dynasties, having emerged from Teochew-speaking regions. Its beautiful song and dance performances can be traced back to Central Plains culture, such as the baixi (acrobatics) and dance of the Tang dynasty, as well as influences from the Lingnan region during that time period. Teochew opera music also has a tradition of using offstage supporting vocals, a singing style not commonly seen in other local Chinese opera genres. More importantly, Teochew opera plays an important role in preserving the thousand-year-old Teochew culture.

Towards the end of Emperor Guangxu’s reign during the Qing dynasty (1875–1908), the popularity of Teochew opera was at its peak, having spread to coastal areas like Shanghai, the Leizhou Peninsula, Hainan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore, which was a major hub for the dissemination and development of Teochew opera in Southeast Asia. In addition to the Lao Sai Thor Guan Opera Troupe, which had already taken root in Singapore since 1853, the Lao Gheg Lao Cung troupe was also among the earliest Teochew opera troupes to arrive in Singapore in 1900. The Lau Sai Yong Hong troupe, the Lao Rong He Xing troupe, the Lao Wan Li Chun troupe, and others, arrived more than a decade later.

Cantonese opera

Traditional Cantonese opera, also known as Guangfu opera and Guangdong opera, is a mainstream genre from Guangdong that can similarly be traced back to the southern opera of the Yuan dynasty. Originating in Foshan and appearing in the region of Guangdong and Guangxi during Emperor Jiajing’s reign of the Ming dynasty (1522–1566), it is performed in the Cantonese dialect.

In the fourth year of Emperor Xianfeng’s reign of the Qing dynasty (1854), Li Wenmao (unknown–1858), a famous Cantonese opera wusheng (martial and elderly male lead) from Heshan, Guangdong, joined the Taiping Rebellion (1851–1864) together with the three armies he organised comprising his fellow troupe artistes: the wenhu (scholarly tigers), menghu (fierce tigers), and feihu (flying tigers). Together, they stormed the city, killed the magistrate, and declared a new regime in his name, only to be quashed later by the Qing military. To eradicate all remaining influence of the three armies, the Qing government slaughtered troupe artistes and banned Cantonese opera performances for 15 years. During this period, local Cantonese opera artists fled to other counties or migrated overseas, including to Singapore.

In 1857, Cantonese opera artistes in Singapore officially established their own guild called Li Yuan Tang, later renamed Pat Wo Wui Kun in 1890, on Chin Chew Street (commonly known as Tofu Street then) in Chinatown to provide assistance to Cantonese opera artists from Guangdong who had sought refuge here. As a result, Singapore was known as the second home of traditional Cantonese opera.

Peking opera

Perhaps the most well-known genre of traditional Chinese opera, Peking opera took shape during the reigns of Emperors Daoguang (1782–1850) and Guangxu (1875–1908) during the Qing dynasty.14It evolved from its predecessor, hui opera, also commonly known as pihuang opera. The most important stages of development in the history of Peking opera seemed to loosely coincide with Singapore’s founding in 1819 and its subsequent development, namely its incubation period from 1790 to 1880, its maturation from 1880 to 1917, and its peak from 1917 to 1938.15

According to historical records, the earliest Peking opera performance in Singapore was by Fu Xiang Sheng. Over 90 members strong, it was made up of key members of Fuzhou’s Xiang Sheng troupe — of hui origin — as well as artistes selected from Beijing, Tianjin, and Shanghai. They performed from 27 December 1893 to 6 January 1894 at the Heng Seng Peng theatre in Chinatown.16

At the time, Peking opera had developed from an imperial court opera to one that had spread throughout all regions in China. There were also Fuzhou opera troupes in Singapore that modelled themselves after Fu Xiang Sheng and invited Peking opera artistes from all over China to join them. In 1910, Xin Xiang He, resident troupe of Heng Seng Peng, invited over 80 Peking opera artistes from Xiamen to them and perform on the same stage. As a result, Fuzhou and Peking opera performers sharing the same stage became a defining feature of Singapore’s Peking opera scene during that period.17

Hainanese opera

Qiong opera, also known as traditional Hainanese opera, shares a common lineage with liyuan opera and Teochew opera, among others. The predecessor of Hainanese opera was tuxi, which was initially introduced to Hainan from the southern Fujian and Chaoshan regions. Its singing style is derived from the high-pitched and intense yiyang vocal style, and performed by the lead vocal and an answering chorus. Later on, it absorbed Hainanese folk songs and musical styles such as gewu bayin (eight melodies of song and dance) and developed into a local opera genre with Hainanese characteristics.18

During Emperor Xianfeng’s reign of the Qing dynasty (1831–1861), artiste Qing Shoulan (1805–1895) from Longgun Village in Wanning, Hainan established the Qiong Shun troupe in 1852 to perform in various parts of Hainan Island. Due to the corruption within the Qing government, anti-Qing sentiments among the people were high, and progressive artistes wrote and performed a large number of anti-Qing plays, leading to them being constantly cracked down on by Qing soldiers. Because of this, Qing Shoulan led his troupe to flee to Southeast Asia in 1859. After arriving in Singapore, it became Hainanese opera’s earliest wenwu troupe (troupe with both singing and martial arts scene) in Southeast Asia. The Xing Zhou opera society that was later founded by Qing Shoulan became the pioneer of Hainanese opera in Singapore.

In the 1920s, feudal warlords created much chaos in Guangdong, causing a large number of Hainanese opera artistes to sail to Singapore, including Qiong Han Nian; Xiu Ming, also known as San Sheng Ban (1927); and Wu Fa Feng (1927). That marked the start of the golden age of Hainanese opera in Singapore.

Beyond the five major opera genres

During the unique formation and evolution of local traditional Chinese opera, there was an influx and spread of Guangdong han opera (hanju), also known as waijiang hanxi, or waijiang xi (1910–1940) in Singapore. This form of opera was practised by amateur ruyue (scholar’s music) societies, such as the Er Woo Amateur Musical & Dramatic Association (1912), Lak Aik Amateur Musical and Drama Association (1929), the Thau Yong Amateur Musical Association (1931), and Xinghua Ruyue She (1935). This contributed greatly to the development of ruyue in Singapore, and has gone on to shape the distinctive characteristics of Singapore’s Teochew opera ever since.

In the past 30 years, Shanghai yue opera has also been introduced and brought into Singapore, resulting in the emergence of a number of newly established local yue opera troupes, which are increasingly loved by young audiences.