Guan Gong was portrayed as a unique artistic image on the stage of China opera: he wore a "master helmet", a green python, a red face, a long beard and a dragon crescent moon blade. Not only that, traditional opera also opened up a unique business for him-Hongsheng.
So how does the actor who plays Guan Gong overcome his fear of ghosts and gods? First of all, the actor who played Guan Yu put on makeup and entered the taboo field, completely divorced from his original life. For example, don't call each other by their real names, and don't call Guan Gong by his first name on the stage. These taboos are to prevent revealing your true identity and let Guan Gong's ghost attach to you.
Secondly, add some white to Guan Gong's red face, which means that he plays Guan Gong, which is different from Guan Di, thus blocking the appearance of ghost man. In Peking Opera, Guan Yu's facial makeup sometimes adds moles to his face, and some people add a gold thread to his facial makeup, which is called "disfigurement". If an actor doesn't draw a broken face, he will get mixed up with the real Guan Yu.
Finally, the performers often burn incense and kowtow before going on stage, write down Guan Jun's name on yellow watch paper, fold it into a triangular memorial tablet and hang it in the middle of his stomach. In the old days, the performance of Guan Yu's plays was extremely solemn. The person who plays Guan Yu fasted for half a month, not approaching women, and put an end to bringing "unclean" things into the stage so as not to cause Guan Yu's anger and reprimand.
Secondly, add some white to Guan Gong's red face, which means that he plays Guan Gong, which is different from Guan Di, thus blocking the appearance of ghost man. In Peking Opera, Guan Yu's facial makeup sometimes adds moles to his face, and some people add a gold thread to his facial makeup, which is called "disfigurement". If an actor doesn't draw a broken face, he will get mixed up with the real Guan Yu.
There are a lot of accents in Qin opera. An insider who often plays Guan Yu said that every time he plays Guan Yu's play, he must abstain from eating and drinking a few days before the performance, and take a bath and burn incense before makeup. Since I went backstage to make up, I have to keep my mouth shut, and the first voice must be on the stage. After the performance, burn incense and worship, "discharge the general." Whether it is superstition or thousands of years of inheritance, people in the troupe know this rule. Besides playing Guan Yu, so are other plays that dress up mythical characters.
The story of "picking a robe" is estimated to be familiar to everyone. After Cao Cao captured Guan Yu, he worshipped him, but Guan Yu was in Cao Cao and his heart was in the Han Dynasty. When he learned that his younger brother Liu Bei was backward, he hung a seal and decided to resign from Cao Cao. Cao Cao knew that Guan Yu had made meritorious service and was leaving. Seeing that Guan Yu could not stay long, Cao Cao went to Baling Bridge to give him wine and a brocade robe. Guan Yu was afraid that he would cheat. On the bridge, he immediately picked up the robe with the dragon crescent moon blade, took it, and bowed away.