The Living Inheritance and Moving Progress of Contemporary Cantonese Opera from the Perspective of Communication

Abstract

Between July 3 and July 28, 2023, Television Broadcasts Limited released the Hong Kong drama Unchained Medley, which used a small village in the countryside and Cantonese Opera as the backdrop for the drama. It tells a tragic and touching story of human-ghost love between pop musician Ivan Zhang and the female ghost Wan Lau Fong (Cantonese transliteration is used). Artistic elements in Unchained Medley - Cantonese Opera is an ancient form of traditional Chinese theater, a local performing art that employs Cantonese as the language of performance, singing, acting, reciting and traditional folk music, along with distinctive stage costumes and abstract forms. When reviewing Chinese and English papers published between 2019 and 2023, research on the analysis of Cantonese opera primarily focused on the transformation of performance forms and the creation of Cantonese opera repertoire content. However, there needs to be more in living inheritance with Cantonese Opera. This paper utilizes James W. Careys The Ritual View of Communication as a theoretical framework. The article mainly adopts methods such as literature review, case studies, and comparative analysis to elucidate the significance and complex dilemmas surrounding the vibrant communications of Cantonese opera in the post-COVID world. It then consolidates and summarizes research experiences related to the protection and universal transmission of Cantonese opera in every aspect, laying the foundation for the in-depth development of Cantonese opera research.