Shaoxing Opera, known for its humor, acrobatics and over-the-top theatrics, is still adored in its Zhejiang province hometown. Wang Yuanchang reports

It is early evening and the stage facing the village temple is silhouetted against the moonlit sky. As the gongs and drums build up to a crescendo, the curtain slowly parts and the show begins. For Lanting village in Shaoxing, Zhejiang province, a night of local opera in the open is a much-anticipated event. Called shexi, it goes back more than 1,000 years and was staged to propitiate the gods for a good harvest ?a common practice in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. It was also the major source of entertainment in rural areas.

Today, Shaoxing folks still warmly embrace shexi to celebrate festivals and mark other important occasions, such as the worship of ancestors.

Chinese writer Lu Xun (1881-1936), a native of Shaoxing, gave a vivid description of this opera style in his novel Shexi.

More often than in the past, hundreds of towns and villages in Shaoxing now invite opera troupes to stage performances in the open, which sometimes run for days.

Of the different kinds of shexi, Shaoxing Opera is most popular because of its strong country flavor, characterized by humor and over-the-top theatrics.

Its unbridled expressions of emotion stand in contrast to the gentle disposition of the locals.

As evening approaches, crowds of people collect in front of the temporary stage. Some of them, their coats unbuttoned and faces flushed red from drinking generous amounts of the locally produced rice wine, hum the opera tunes as they fan themselves slowly.

Although a number of traditional pieces with a distinct local flavor have been preserved in Shaoxing Opera, new plays are continuously added.

The most popular is The Monkey King Thrice Defeats the Skeleton Demon, which was adapted from the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West.

Liu Jianyang, a veteran "Monkey King", recalls the passion of the audience at a June performance in Cixi, a county near Shaoxing.

"It was raining that night, but the stage was surrounded by enthusiastic crowds of people, many of whom had to watch the show standing.

"Many had learned about the show at the last minute, but still came just to see the Monkey King part, as late as 10 pm."

Liu lived next to a Shaoxing Opera troupe as a child and often stood by his window watching the actors do their voice training.

Actors of Shaoxing Opera must have a mastery of kungfu skills, as the audience loves plays featuring acrobatics and stunts.

The troupes usually have a tight schedule. The Shaoxing Opera Troupe of Zhejiang province, for example, visits nearby Shanghai and Jiangsu province every year and has also traveled abroad.

When walking in Shaoxing, a well-known river town, one can always hear Shaoxing Opera filtering out of the windows on both sides of the river.

On weekends and holidays, opera shows are often held in public squares and old streets.