Singapore · Costume Making / Embroidery
潮剧戏服制作 (Chao Ju Xi Fu Zhi Zuo)
Teochew Chinese opera (chao ju) is Singapore's most practiced Chinese opera dialect — performed in Singapore's Teochew community temples and community stages for deity birthdays, festivals, and ritual occasions. The costume and prop making tradition that supports chao ju encompasses elaborate embroidered robes, headdresses, weapons and ritual props, and theatrical makeup tools. The robes are the most technically demanding — embroidered with gold thread and colored silk in specific iconographic patterns (dragon for male leading roles, phoenix for female; specific colors encoding character rank and moral status). Singapore has several generations of Teochew opera costume makers whose work has been recognized through NHB's Stewards of ICH Award program. The costume making connects directly to the embroidery traditions of the Chaoshan region of Guangdong province.
Risk level: Critically Endangered · Not inscribed; Singapore Teochew opera on national ICH recognition program
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