Chinese opera is a highly comprehensive opera that attaches paramount importance to imagery. The qualities of simulative performance, including its orientation, immediacy and flowability, constitutes the transcendent and free time-space of the art of Chinese opera. Considering the profound impact that the spirit of idea-sketching (Xieyi in Chinese, which is an aesthetic conception in China that emphasizes on capturing the spiritual essence rather than the superficial appearance) in Chinese traditional culture has on opera creation, an exploration into the impressionist views in Chinese traditional culture will be necessary to understand the beauty of idea-sketching Chinese opera. The creation of opera directors should be based on the traditional Chinese aesthetics centering on spirit conveying and essence capturing. Opera directors need to explore how the idea-sketching spirit contained in Chinese traditional culture can be applied and extended on the opera stage
