In recent years, Suzhou City has been interested in restoring the glorious history of Kun Opera in Suzhou and re-establishing Suzhou as the center of Kun Opera. The youth version of "The Peony Pavilion", a three-day drama performed by the children of Suzhou, is likely to be the prelude to the revival of Kun Opera in Suzhou. Zhou Qin (Executive Deputy Director of China Kunqu Opera Research Center, consultant of "Youth Edition" "The Peony Pavilion", professor of Suzhou University, doctoral supervisor):
Bai Xianyong often laughs that he is a Kunqu Opera volunteer. Agree. It was he who brought Kun Opera back into people's sight. He was indeed very devoted. Many people participated in this matter for his sake. He really likes Kunqu Opera.
At first I didn’t agree with the term “Youth Version” of “The Peony Pavilion”. I thought it was a bit funny. But after watching their performance in Taipei, I felt that the effect was very good, and I began to understand the so-called The "Youth Edition" uses young actors to tell youthful love stories to attract young audiences. Before coming to Soochow University to perform, I was very worried, even scared, because Soochow University could not compare with the performance venues in Taipei and Hong Kong in terms of hardware. The facilities are relatively simple. Only after Bai Xianyong agreed to come to Suzhou did we dare to promote it more. The performances in the past three days proved that the "Youth Version" of "The Peony Pavilion" was a success. 7,000 viewers. But Kun Opera has its own artistic limitations. We cannot hope that it will be like pop songs, and there is no need for it to change its appearance. Our purpose is only to attract audiences with high cultural levels.
We are very touched that the "Youth Version" "The Peony Pavilion" is so popular in Taiwan. There are three reasons for this: First, two young actors have finally appeared in the Kunqu opera world, both idols and powerful actors; Second, there are successors to Kun Opera. They can perform for at least another 20 years, make up for the gaps in Kun Opera, and become the torchbearers of Kun Opera. Third, we did not expect that the Taiwanese audience would like this drama so much. When they encountered classic songs like "Dream of Dreams", they were all able to hum or clap to the tune familiarly. At that time, the highest ticket price for the performance was 1,800 yuan. In fact, this is a kind of culture among Taiwanese audiences. Recognize your roots.
The two leading actors in the "Youth Version" of "The Peony Pavilion" are very authentic, and it is more suitable to play Du Liniang and Liu Mengmei, who are relatively similar in age. Of course, they still need to be tempered, and they are not very mature yet. Well, being an actor is a gradual process. Their current performances are more passionate than technical. After they perform 50 to 100 performances, they may be more technical than passionate. These two things are a fish and a bear's paw, and they still need more. Slowly understand the relationship. With their consent, we hope that they will study for a master's degree in drama to help improve their cultural accomplishment. It is undeniable that these two actors are very beautiful. Facts have proved that Bai Xianyong is very discerning.
Wang Shiyu (artistic director and chief director of the "Youth Edition" "The Peony Pavilion")
In my eyes, Bai Xianyong is a millionaire. Fascinating, even I can't escape his charm. After retiring from the position of director of Zhejiang Kun Opera Troupe, I could have spent my remaining years in peace in Hangzhou while coaching young Kun Opera students, but I have been friends with Bai Xianyong for more than ten years. One day, he suddenly called me and said, “While you can still teach, teach more students. "After he put forward his idea about the "Youth Version" of "The Peony Pavilion" to me, I immediately agreed.
The year-long "residency" teaching in Suzhou is not necessarily easier than being a group leader, because I have a dual identity in this "youth version" of "The Peony Pavilion". I am both Liu Mengmei's character in the play. Shifu is also the artistic director of this new play. This version of "The Peony Pavilion" is more complete than previous performance versions, and more deeply reflects the spirit that Tang Xianzu pursued. The whole play revolves around the word "love", and the whole story is inseparable from the word "love". I have played Liu Mengmei all my life, but it actually feels like a two-part version of "A Dream" and "Pictures Picked Up", and the other parts seem to be downplayed. In fact, the reason why Du Liniang loves so crazily and persistently is because Liu Mengmei is a person worthy of love, so we have strengthened Liu Mengmei's role this time.
The biggest change among the disciples is not acting in a profession, but learning to express characters. During the last rehearsal of "Leaving the Soul", the heroine Shen Fengying burst into tears. Shen Fengying said that every time the performance reaches this point, she will feel sad.
