The King of Masks (1996)

Master Liang, a famous impersonator of female parts at the Sichuan Opera, is enchanted by the art of the street performer Wang, known as the King of Masks. He offers him an engagement at the opera, but Wang says he is a solitary by nature. His only sorrow is that he has no male descendant who can carry on the art of the changing masks after his death. To solve the problem Wang buys an 8 year old orphan. His happiness turns into dejection, when he finds out that "the boy" actually is a girl. Despite his displeasure he keeps the girl and trains her as an acrobat.