A Comprehensive Review of Research Literature on the Development of Childrens Drama in China -Using the Example of the Play Malanhua

Abstract

Childrens theater plays a significant role in the cultural landscape of theater and has a major impact on childrens education. In this study, the author uses a literature review method, focusing on the play Malanhua, to review the research progress in Chinese childrens theater, specifically in terms of script content, themes and so on. The research results on the innovation and development of stage design, characterization, and main theme of Chinese childrens theatre represented by Malanhua are summarized and concluded. With the changes in the times and the evolving societal needs, the perspective on children has also changed. Starting from the deep influence of political ideologies in the 1950s and 1960s to a return to nature in the 1980s, and then to catering to the market in the new century, these shifts have influenced the tendencies in character development, themes, script content and stage design in childrens theater. However, there are some tendencies that have remained constant, such as the increasingly successful fusion of Chinese traditional culture and Western culture in stage design, the understanding of the characters by the director and scriptwriter deepens in terms of character development, and the close connection between purpose and societal needs. Eventually, it was pointed out that deficiencies and limitations of research on childrens theater in China, like the lack of theoretical construction in childrens drama, the weak foundation of the history of childrens theater in China and so on.