Shen Fengying (player of Du Liniang in the "Youth Edition" "The Peony Pavilion")
Yu Jiulin and I were classmates at the drama school, and later we entered the Kunqu Opera Theater together. Mr. Bai Xianyong’s request to us is that we must work hard in the next year. Teacher Wang Shiyu said, you two actors have a good image, but your basic skills are not enough, so bad that you can't stand it anymore. Therefore, Mr. Bai Xianyong and Teacher Wang Shiyu formulated a complete training plan to provide us with systematic and intensive training including body shape, singing, performance, and literary appreciation. Rehearsals start at 7 a.m. and end at 6 p.m. every day. It is unstoppable, and working overtime at night is common. Later, Teacher Wang Shiyu invited a dance teacher to use ballet methods to open the shoulders, chest and waist, in order to change our habit of keeping our breasts closed and restrained. Because our age has passed the development period and our bones have already taken shape, training is not easy. There are sometimes cries and screams at the training site. I still remember the devilish training a year ago, and it’s hard to imagine whether I would be able to persist if I had to train like this again. At that time, I lived with my fingers crossed every day.
Mr. Bai has very strict requirements for us. He told me that when I meet Liu Mengmei for the first time, I must have the feeling of first love and love at first sight. You see, Liu Mengmei cannot stare at it. All ladies must be half Look with shyness. After queuing hundreds of times, whenever I slacked off, Mr. Bai would immediately point it out and ask to start over. When I went to Hong Kong to perform in May this year, the climate changed greatly. Mr. Bai was worried that Yu Jiulin and I would have health problems, so he kept us in the hotel drinking ginseng soup.
Yu Jiulin (player of Liu Mengmei in "Youth Edition" "The Peony Pavilion")
Although he is from Kunshan near Suzhou, Yu Jiulin's family has nothing to do with Kunqu Opera. He has not played Kunqu since he was a child. How come I heard Kun Opera, "I seem to have stumbled in by accident." Before graduating from junior high school, the art school came to the school to recruit people to learn Kunqu Opera. After three or four tests based on his image and intonation, he was selected by the teacher and entered the industry ignorantly. "I wasn't very sensible at the time. I just felt proud that I could pass five levels and kill six generals, and that I had to take the exam in Suzhou."
Starting to learn opera at the age of 17 is a bit late in our opinion. He explained that Kun Opera has many literary operas and many raw and female operas, so it requires a certain understanding of the scripts. Middle school students must be strong in this aspect. Some; but because I didn’t start practicing Qigong from a young age, my body and flexibility must be deficient.
Before "Liu Mengmei", he and Shen Fengying were both playing minor roles in the group. One time, Bai Xianyong gave a lecture to explain the love between men and women in Kunqu Opera. He was recommended by someone to find him to demonstrate some operas, including "Dream." Mr. Bai felt that his image and voice were suitable for Liu Mengmei, and he stepped into the youth version of "The Peony Pavilion".
Hell-like experience finally takes shape
When I first learned to practice, I was immersed in the bitter water. Yu Jiulin also experienced it. When practicing Qigong in the middle of winter, wearing a pair of white cotton trousers and a pair of black trousers on top, you will suddenly feel cold all over your body. When you uncover it, you will see blood all over your knees.
When arranging "The Peony Pavilion", he went through another hell-like experience. "Others have also endured hardship, but they have never gone through it repeatedly." When he was selected to play Liu Mengmei at the age of 24, he practiced the basic skills, stage steps, and water sleeves all over again.
There may only be two physical classes a day in school, but "these three months have been like intensive military training, with basic skills of various elements being practiced repeatedly from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day." The effect was remarkable. He felt that his body had become very straight, but the fear of hell was unforgettable. "Teacher Wang Shiyu never praised me before 100 games."
Kun Opera experience is passed down from generation to generation
“The Peony Pavilion is a crossroads and turning point in my life. In the past, I only regarded Kun Opera as a career, but now I regard it as a career. cause". Yu Jiulin said that he used to be a simple actor and never thought too much, but the youth version of "The Peony Pavilion" gave him a sense of responsibility and mission.
"After becoming a disciple of Teacher Wang Shiyu, he taught me his experience without reservation. This relationship is very precious and it also allowed me to see the meaning of inheritance. I will also be old in a few years. By then I will also pass on my experience to the next generation. The more I learn now, the more I will pass it on."
Ms. S and Ms. X (the only undergraduate class in Kunqu Opera at Suzhou University). graduates)
We watched the "youth version" of "The Peony Pavilion" for three days, and it was quite good. But as individuals, we still prefer to watch "The Peony Pavilion" performed by famous artists, but we very much support the current form because it derives a youth love story. Both the actors' appearance and the stage design are very beautiful and eye-catching. This should be attributed to Mr. Bai Xianyong's control. The current situation of Kun Opera is not optimistic. The appearance of such a play can attract a large number of audiences, especially young audiences. We and our classmates are very excited. It is possible that a large number of viewers are watching it for the first time, but this love for art is enough. Having an audience means there is an environment for Kun Opera to survive.
