1970年代中葉，新加坡社會興起一股討論街戲存亡的風潮，政府高 層乃至市井小民，咸以為華族戲曲已步入一個沒有觀眾的時代。1980年代以降，新加坡主菜巨城隍廟卻因演出華族戲曲檔期之多，成為戲曲贊助者和觀眾最多的華族廟宇。在一個年輕人普遍接受英式教育，且華文傳統文化普遍沒落的新加坡，主菜芭城隍廟卻能在單一慶典上，創造出演出上百日的佳績，誠屬不易。本文擬以主菜巨城隍廟的案例，從「戲曲贊勘」的角度思考街戲的功能，街戲的演出目的?贊助街戲演出的是誰?街戲的觀眾是誰?贊助者對街戲的演出有何影響?街戲的這種贊助方式是否有階段性的差異?等諸多問題。試圖透過這些問題的解答，以回應當地盛行的「沒有觀眾的戲劇演出如何成戲劇」的論述，並給與街戲一個較為正確和公允的評價。本文將以近年捐助「清溪顯佑怕主聖誕」的街戲贊勘者和演出劇團為主要素材，配合筆者的實地觀察，探討廟宇(宗教建制卜贊助者、戲曲劇團三者的互動關係'以呈現街戲這類戲曲演出形式的宗教和文化意義，以及街戲近二十年來的變遷風貌。

The status of street opera was a subject of debate in the mid-
1970s in Singapore. It was widely believed in the general public and government
officials that this street opera, performed in various Chinese dialects,
had been entering an audience-less age. Since the 1980s, however, the
Lorong Koo Chye Sheng Hong Temple has become the Chinese temple
receiving the best financial patronage and attracting the largest audience
because of its frequent scheduling of Chinese opera. In a country where
young people mostly receive English education and where Chinese tradition
is on the wane, it is remarkable that the Lorong Koo Chye Sheng Hong
Temple set a record of staging opera in 100 consecutive days for one single
festival.
This paper examines Lorong Koo Chye Sheng Hong Temple as a case
study and considers the following issues from the perspective of “theatrical
patronage,” for example, the functions of the street opera, the audiences and
the patronage of the opera and its influences, if the patronage changes from
time to time. In addressing these issues, I respond to the prevalent discourse
of “how could an audience-less theatrical performance be called theatre?”
and give a more accurate and fair evaluation of the street opera.
This paper mainly studies the patronage and theatrical troupes of
“Sacred Birthday of the Magnificent and Protective Lord of the Clear Creek.”
(Sacred Birthday of Qing Xi Xian You Bo Zhu) Based on my own field
observation, I explore the three-way relations between temple (religious
institution), patrons, and theatrical troupes, to present the religious and cul-tural meanings of such opera performances as well as the transitions within
the last twenty years.