Suzhou Pingtan

Suzhou Pingtan is the combined name for Suzhou storytelling and Suzhou ballad-singing, formed in the late Ming and early Qing and popular across the Jiangnan region; performed in the Suzhou dialect, it is the leading narrative art of the area.

Storytelling, the 'big book', is spoken only and usually performed solo; ballad-singing, the 'little book', combines speech and song with the performer playing the three-stringed sanxian and pipa, prizing tone, wit and a range of melodic schools.

In 2006 Suzhou Pingtan entered the first national list of intangible cultural heritage, heading the narrative-arts category, and remains a key vehicle of Wu culture.

Storytelling houses and pingtan troupes in Suzhou keep the tradition alive, and its soft-spoken performance is still part of the everyday culture of Jiangnan.