The Last Lineage Opera in Zhouguan Village

Synopsis

Zhouguan, a Tunpu village in a multiethnic area of southwest China, is renowned for its performances of the Dixi exorcism operas. The village elders believe that they are descendants of ethnic Han military colonists in the early Ming Dynasty. When local businessmen and government officials began to take control of the staging of these plays, the elders felt that “authentic” performances were no longer possible. This film is a document of a performance of the Dixi opera in 2006 – planned to be the final ever performance.