Title: The Modernity of Chinese Xiqu from the Perspective of World Theatre: Centering on Cheng Yanqiu’s Study Tour to Europe

Abstract: From 1932 to 1933, Cheng Yanqiu traveled to Europe to study theatre, making systematic observations of European theatre institutions, stage techniques, theatre education, and modern theatrical trends. Previous discussions of this tour have largely focused on how Western theatrical experiences influenced the reform of Chinese Xiqu (traditional theatre). However, its deeper significance lies in how Cheng Yanqiu gained a renewed understanding of Chinese Xiqu through the development of world theatre. In the course of his European journey, by absorbing modern theatre mechanisms while reaffirming the ontological value of Xiqu, Cheng Yanqiu gradually developed a view of Xiqu’s development that balanced traditional resources with modern demands. His European experience thus represented the process through which Chinese Xiqu reasserted its position within the global theatre landscape. From this, one can glimpse the complex pathway of constructing the modernity of Chinese Xiqu in the twentieth century and the shaping of its cultural subjectivity.

Keywords: Cheng Yanqiu, European study tour, modernity of Xiqu, cross-cultural exchange, subjectivity

Authors: Ning An, Ph.D. Candidate, Shanghai Film Academy, Shanghai University, Shanghai, China; Tingting Zhang, Professor, School of Music, Shanghai University, Shanghai, China.

DOI: 10.19967/j.cnki.flc.2026.03.001