As the oldest extant form of Chinese opera, Kunqu ( 昆曲 ), also known as Kunju ( 昆剧 ), evolved from the Kunshan ( 昆山 ) melody, and dominated Chinese theatre from the 16th to the 18th centuries.

Kunqu boasts a 600-year history and is known as the "teacher" or "mother" of a hundred operas, because of its influence on other Chinese opera forms, including Peking opera ( 京剧 ). Its emergence ushered in the second Golden Era of Chinese drama, but by the early twentieth century it had nearly disappeared.

One of the major literary forms of the Ming and Qing dynasties was chuanqi drama, originating from the South. Plays that continue to be famous today, including The Peony Pavilion ( 牡丹亭 ) and The Peach Blossom Fan ( 桃花扇 ), were originally written for the Kunqu stage. In addition, many classical Chinese novels and stories, such as Romance of the Three Kingdoms ( 三国志 ), The Water Margin ( 水浒传 ) and Journey to the West ( 西游记 ) were adapted very early into dramatic pieces.

Today, Kunqu is performed professionally in seven Mainland Chinese cities: Beijing, Shanghai (Shanghai Kunqu Theatre), Suzhou (Suzhou Kunqu Theatre), Nanjing (Jiangsu Province Kunqu Theatre), Changsha (Hunan Kunqu Theatre), Wenzhou (Yongjia Kunqu Theatre) and Hangzhou (Zhejiang Province Kunqu Theatre). Non-professional opera societies are active in many other cities in China and abroad, and Mainland companies occasionally tour.

It was listed as one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2001. Its melody or tune is one of the Four Great Characteristic Melodies in Chinese opera.