People often gathered in the town square in front of the temple during leisure hours to watch a performance of the ke-tsai-chen. At that time the costumes and stage were very simple, and the gestures and expressions were easily understood dramatizations of daily life.
每到農暇，人們便聚在稻埕或廟前廣場，以日常生活慣用的詞藻、簡單的動作表情，來說唱「歌仔陣」。那種即興演出不講究化妝、服飾，也沒有固定舞台，被稱為「落地掃」，已隱然具備歌仔戲的雛型，最早源起於宜蘭。