Donglu Huagu Opera was originally called "Zhai Opera", commonly known as "Oh He Opera", and later called "Dong Opera", also known as "Dongluzi Huagu Opera" (now Hubei Chu Opera is "Xiluzi Huagu Opera"). In 1958, it was named "Dongluzi Huagu Opera" and in 1974 it was renamed "Donglu Huagu Opera". Donglu Huagu Opera has been widely spread in history and has a great influence. According to relevant records, the opera was formed in the late Jiaqing period, and it has a history of more than 170 years. The reason why this opera can flourish and spread widely is mainly because it originated from the folk, is popular among the masses, and is appreciated by both the elite and the masses. As early as the second year of Daoguang (1822), the singing of the welcoming opera was very common. Historical records describe it as follows: "The welcoming opera is performed during the day, it is easy to watch and understand, it is cheap and convenient, and it is performed at gatherings, so it stops in one village and starts again in another village, and men and women gather together and never get tired of it." According to the county annals of Macheng, Hong'an, Luotian, Qichun, Echeng and other counties and the distribution of artists, Donglu Huagu Opera was once a relatively influential local opera genre popular in more than ten counties in Hubei, Henan and Anhui provinces. Donglu Huagu Opera originated in eastern Hubei and was formed in Macheng, Luotian, Hong'an, Xishui and Huanggang in eastern Hubei, located at the southern foot of Dabie Mountain. There are mountains and rivers here. It borders Henan and Anhui in the northeast and Xiaogan and Xianning in Hubei in the southwest. The three provinces are adjacent and the roads are interconnected. It is an important distribution area for people in mountainous areas to operate local products and mountain products. The area is rich in cereals, cotton, and a wide variety of local mountain products. By the 1990s, it was known as the "Hometown of Chestnuts", "Hometown of Peanuts", and "Hometown of Tea", and industrial and agricultural production has developed greatly. The people here are hardworking and simple, with rich and colorful emotions and a temperament that combines hardness and softness. For thousands of years, the working people have worked and lived in this beautiful environment with a pleasant climate, and have been struggling unceasingly. As people are not satisfied with the single classical lifestyle of working from sunrise to sunset, they have developed a mentality of eliminating fatigue, pleasing the body and mind, and expressing emotions. So when picking tea, cutting wood, turning the soil, hoeing crops, and resting at night, they would compose lyrics based on the scenery, sing impromptu, and entertain themselves. For example, "Sing a Mountain Song Before I Go Back" (Macheng Folk Song) goes like this: "The sun sets, the sun sets in the west, I go back after singing a mountain song, wash my hands in the cool water, I don't know where tomorrow will be." Another example is "Call Me "Sing If I Want to Sing" (Hong'an folk song) goes like this: "If you ask me to sing, I will sing. What do you think, brother? There are big words written on the white wall, with more white than black. Don't laugh at me if I don't sing well." Most of these folk songs are sung in harmony with one another. Their tunes are high-pitched and gentle, and the lyrics are easy to understand. "They are inspired by sorrow and joy, and are inspired by events." Su Dongpo's "Notes and Records" described the singing of folk songs in eastern Hubei at that time: "When I came to Huangzhou, I heard that the Huang people gathered in groups to sing in February and March. The lyrics were incomprehensible, and the tones were not in tune. But the sounds were gentle, going back and forth high and low, like a rooster crowing." It can be seen that as early as the Song Dynasty, folk songs in eastern Hubei were very rich, and it was the only and most common form of self-entertainment for farmers. Later, in addition to folk songs, a variety of folk performing arts appeared, such as fishing drums, lotus-picking boats, king-push lanterns, stilt-walking, shadow play, and beige opera (puppet puppets). Most of the above folk performing arts were led by one person, followed by others, accompanied by gongs and drums, so they wove stories and sang minor tunes in the village. During festive occasions, welcoming gods and holding competitions, the above activities became indispensable self-entertainment activities for the people. Around the 25th year of Jiaqing (1820), the above folk performing arts were further developed, so they set up a straw stage, purchased gouache, borrowed clothes from rural brides, painted different characters, and