Controversies and Development of Drama Theory in the Ming Dynasty
摘要
The creation and performance of Chinese traditional drama was mature in the Yuan Dynasty, but in theory there was no systematic summary. At that time, there were only some literati who were close to artists who explored some specific issues in performance. For example, Yannan Zhi’an, pioneer of Chinese vocal theory, studied some technical problems on Capella Performance of Sanqu Poetry in works of Treatise On Singing. Hu Zhiyu, in his works Preface to Ms. Huang’s Poetry Scroll from the Complete Works of Purple Mountain, analyzed issues on manners and self-cultivation of singing. Zhou Deqing, in his works Ten Rules for Lyrics (14th Century): Zhou Deqing’s Formula for Qu: 10 Ways of Composing Words, explored the techniques of music composing.