水袖

shuǐxiù
noun

Meanings

  1. 1 water sleeves (long white silk extensions sewn to opera costume cuffs)
  2. 2 flowing sleeves used in Chinese opera

Examples

Yǎnyuán shuǎidòng shuǐxiù, biǎoxiàn bēishāng.
The performer flicks her water sleeves to express grief.
Shuǐxiù gōng xūyào duōnián de xùnliàn.
Water-sleeve technique requires many years of training.

Tips

culture
Typically 30–45 cm of white silk stitched onto the cuff of , , and 褶子 costumes. Performers use a vocabulary of throws, flicks and gathers — collectively 水袖 — to externalize emotion: fear, fury, coyness, collapse.

Stroke Order

shuǐ
xiù