Heirs to an Ancient Art

Gyatso agrees with other scholars that the Yellow Mask School has been in the shadows for too long and that it is time to bring it back into the spotlight. This is what Nyima Tsering and his team are committed to.

Surrounded by the world of Tibetan Opera since his childhood, Nyima has special affinity with the art. “When I was young, there were few professional performances in my village around the year. But even on the rare occasions of hearing a fragment of song from fellow farmers in the field, my ears would prick up immediately,” Nyima recalled.

He started learning the opera at 16. For the first couple of years he struggled, and it was not until he reached 18 that he grasped its essence and began to improve in leaps and bounds.

“Although I’m not native to this village, when we settled here my father told me that it is the birthplace of the Yarlung Tashi Sherpa Opera,” Nyima said. “He suggested that I take on the responsibility of keeping the opera alive and thriving, as it’s a treasure of our culture.”

So in the early 1990s, upon seeing neighboring villages had established Tibetan Opera troupes, Nyima founded his own with seven friends who shared his passion for the art.

But they had scant funds. They couldn’t even afford the cheapest props and musical instruments. In their plight, they looked to Thangtong Gyalpo for inspiration and followed his example by putting on street performances to raise funds. On the simple stage they established in Lhasa’s bustling Pargor Street, the fresh-faced fledgling performers danced the ancient Tashi Sherpa Opera and managed to raise RMB 6,000 to purchase costumes and props.

“If we had not plucked up courage to take that first step, our troupe would not have reached its current state,” Nyima remarked after recalling those hard early days.

The venerable Tibetan theatrical art has seen a strong revival after China initiated a program to preserve its intangible cultural heritage. Nyima Tsering’s troupe was selected as one of the national intangible culture inheritance projects, with him as the opera’s representative inheritor. This entitles his troupe to a national support fund of RMB 40,000 every year. Later, the sum was raised to RMB 250,000.