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Based in the heart of America’s oldest Chinatown (San Francisco Chinatown), Jing Ying Chinese Opera is a family-owned business. With various forms of Chinese Opera, we made it our goal of promotion focusing specifically on Cantonese Opera. We've been around for decades and have provided our diverse community of supporters with a wide range of performances. For many years, we’ve been at the forefront of the industry - giving local artists the chance to appear in our high-end productions as well as an opportunity for audiences to see these talents come to life. By hosting accessible events, shows, and lessons, Jing Ying Chinese Opera strives to promote the art of Chinese Opera and highlight the unique elements of morals, cultural values, acrobatics, and melancholic melodies rooted in these operatic performances.
Xiu Ben Chen is the owner of Jing Ying. Starting his story in GuangDong, China, he has been teaching and performing Cantonese Opera for 25+ years. He is an extraordinary Erhu concertmaster in San Francisco. Playing all over the world throughout his career, he has mastered the art of the accompanying various singers’ opera styles while leading the rest of the ensemble. He has decided to spend his career teaching others and promoting the art of Cantonese Opera. With his talents, he continues to strive to encourage and support his community.
Cantonese Opera is one type of opera out of the various forms of Chinese Opera. It originated in the Guangdong province of southern China. It combines music, singing, acting, and acrobatics. In these operatic acts, stories and myths are acted out that portray cultural values and morals. A lot of common themes that could be recognized are: sweet romance, ill-fated love, and heroic journeys. The detail to costumes, backdrops, props, and planned-out movements are crucial to expressing the message of the story. Every single element ties in together to create a rich, vibrant, eye-capturing, and heart-touching experience.
The Erhu is a two-stringed Chinese violin, that is one of the most popular Chinese instruments. It is known as the violin of China! The Erhu is the lead instrument in the orchestra ensemble of the Chinese Opera.
