Tibetan drama, "Ajilam" in Tibetan language, is an important art of Tibet's brilliant culture and is also a most precious treasure of Chinese dramas.
Tibetan drama is a favorable traditional dramatic art of the Tibetans. In the ancient folk religious dance of "jiangme", masks appeared, which is a sign of transition from the religious dance to drama. Masks play a great part in the formation of Tibetan drama.
In the 14th Century, Tangdong jiebo was determined to build bridges on the rivers throughout Tibet. To select donations, he chose seven beautiful and bright girls, who were capable of singing and dancing, from Baina Tribe to found a drama troupe. He composed some dance dramas with simple plots based on the Buddhist stories, and the troupe performed the dramas to persuade people's donation on their tour around Tibet. This was the embryo of Tibetan drama. Tangdong Jiebo was regarded as the founder of Tibetan drama and the "bindonba" composed by the seven girls was the earliest origin of white mask school. By the 18th century, with Tibetan drama's rapid development and spreading, a new school-blue mask appeared. It consolidated and promoted Tibetan drama in contents and forms.
The great eight repertoires of Tibetan drama are: Princess Wencheng and Songtsen Gampo, Lungsa Weipang, Suji Nima, Zuowa Sangma, Nosang the protector, Wenba, the White Horse, Dunyue Dunzhu, Zhimei Gun Er. Tibetan drama, with Tibetans' performance in hundreds of years, has gradually taken a comparatively fixed form. Generally speaking, the drama is performed on the open air with performers' simple making-up and simple masks without the complicated ones. The musical accompaniment is also simple: one drum and one cymbal.
Xodoin Festival, in early July of the Tibetan calendar, is a traditional festival of Tibetans. Twelve famous dram troupes will come to perform in Lhasa. Every troupe is of a different school of style. Among the schools there are white mask school of the old, blue mask of the new and also mono-drama.
Tibetan drama has budded and grown for hundreds of years on the fertile land of snow, the roof of the world. It now blossoms like a snow lily standing erect on the large plateau under the care of Tibetans.
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