Mounting a Production: Directing

Chapter 9 focuses on directing in model jingju. Based on the reported activities within the directors’ major areas of responsibility, the author begins with an examination of the director’s role during the creative process. In discussing the fulfillment of their directorial responsibilities, the author describes the model jingju director’s efforts to help performers develop a deeper understanding of scripts and characters through analytical discussion, their collaboration with fellow artists in realizing this modern understanding through jingju’s traditional stage conventions, and their innovative usage and arrangement of minor supporting characters. The last section delineates the work of technique directors for their accomplishments in designing movement, dance-acting, and stage combat. This chapter features personal interviews with performers, directors, and technique directors.