<P> In Japan, onnagata, men taking on female roles, were used in kabuki theatre when women were banned from performing on stage during the Edo period . This convention continues . By contrast, some forms of Chinese drama involve women playing all roles . </P> <P> In modern times, women occasionally played the roles of prepubescent boys . For example, the stage role of Peter Pan is traditionally played by a woman, as are most principal boys in British pantomime . Opera has several "breeches roles" traditionally sung by women, usually mezzo - sopranos . Examples are Hansel in Hänsel und Gretel, Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro and Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier . </P> <P> Women playing male roles are uncommon in film, with notable exceptions . In 1982, Stina Ekblad played the mysterious Ismael Retzinsky in Fanny and Alexander, and Linda Hunt received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for playing Billy Kwan in The Year of Living Dangerously . In 2007, Cate Blanchett was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for playing Jude Quinn, a fictionalized representation of Bob Dylan in the 1960s, in I'm Not There . </P> <P> In the 2000s, women playing men in live theatre is particularly common in presentations of older plays, such as Shakespearean works with large numbers of male characters in roles where gender is inconsequential . </P>

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