Yong Opera (Yongju)

Yong opera took shape in the Jiaqing period of the Qing dynasty, when Huizhou and Han opera troupes from other provinces entered Nanning and blended with local Cantonese and Zhuang tonal patterns, gradually forming a distinctive theater genre that once thrived across southern Guangxi's towns.

Accompanied primarily by gaohu and erhu fiddles with a distinctly southern string-ensemble character, Yong opera's vocal style falls between the vigor of Huizhou opera and the lyricism of Cantonese opera; its repertoire spans historical stories and folk legends across a full range of role types.

Yong opera is an important bearer of cultural identity and urban memory for southern Guangxi, recording the multicultural convergence of Nanning as a historical commercial hub; it is now inscribed in the national ICH list.

Yong opera is primarily sustained by the Nanning Yong Opera Troupe, performing at major festivals and cultural events; it is one of Nanning's key traditional cultural preservation projects.