Listen to this articleyuánzájù 元杂剧
Zaju of the Yuan Dynasty
是元代代表性戏剧种类。其前身为宋代北方杂剧，它以北方民间流行的俚俗表演形式为基础，吸收了金代诸宫调、院本的表演特点和舞台经验，经元初关汉卿等戏剧名家完善定型，最终形成了独特的戏剧表演形式。元杂剧通常一本四折，每折由同一宫调的曲子组成套曲，主角正旦或正末主唱。元杂剧剧情完整，在人物形象塑造方面更加生动立体，人物的念白科介等戏曲表现手法更加丰富。元大都经济发达，市井繁荣，文人与艺人联系密切，也助推了元杂剧创作的兴盛。元代末年，元杂剧衰落，至明代，逐渐被其他戏曲形式取代。
Zaju, a unique dramatic genre of the Yuan Dynasty, grew out of the northern zaju of the earlier Song Dynasty. Originally drawing on popular local performing styles of the north, it later absorbed zhugongdiao, a kind of song-speech drama with mixed modes of musical tunes, as well as scores / scripts performed in brothels by courtesans of the Jin Dynasty. Well-known playwrights like Guan Hanqing in the early Yuan period refined and formalized these various styles into this unique dramatic genre. Zaju is made up of four acts, each with sets of songs starting from the same gongdiao note, and sung by the principal female or male performers. The gongdiao note changes with each act. The plots are complete and well-constructed, while the lively and interesting characters rely on a rich repertoire of dramatic gestures and expressions. Dadu, capital of the Yuan Dynasty, was a prosperous center of economic activity where scholars and performers mingled well, which encouraged the rapid growth of the zaju genre. However, the style declined together with the Yuan Dynasty and by the following Ming Dynasty, it had been replaced by other operatic and performing genres.
引例 Citation：
◎乐音与政通，而伎剧亦随时所尚而变。近代，教坊院本之外，再变而为杂剧。（胡祗遹《赠宋氏序》）
（音乐与国家治理的好坏相通，而戏剧也随着时代的审美观念和趣味而变化。近代，教坊在院本之外，又变化出杂剧。）
Music follows the trends of political governance, and dramas too change with the preferences of the times. The scripts used in brothels later evolved into zaju. (Hu Zhiyu: Text Presented to the Entertainer Song)
◎唐时有传奇，皆文人所编，犹野史也，但资谐笑耳。宋之戏文，乃有唱念，有诨。金则院本、杂剧合而为一。至我朝，乃分院本、杂剧而为二。（夏庭芝《青楼集志》）
（唐代有传奇，都是文人编写的，就像野史那样，只是用作谈资取笑罢了。宋代的戏文，才有唱腔、念白、打诨。金代时院本和杂剧是合在一起的。到了本朝，才将院本、杂剧分成两种。）
In the Tang period, there were strange tales like unofficial histories written by scholars often for entertainment and light conversation. In the Song Dynasty, there were stage performances with songs, recitation and comic gestures and dialogues. In the Jin, brothel scripts and zaju were combined. In our dynasty, the two are separated into distinct forms. (Xia Tingzhi: Preface to Biographies of Courtesans)
