I was hit by a wave of nostalgia in those few minutes when we stopped by a teochew wayang performing at the Batu Lancang Road Market for sis to take some photographs for her project.
The theatrical make-up, the the high pitched singing, the dazzling costumes and the scent of joss-sticks transported me back to those by-gone days when we would park ourselves in front of the opera stage whenever the lunar 7th moon comes around.
We didn't understand what they were singing but we could roughly guess what was going on. We were more captivated and impressed by the spectacular costumes, the stage make-up and the stylized moves of the actors.
The Chinese opera is one of our cultural heritage and it would be great if someone could write a Chinese opera in English or one of the Chinese dialects. Just imagine transforming the parable of the prodigal son into Chinese opera. Awesome!
After all, the cultural background of the Bible is oriental so maybe it's about time we intentionally make the medium, other than language, for the communication of the gospel message oriental as well.
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