Page "Peking opera" Paragraph 34

Many performances deal with behaviors that occur in daily life.

However, in accordance with the overriding principle of beauty, such behaviors are stylized to be presented on stage.

Peking opera does not aim to accurately represent reality.

Experts of the art form contrast the principles of Peking opera with the principle of Mo, mimes or imitation, that is found in western dramas.

Peking opera should be suggestive, not imitative.

The literal aspects of scenes are removed or stylized to better represent intangible emotions and characters.

The most common stylization method in Peking opera is roundness.

Every motion and pose is carefully manipulated to avoid sharp angles and straight lines.

A character looking upon an object above them will sweep their eyes in a circular motion from low to high before landing on the object.

Similarly, a character will sweep their hand in an arc from left to right in order to indicate an object on the right.

This avoidance of sharp angles extends to three dimensional movement as well ; reversals of orientation often take the form of a smooth, S-shaped curve.

All of these general principles of aesthetics are present within other performance elements as well.