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Male dan actors
Male actors who specialize in playing dan are referred to as nándàn (男旦); the practice arose during the Qing dynasty due to imperial prohibitions against women performing on stage, considered detrimental to public morality. This ban of female performers initiated the art of female impersonation led by Mei Lanfang. In the early years of Peking opera, all Dan roles were played by men. Wei Changsheng, a male Dan performer in the Qing court, developed the cai qiao, or "false foot" technique, to simulate the bound feet of women and the characteristic gait that resulted from the practice.

In the late Qing dynasty and the early republic, the performance of actresses became popular. As a result, women were playing increasingly important roles on the stages. But Peking opera has been characterized by female impersonation for decades; male dan actors were viewed as irreplaceable by female actors.

In Peking opera, the "Four Great Dans" are Mei Lanfang, Cheng Yanqiu, Shang Xiaoyun, and Xun Huisheng, all men. In Pingju, the "Four Big Famous Dans" (, Sì Dàmíng Dàn) are Ai Lianjun, Bai Yushuang, Liu Cuixia, and Xi Cailian. There were also "Four Small Famous Dans" (四小名旦) Li Shifang, Mao Shilai, Zhang Junqiu, and Song Dezhu.

Guimen Dan
The Guimen Dan (, "boudoir-door role") is the role of the virtuous lady. They are usually young and unmarried women that have high social status. Guimen Dan focus more on singing and they have little movement. They sing in a very high pitched and piercing voice. Opera schools in China have difficulty recruiting students for this kind of role, since it requires a good voice, good looks, and a good height. The most famous Guimen Dan performer of the last century was Mei Lanfang. Examples of Guimen roles are Du Liniang (杜丽娘) from The Peony Pavilion (牡丹亭) and Wang Baochuan (王宝钏）from Wujiapo (武家坡).

Zheng Dan
Zheng Dan (, "straight role"), also known as Qingyi (, "verdant-clad"), is the role of middle-aged women. The characters are mostly married, dignified and elegant women and are mainly the roles of wives and mothers. Similar to Guimen dan, Qingyi's performance is characterized by singing and speeches, and the range of motion is relatively small. They are also required not to show their teeth and not move their dresses when they perform.