sang. This gradually nurtured a local opera that could sing the storyline, the Donglu Flower Drum Opera. The Donglu Flower Drum Opera has its unique artistic characteristics with its high-pitched and euphemistic singing, realistic performance images, and unique accompaniment. The singing of the Donglu Flower Drum Opera is divided into three categories: main tune, minor tune, and other tunes. The main tunes include Dongqiang, Duiqiang, Erxing, Huogong, Tanqiang, Siping, Ergaoqiang, etc., which belong to the music of the board-style variation. There are more than ten minor tunes such as Macheng tune, Saotai tune, Naowugeng, etc., which belong to the music of single song combination. Other tunes include Lahua tune, Jingxing tune, Qizi tune, etc. Dongqiang is the main tune of Donglu Huagu Opera, with different tunes for men and women, which originated from the "Fanqiang" and "Haocaogege" in the folk songs of eastern Hubei. Dongqiang is high-pitched and gentle, with a wide range and large fluctuations. When singing, there are specific gongs and drums accompaniment (called "Thirteen Gongs") and strict human voice accompaniment. Its voice and charm have the typical characteristics of "Oh He" in eastern Hubei, so the masses also call Donglu Huagu Opera "Oh Heqiang". In the early days, Donglu Huagu Opera only had Xiaosheng, Xiaodan and Xiaoqiao, commonly known as "Three Xiaos", and its repertoires were mostly small plays reflecting small scenes of folk life or love entanglements. Later, the roles of Shengjiao, Zhengdan, and Jingjiao appeared, and the repertoires were expanded accordingly. Before the founding of the People's Republic of China, the accompaniment of Donglu Huagu Opera only had Wuchang (percussion) but no Wenchang (orchestra). The accompaniment of gongs and drums has a unique charm, which makes people feel that the music is bright and smooth, and the emotions are appropriate and moving. In the 1930s and 1940s, with the increasing number of Donglu Huagu troupes, the performance market continued to expand, and the people's love for it deepened, which not only promoted the development of art, but also created a group of famous folk artists, such as Dai Guiting (nicknamed Dai Shorty, from Hong'an County), Zou Xin, Liu Yuqing (from Macheng County), Pan Fengxian (from Luotian County), Cai Xier (from Huanggang County), etc. They have a deep influence on the masses and are deeply loved by the masses. Therefore, there are sayings among the masses: "Eat chicken thighs, watch Dai Shorty", "No matter whether he harvests the grain or not, you have to watch Zou Xin cry", and "After watching Cai Xier, you can't touch the chair when you go home." In September 1950, at the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, under the attention and care of the Party and the government, Macheng County established an old drama reform group, which was composed of 18 old artists as the basic team, and then established the Donglu Flower Drum Opera Professional Art Performance Group, which made the Donglu Flower Drum, a small flower that had experienced wind and rain, enter a better development environment. With the efforts of literary and artistic workers, all aspects have achieved rapid development. At the same time, under the guidance of provincial and local literary and artistic experts, such as Wei Kaitai, Shen Jianjun, Ouyang Qianshu and Fang Guangcheng and other music workers, Donglu Flower Drum was fully equipped with music accompaniment, making it more perfect. In terms of creation, more than 20 large-scale modern theme repertoires such as "The Divine Soldiers Descending from the Sky" and "Tian Xiuxiu" have been created, and more than 100 large-scale modern and historical theme repertoires such as "Jiang Jie" and "Mountain Village Storm" have been transplanted and performed. At the same time, a group of new artists such as Song Yuanzhen, Tao Dekai, Song Tao, Zhang Hanqing, and Zeng Meiling have been trained and cultivated. In 1974, the troupe performed the transplanted Donglu Huagu Opera "Dujuan Mountain" with a neat lineup and good art performance on Hubei TV to Mao Zedong and other central leaders for a report performance, which was affirmed. The transplanted traditional play "Yuhe Bridge" was made into a TV series and broadcast many times on the provincial TV station, which was very popular among the people. With the construction and full connection of the Beijing-Kowloon Railway, history has also entered the 21st century. The great motherland is thriving in all industries and prosperity, and the Donglu Huagu Opera, a flower cultivated by the people of Dabie Mountain, will shine more brilliantly. Information source: Huanggang Municipal People's Government Information source: Huanggang Municipal People's Government