Kunqu Cross-dressing as Artistic and/or Queer Performance

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph S. C. Lam
Keyword(s):  
Social Performance ◽  
Chinese Opera ◽  
Secular World ◽  
Performance Of Gender ◽  
Cross Dressing ◽  
Queer Performance ◽  
Peony Pavilion

Cross-dressing in kunqu, a classical genre of Chinese opera, as artistic and/or queer performance, may be understood through the Chinese aesthetic dyad of se (erotic charm) and yi (performance skill); these concepts complement or challenge international queer theories. The chapter surveys current debates about kunqu cross-dressing, illustrating with analysis of representative works/performances such as Jade Hairpin (Yuzanji), Peony Pavilion (Mudanting), and Yearning for the Secular World (Sifan) by leading impersonators like Banto Tamasaburo, Mei Lanfang, and Yue Meiti. Kunqu cross-dressing simultaneously confirms and challenges hegemonic Chinese notions of gender and sex, underscoring the need to investigate music as personal and/or social performance of gender and sex.

Cross-Dressing in Chinese Opera (review)

2005 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 158-161
Author(s):  
Ping Fu
Keyword(s):  
Chinese Opera ◽  
Cross Dressing

scholarly journals “Queering” the Nation?

Prism ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-69
Author(s):  
Jasmine Yu-Hsing Chen
Keyword(s):  
Female Character ◽  
Male Character ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Social Commentary ◽  
Martial Law ◽  
Political Propaganda ◽  
Chinese Nationalism ◽  
The Feminine ◽  
Cross Dressing ◽  
Queer Performance

Abstract This article explores how gendered Chineseness is represented, circulated, and received in Huangmei musical films for audiences in martial-law Taiwan. Focusing on Love Eterne (1963), the analysis examines how theatrical impersonations in the film provided a “queer” social commentary on aspects of Chinese nationalism that conflicted with the Kuomintang's military masculinities. Love Eterne features dual layers of male impersonations: diegetically, the female character Zhu Yingtai masquerades as a man to attend school with other men; nondiegetically, the actress Ling Po performs the male character Liang Shanbo, Zhu's lover. In addition to the “queer” imagination generated by Ling's cross-dressing performance, the author considers how the feminine tone of Love Eterne allowed the Taiwanese audience to escape from masculine war preparations. Although the Kuomintang promoted Ling as a model patriotic actress, it was her background, similar to many Taiwanese adopted daughters, that attracted the most attention from female audiences. This female empathy and the queer subjectivity arguably disturbed the Kuomintang's political propaganda. Hence, this study adds to the breadth of queerness in studies on the cinematic performance of same-sex subjectivities and invites new understandings of queer performance in Love Eterne as a vehicle that can inspire alternative imaginings of gendered selfhoods and nations.

A Case Study: Unique Challenges of an Adolescent Female With Autism Spectrum Disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 314-325
Author(s):  
Kimberly F. Frazier ◽  
Jessica Collier ◽  
Rachel Glade
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Social Cognitive ◽  
Social Performance ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Adolescent Female ◽  
Social Thinking

Background The aim of this study was to determine the clinical efficacy of combining self-management strategies and a social thinking approach to address the social performance and executive function of an adolescent female with autism spectrum disorder. Method This research examined the effects of a social knowledge training program, “Think Social,” as well as strategies to improve higher order cognitive abilities. Results and Conclusion Although quantitative improvement was not found, several qualitative gains in behavior were noted for the participants of this study, suggesting a benefit from using structured environmental cues of self-management strategies, as well as improved social understanding through social cognitive training.

From Faith to Fun: The Role of Humor in a Secular World

2004 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 142-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Russell Heddendorf
Keyword(s):  
Secular World
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