In the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China, storytelling and ballad singing were very popular in Wuzhen. It was even more prosperous around the time of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. It reached its peak in the 1950s. Many storytelling and ballad singing performers have mostly been to Wuzhen. The earliest storytelling house in Wuzhen is called ‘Wanfuyuan’. Later, there are Longyuan Storytelling House near Caishenwan in Dongzha, Nanyuan Storytelling House in the south section of Changfeng Street, Changchungge on the west side of Nanhuabridge River, and Sanyi Storytelling House on the west side of Beihuabridge River.
In addition to storytelling and ballad singing, the performance repertoire also includes Wuzhen local rap – San Tiao. San Tiao is a narrative folk art form that has been popular in rural areas around Wuzhen for a long time and mainly raps ancient and modern popular novels. The props used by performers are three sections of bamboo boards, commonly known as ‘San Tiao Ban’, so this folk art is named ‘San Tiao’. Its audience is basically farmers, and most performers are also farmers, so it is also called ‘farmer’s book’; and because its singing tune is ‘exhorting the world tune’, it is also called ‘exhorting book’. Opening hours: Open from 09:00 to 22:00 all year round. The specific business status is subject to the opening situation on that day.
