中国の租界地と使館界における演劇活動 －晩清民初を中心に－

日本劇界の近代化は、明治以降、官制主導で行われ、西洋文明の利器を受容して進展した。一方、晩清（19世紀中葉）からの中国は、列強の侵略もあり、300年続いた清朝の衰亡・革命期にあった。それでも劇界は近代化を推進した。それは、不平等条約で開港された各都市の租界と、北京の使館界が創設されたからだ。中国人には国辱であったが、劇界はこれを逆手にとって、演劇を近代化したのである。　民国初期（～1916年）までに、列強は自分たちのためにも、交通・通信・照明などの文明の利器を徐々に整備していた。　本論では、晩清民初に、各地方劇がこれらの利器によって、交流し近代化した歴史を、漢口（Hankou）・上海（Shanghai）・天津（Tianjin）・北京（Beijing）の四大都市を例に闡明した。それは、当時の資料から、主にこの四都市を巡演した足跡を知りうるからだ。　旧社会の中国で、演劇は冠婚葬祭に限らず、宴会や接待に不可欠であった。この時期、各地に拡張した商業活動に、北方語劇が共通の娯楽になり、「京劇（Peking Opera）」「梆子劇（BangziDrama）」の名称も定着し名優が多く輩出した。　演劇が人々の風紀に影響することを、歴代政府は十分心得ていた。それ故、清朝時代、①女優の出演、②女性の劇場入場、③夜劇、④国喪（皇族の命日の忌み日）の上演、⑤北京内城の劇場設置、この五大禁令が布かれていた。違反すると、休演命令や劇場封鎖の恐れもあった。また、色模様の芝居を「淫劇」と断じ、劇団を解散させ役者の引き回しもした。だが租界地区では、市場活況策や税金取りたての方便で、「淫劇」も放任され、一方で役者が自覚的に芸術化も進めた。　晩清民初の間に、租界や使館区から上記の五大禁令がほぼ打破された。女優が活躍すると、女性主役の演劇を多数創作したため、男優の「女方」の演技も発展させた。とくに役者の各地巡演で、劇種相互の改良が進み、同時に京劇・梆子劇が全国的に流行し、接待に供せられた。　晩清民初の演劇改革は、今日の中国演劇の礎となった。それも租界と使館界の存在なくしては実現しえないことであった。

The modernization of the theater industry in Japan during the Meiji period was a government-led movement, promoted by embracing the progress of Western civilization. In the mid︲19th century revolutionary-era China, however, the Qing Dynasty that had lasted 300 years was crumbling under the pressure of foreign invasions, and yet the Chinese theatrical community still succeeded in modernizing itself. This feat was made possible by the establishment of foreign concessions located in various port cities opened up under unequal treaties with foreign powers and the embassy districts in Beijing（so-called Legation Quarter）. Although these concessions were viewed by the people of China as a national humiliation, the theatrical community and the embassy districts took advantage of them to transform theater in their country. 　By the early Republic period （up to 1916）, the foreign powers had gradually built up Chinaʼs transportation and communication systems, lighting, and other modern infrastructure, not only for the benefit of the Chinese people but for themselves as well.　This paper describes how local theaters connected and evolved with the help of modern development in the late Qing and early Republic periods with a focus on the four cities of Hankou, Shanghai, Tianjin, and Beijing, selected because the information drawn from historical materials centers on the theaters that toured these cities.　In Chinaʼs past society, theater was an indispensable part of banquets and receptions as well as weddings, funerals, and other ceremonial events. During the late Qing and early Republic periods, as commercial activities spread across the nation, northern dialect dramas became a standard form of entertainment in various parts of the country, making the ‶Peking Opera" and ‶Bangzi Drama" well-known names. 　Governments throughout the ages have well understood the influence of theater on public morality. During the Qing Dynasty, theaters were banned from allowing actresses to perform or women to enter theater venues. Night performances, and on days of national mourning（anniversaries of the death of Imperial Family members） were prohibited, as was establishing a theater within the rampart in Beijing. Theaters violating any of these five rules faced the risk of shows being suspended or their doors closed altogether. Plays with love scenes were also declared indecent, resulting in troupes being forced to disband and actors dragged through the streets as punishment. But within the confines of the foreign concessions, the Chinese government turned a blind eye to ‶indecent dramas" on the pretext of economic growth and tax collection. At the same time, actors made a conscious effort to turn theatrical plays into a form of art. 　During this period, the five bans mentioned above were mostly scrapped in the foreign concessions and embassy districts. The emergence of successful actresses saw many plays place female roles center stage, which in turn led to the rise of theatrical female impersonation by male actors. Provincial tours, in particular, helped different theaters improve the quality of their productions. The ‶Peking Opera" and ‶Bangzi Drama" both gained nationwide popularity at the same time and came to be mainstays at events entertaining guests. 　The transformation of theater in the late Qing and early Republic eras became the foundation of todayʼs Chinese theater, which would not have been possible without the existence of the foreign concessions and embassy districts, at that time.