Unlike European operas, which concentrate on usually one kind of performance in one stage representation, Peking Opera integrates music, singing, dance, costume art, makeup, acting and acrobatics into a unique whole.

 Peking Opera roles

Peking Opera Roles include sheng (male role), dan (female role), jing (painted-face male role), and chou (comedic male role), distinguished on the basis of sex, age, and personality.

Sheng	Dan	Jing	Chou

 Sheng (male role) is divided into lao sheng, xiao sheng and wu sheng, respectively representing a decent middle-aged man, a young man, and a male role who can fight.

 Dan (female role) is divided into qing yi, wu dan, hua dan and lao dan, respectively representing a middle-aged woman who always acts as a Mrs. or Miss from a noble family, a woman who can fight, a young girl maid, and an aged woman.

 Jing (painted-face role) refers to the male roles with all kinds of painted-faces and acts to show a particular personality.

 Chou (comic role which means clown), a wise and funny man usually with low social status, is divided into wen chou and wu chou. The former can read and write well, and the latter can fight.

 Peking Opera costumes

Peking Opera costumes, generally referring to what an actor or actress wears on the stage, are technically termed xingtou or, more popularly, Xifu in Chinese. The origins of Peking Opera costumes can be traced back to the mid-14th century, when operatic precursors first began to experiment with large, ornate articles of clothing.

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