It also absorbed music from other operas and local Zhili musical art forms. This form of Mandarin is recorded in the book Zhongyuan Yinyun. Much dialogue is also carried out in an archaic form of Mandarin Chinese, of which the Zhongyuan Mandarin dialects of Henan and Shaanxi are closest. Chinese puppet shows always involve singing. Xipi literally means shadow play, referring to the puppet show that originated in Shaanxi province. The tune of Peking opera is extremely similar to that of Han opera, therefore Han opera is widely known as the Mother of Peking opera. Peking opera's two main melodies, Xipi and Erhuang, derived from Han Opera after about 1750. Although it is called Peking opera (Beijing theatre style), its origins are in the southern Anhui and eastern Hubei, which share the same dialect of Xiajiang Mandarin (Lower Yangtze Mandarin). Peking opera is generally regarded as having fully formed by 1845. The combination gradually formed Peking opera's melodies. In 1828, several famous Hubei troupes arrived in Beijing and performed jointly with Anhui troupes. It was originally staged for the court and was only made available to the public later. It was born when the “Four Great Anhui Troupes” brought Anhui opera, or what is now called Huiju, in 1790 to Beijing, for the eightieth birthday of the Qianlong Emperor on September 25. Peking opera, also referred to as Pingju or Jingxi in Chinese, is currently the most influential opera in China. In addition Pourazar has his doubts and worries over the future of this art form!!!!!! W W W. Over 16 years in Beijing he has entertained Heads of States and ambassadors from Asia, Africa, USA and Europe. He has given lectures at universities such as: MIT, London, NY, Beijing, Pisa, HK, Lisbon, Sydney. Children all over the world have enjoyed his English language Monkey King musical.

He was commissioned by UN, UNDP, UNICEF, British Council, Asia Cultural Council and Jane Goodall Institute. The production was invited to the London Globe. In 1997 he directed the National Beijing Opera troupe of China in his adaptation of Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'. He has received international awards in the fields of Beijing Opera, computer animation, theater and as a cultural ambassador. He is a British Council senior Scholar & an Asian Cultural Council grantee. He graduated from the Beijing Opera School. He is known in China as the 'big nose' Beijing Opera warrior or 'foreign' Monkey King. Ghaffar Pourazar is British from Iranian Azerbaijani origins.

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