However, objectively speaking, Sheng Dan in the play does not have a thorough understanding of the script of "The Peony Pavilion". Acting is always a training process, I believe they will gradually improve. We are more impressed by Xiaosheng, the actor who plays Liu Mengmei, because his performance is more layered, while Huadan is relatively plain, with a personality that is not very distinct, and a sense of layering that has not yet been developed. Maybe after 100 performances, I will feel completely liberated.
We feel that the "youth version" of "The Peony Pavilion" is full of vitality and very pleasing to the eye.
Bai Xianyong - a famous contemporary writer. A native of Guilin, Guangxi. The son of Bai Chongxi, a senior KMT general. When I was in elementary school and middle school, I was deeply influenced by Chinese classical novels and "May Fourth" new literature. He lived in Chongqing as a child, and later moved to Nanjing, Hong Kong, and Taiwan with his parents. After graduating from Taipei Jianguo Middle School, he entered Tainan National Cheng Kung University, and a year later entered the Department of Foreign Languages ??and Literatures of National Taiwan University. In 1958, he published his first novel "Grandma Jin". In 1960, he founded the magazine "Modern Literature" with his classmates Chen Ruoxi, Ouyang Zi and others, and published many novels such as "Moon Dream", "Sister-in-law Yu Qing" and "Graduation". Graduated from university in 1961. In 1963, he went to the United States to study and create at the Writers Studio of the University of Iowa. After receiving his master's degree in 1965, he lived in the United States and taught at the University of California. Published short story collection "Lonely Seventeen", "Taipei People", "The New Yorker", essay collection "Suddenly Looking Back", novel "Evil Son", etc.
Eight Highlights of the Youth Version of "The Peony Pavilion" Script Among various drama factors, the script is the foundation and the core that governs the overall spirit and gives it ideological vitality. The editor compiled rather than adapted the original work of Tang Xianzu, completely inherited the original words, and after careful combing, created a youth version of "The Peony Pavilion" with "love in dreams", "love between humans and ghosts" and "love on earth" as the core, which fully reflects The spirit of Tang Xianzu's original work "Zhi Qing". The average age of the actors in the youth version of "The Peony Pavilion" is about 20 years old. The leading roles, supporting roles, and supporting roles are all played by young actors. This is due to Mr. Bai Xianyong's unique creativity. He hopes to use the performances of young actors to attract more audiences. Young people love the ancient art of Kun Opera and understand the breadth and depth of Chinese traditional culture.
The biggest feature of the music of the Musical Youth version of "The Peony Pavilion" is the use of opera music creation techniques in opera music. The whole play uses Western opera theme music forms, which enriches the expressiveness of the opera itself and the music, and presents a colorful scene to the audience. A beautiful audio-visual feast. Singing: Traditional Kunqu opera singing is too long and slow in rhythm, making it difficult for the audience to accept. Mr. Bai Xianyong organized musicians from both sides of the Taiwan Strait to make bold innovations and breakthroughs in singing and melody, combining Western opera and Eastern opera, and adding a large amount of intermission music and dance music to the singing of "The Peony Pavilion", which was a good Enhances the stage atmosphere. The overall tone of the youth version of clothing is light and elegant, with a strong Chinese landscape painting style, just like the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony that was stunning for eight minutes in the picture scroll! All performance costumes are made of handmade Suzhou embroidery, especially the traditional Suzhou embroidery craftsmanship of Du Liniang and Liu Mengmei's costumes will be the biggest highlight. Dance The youth version of "The Peony Pavilion" has many flower gods and dances designed with costumes. The designer changed the traditional dance of the Flower Goddess holding flowers to use different flowers for twelve months, and used opera language to express the dance movements, allowing the entire atmosphere of the stage to flow with the Flower Goddess's unique performance. Stage design In order to integrate the classical aesthetics of Kun Opera with modern theater, Bai Xianyong gathered experts from both sides of the Taiwan Strait and three places to make suggestions and use the "empty stage" setting to maximize the virtual space for singing and dancing. The stage floor broke the traditional carpet and used gray tones. The stage is made of glue, and the beautiful calligraphy of modern calligraphers is also used in it. The stage scenery is written with the prose of Liu Zongyuan, a master of prose in the Tang Dynasty. Rejuvenation It is reported that "the youth version of "The Peony Pavilion" has reduced the age of Kunqu Opera audiences by 30 years, breaking the habit of young people having difficulty accepting traditional dramas, and improving students' aesthetic sentiment and artistic taste."