Shadow Puppetry (Beijing Piyingxi)

Beijing shadow puppetry is the capital's branch of the shadow-play art: figures cut from hide or board are performed between a lamp and a white screen. Said to have entered Beijing in the Ming, it developed into distinct local schools.

Behind the screen the puppeteer manipulates leather figures jointed with bamboo rods, casting their silhouettes onto the lit cloth, with sung lines, spoken narrative and percussion; one performer often works several characters at once, uniting carving, puppetry and storytelling.

Beijing shadow puppetry is inscribed as national intangible cultural heritage; Chinese shadow puppetry as a whole was added to UNESCO's list in 2011, and the Beijing style is one of its distinctive regional branches.

In Beijing, dedicated shadow-puppet museums and small-theater or temple-fair performances let you both examine the finely carved figures up close and watch this ancient theater of light and shadow play out on the screen.