Start Date : 18 Nov 2015

End Date : 18 Nov 2015

Time : 2.30 pm - 4.30 pm

Venue : Auditorium, Level 1, Pustaka Negeri Sarawak

The Sarawakiana Talk of Pustaka Negeri Sarawak is back. This time around it will be a talk on 'Bian Lian' - The Art of Mask Changing of Chinese Community in Sarawak by Edmond Wong Yik Tze.

The talk will be held on Wednesday, 18 November 2015, 2.30 pm at the library’s Auditorium.

Edmond Wong Yik Tze is one of the performers of ‘Bian Lian’ a well-known entertainer with multi skills, included magic show, clown act and singing.  He is currently the only mask-changing “master” who performs in public in Sarawak.

The purpose of this talk is to highlight the uniqueness of ‘Bian Lian’ art performance as well as to conduct awareness regarding the beauty of Chinese culture in Sarawak, especially to the younger generation.

‘Bian Lian’ is an ancient Chinese dramatic art that is part of the more general Sichuan opera. Performers wear brightly colored costumes and move to quick, dramatic music.

They also wear vividly colored masks, typically depicting well known characters from the opera, which they change from one face to another almost instantaneously with the swipe of a fan, a movement of the head, or wave of the hand. 

The skill and speed with which Chinese artists change their beautifully-painted masks has captured audiences’ imagination for centuries. Performers gracefully raise their hands, turn their heads and swing their arms, each time boasting a new mask.

The secret of how they manage to change from three to twenty masks during a single performance without anyone realizing the trick has fascinated people since it started being practiced, during the Qing dynasty, around 300 years ago.

Members of the public are invited to attend this interesting talk. Admission is free. Contact Hayati Sabil or Rozana Octovia at 082-440488 ( State Records Repository ) or email statedepository@sarawak.gov.my for further information.