Hokkien Theatre Across The Seas

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xv

   PDF

2. Beginning of the Maritime Journey

   • Caroline Chia

   Pages 1-9

3. In Search of the Origins

   • Caroline Chia

   Pages 11-32

4. Across the Seas

   • Caroline Chia

   Pages 33-70

5. “Made Locally”

   • Caroline Chia

   Pages 71-86

6. In Practice

   • Caroline Chia

   Pages 87-106

7. Promulgation of Filial Piety

   • Caroline Chia

   Pages 107-136

8. Till the Next Journey

   • Caroline Chia

   Pages 137-140

9. Back Matter

   Pages 141-145

   PDF

This book adopts a refreshing approach by examining Hokkien theatre in a region connected by maritime networks, notably southern Fujian, Taiwan, Kinmen and Singapore. It considers how regional theatre is shaped by broader socio-cultural and political contexts and the motivation to stay relevant in an era of modernisation and secularisation. Political domains are often marked out by land boundaries, but the sea concept denotes fluidity, allowing theatrical forms to spread across these ‘land-bounded’ societies and share a common language and culture.

"This is an insightful theatrical study on the web of Chinese cultural networks in southern China and Singapore, and by extension, between China and Southeast Asia in the twentieth century and beyond. Using diverse sources in multiple languages and extensive field ethnography, this is a ground-breaking study which is both didactic and inspiring."

- Lee Tong Soon, author of Chinese Street Opera in Singapore (University of Illinois, 2009).

"Focusing on Hokkien theatre, this book offers new insights into how Chinese performing art responds to geographical, temporal, and social changes. Historical sources in different languages are widely used to give access to the cultural characteristics of Hokkien theatre, offering valuable ethnographic reports on the contemporary practices of Hokkien theatre in Taiwan, Kinmen, and Singapore. The book comments on the changing ritualistic significance of Hokkien theatre, and help us understand how societies remember the past of a performing tradition, and shape its present."

- Luo Ai Mei, Co-Editor of A Preliminary Survey of the Cantonese Eight Song Cycles in South China: History and Sources (2016)

• Oral-literate transmission in Hokkien theatre
• Hokkien-speaking diaspora communities
• Oral and literate practices in contemporary society
• Historical development of Hokkien theatre
• Literacy and the impact of Hokkien theatre
• Hokkien regional theatre
• Historical development of Hokkien theatre
• Chinese theatrical scene
• Hokkien theatre
• Puppet theatre
• Gezai opera
• Mulian opera

“Caroline Chia’s book carefully and meticulously examines the development of Hokkien theater … . The book benefits from rich local knowledge. … Chia’s book affords an entrance into the localization of Hokkien theater in Taiwan, Kinmen, and Singapore, and sheds light on some dimensions in Southeast Asian theater that have lacked scholarly attention. This makes it is a useful reference for scholars on Asian theater and culture.” (Chao Guo, Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde, Vol. 177, 2021)

• School of Humanities, Nanyang Techological University, Singapore, Singapore

  Caroline Chia

Dr. Caroline Chia's research areas include studies on Chinese regional theatre, culture, orality, literacy and Chinese diaspora communities. She has been conducting research on traditional Chinese theatre since 2004. With her key interest in little known theatrical forms, she hopes to increase awareness about these theatrical forms through her research. Dr. Chia has published various book chapters, journal articles and media write-ups on this area of research. 

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