Master Qi and the Monkey King

Who knew that the famous Peking opera star Qi Shu Fang (a woman with the honorific of "Master") has lived in Flushing, NY, for the past 25 years and performed all over the country? Her troupe includes her husband, Ding Mei-kui (also a star), and about 100 performers and musicians. We see Qi in her apartment in ordinary clothes, just another plumpish older woman with her lean, slightly stooping husband. But with makeup and lavish costumes, they belong to another world. Their performances are skilled, rapid-fire, and loud, with singing, acrobatics, tumbling, swordplay, dancing, and ribbon twirling. The drummer particularly offers a primer on the technicalities of timing, the story line, and meaning. The film introduces viewers to several performers, their difficult daily lives, and their devotion to keeping alive this ancient art. Master Qi, now 70, is still performing but also hoping to leave a lasting legacy. The subtitles are accurate but often go by on-screen too quickly.