THE ARTISTIC CHARACTERISTICS AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES OF THE SIX MAJOR SCHOOLS OF HUNAN HUAGU OPERA

Abstract

As an important branch of Chinese local opera, Hunan Huagu Opera has formed six major schools (Changsha, Yueyang, Hengzhou, Changde, Yongzhou, and Shaoyang) during its long-term development. Each school presents unique artistic characteristics in singing, performance, and repertoire due to differences in regional culture, language, and folk customs. Against the background of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) protection, this study investigates the artistic characteristics and development strategies of these six schools, focusing on solving the problems such as inheritor shortage and insufficient innovation in the inheritance process. Adopting literature research and field investigation methods, this study systematically sorts out the artistic characteristics of the six schools and proposes targeted strategies including establishing an inheritor training mechanism, promoting the innovation of repertoires and communication forms, and deepening the integration of culture and tourism with policy support. Therefore, this research aims to 1) investigate the artistic characteristics of the six major schools of Hunan Huagu Opera, and 2) propose targeted development strategies for their living transmission and sustainable development. The research provides theoretical reference and practical direction for the living transmission and sustainable development of the six major schools of Hunan Huagu Opera.

Keywords: Hunan Huagu Opera, Six Major Schools, Artistic Characteristics, Development Strategies, Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection, Living Transmission