话剧 huàjù stage play
stage play; modern drama
How to remember 话剧: 话 speech + 剧 theatrical plays = stage play.
Characters
How it is used
- A modern, Western-style stage play performed in spoken dialogue, as opposed to traditional Chinese opera forms.
- 看话剧 (kàn huàjù) - to watch a (stage) play; a common cultural outing in cities.
- Contrast with 京剧 (jīngjù, Peking opera) or 戏曲 (xìqǔ, traditional Chinese opera), which use singing and stylized performance rather than everyday spoken dialogue.
- Common in arts and entertainment contexts, e.g. 话剧院 (huàjùyuàn, theater) and 话剧演员 (huàjù yǎnyuán, stage actor).
Example sentences
- 话剧表演得很精彩。 Huàjù biǎoyǎn de hěn jīngcǎi.The play was brilliant.