The creative process of loess ballads

On May 31st, 24, the drama Huangtu Ballad, which was created by the General Political Drama Troupe, performed for the first time. After more than one year, Huangtu Ballad held one hundred commemorative performances in the "Bayi Theater" from September 7th to 11th, 25. During this year, ten drafts of "Huangtu Ballad" were changed, and dozens of media rushed to report it. Nearly 1 performances were performed, and more than 3, people watched the performance.

"vivid characters, personalized language, unique stage design", "thick, simple, humorous, folk-custom

, with inner spirit", "shocking in thought and emotion" and "very large in capacity, beyond the theme of the army and its scope of expression" ... The evaluation from all aspects shows that "The Ballad of the Loess" is full of the sense of the times.

Through a family in a small village, Huangtu Ballad reflects a very representative spiritual choice in rural China and even in traditional China society, as well as the ethics and values behind this choice. In the endless loess plateau, three simple and honest caves, and a nine-song journey to heaven, Loess Ballad tells the audience a shocking story that happened in the rural areas of Shanxi in contemporary society.

Creation: the story of an ordinary person

In p>23, many media in China reported such a thing: Lianhua Village, Huangxikou Township, Chenxi County, Hunan Province owed a loan of 18, yuan to the credit cooperative due to the mistake of running a brick kiln factory. In order not to let the country suffer losses and the people bear the economic pressure caused by debt repayment, Song Xianqin, then secretary of the village party branch, took the initiative to undertake the obligation of debt repayment. He led the whole family to work hard for ten years, and paid off the loan and fund-raising (with interest and interest) of 36 thousand yuan. Among them, Song Xianqin himself fell from a brick kiln seven meters high, and his three-year-old grandson was killed by careless ignition of gunpowder for fireworks. His silent third son died in a quiet sleep because of long-term overwork.

Meng Bing, head of the General Political Drama Troupe, fell into deep thinking after watching the above report on TV late at night. He wrote in his diary: The feelings that Song Xianqin brought to me are complicated and multifaceted. ..... He is not tall, but what he abides by is a citizen's most basic moral concept and sense of responsibility to society. The most basic character of an ordinary person has attracted the attention of thousands of people today. So, I want to write about him, Song Xianqin.

On October 11th, 23, Meng Bing went to Lianhua Village, Huangxikou Township, Chenxi County, Hunan Province for an interview, stayed at the home of Song Xianqin, the prototype character of the play, and had a heart-to-heart talk with Song Xianqin, and got a lot of first-hand information, thus forming the creative idea of the drama Huangtu Ballad.

On November 1th, 23, Meng Bing went to Hequ County in the northwest of Shanxi Province to collect the wind.

On March 23rd, 24, Wanchen Zhai, deputy head of the crew, led a group of 2 people to Hequ County, Shanxi Province to experience life. The cast members went deep into the farmers, did farm work, ate farm meals, had a heart-to-heart conversation with farmers' friends, felt the folk customs, and learned the local language and performance skills of local operas.

Performance: The audience received rave reviews

The drama Huangtu Ballad was organized on March 8th, 24, and its first performance was held on May 31st. Once the play was released, it conquered countless audiences with its lofty and rich ideological connotation, touching story, strong and simple local flavor and unique artistic charm. Many units took the initiative to contact the General Political Drama Troupe and asked for a booking to watch the performance of Huangtu Ballad. China Machinery Industry Federation, China Central Party School, National School of Administration, China Youth University for Politics, National Defense University and other units have successively booked performances, among which China Machinery Industry Federation has booked four consecutive performances, and more than 1, party member watched them. After the performance, the audience left tens of thousands of messages.

● Hu Yi, deputy secretary of the Party Group of Shaanxi Academy of Social Sciences, walked onto the stage with tears in her eyes and shook hands with the actors, saying, "Thank you for paying attention to the countryside and showing the national spirit of ordinary people ...".

● Cai Lishan, a student representative of National Defense University, wrote in the guest book after watching the performance, "This play moved me very much. I watched it with tears, which can be said to be a spiritual sublimation. This is a drama with ideological, artistic and ornamental features, which promotes the main theme. It reveal that character that the * * * production party is dedicated to the public and is in pow for the people, and at the same time it promotes our army's love for the party and the people. He comes from life, the script is very good, and the performance is also very in place. Song Jianjun decided to pay back 18, yuan, which is very shocking. "

● After watching the performance, Yu Zhen, member of Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and president of China Machinery Industry Federation, took the stage to shake hands with the actors and thanked them. "Huangtu Ballad brought me to the moment when I took the oath to join the Party decades ago, which reminded me of the oath and commitment I made to the Party in those years. The story of Huangtu Ballad was vivid and touching, and I was shocked and baptized by my heart."

● Xiao Zuzeng, the third battalion of Wusuotun Coal Mine in Tengzhou City, Shandong Province, said in an interview after the performance, "I was very moved to see the report about Huangtu Ballad from CCTV's Behind the Scenes column. I was on a business trip to Beijing just in time for the performance of Huangtu Ballad by the General Political Department Drama Troupe. I watched the drama for the first time in my life. I didn't expect that I would be so shocked when my eldest son broke the bowl and wanted to pay back the money alone. I can't help crying ... "

● Lv Peng, a graduate student of sociology in Tsinghua University, wrote to the General Political Department Drama Troupe after watching the performance." I had no idea that my child who grew up in the city would be moved by such a rural drama. The repayment of debts in Huangtu Ballad is full of blood and masculinity. When the curtain fell, I sat there all the time being silly ... ".

● Xu Xiyan, a graduate student of the National Defense University (cadre of the basic department of the Artillery Command College), left a message after watching the performance: "This is a good work. A good work must first be able to infect people, inspire people and inspire people. I am touched. We just got back from visiting and teaching in Shaanxi, and specially went to the local caves to have a look. After watching this play, it seems that I have returned to the cave, and I feel particularly cordial. The whole scene and layout are real, the atmosphere of the play is very good, and the actors' portrayal of the characters is also very successful. Different characters, in different languages, portray different characters' personalities, which are vivid ... "

● Cai Lishan, director of the organization department of a certain department of Beijing Army, said after the performance:" I watched the play with tears. It can be said that the spirit has been sublimated. This is a drama which is ideological, artistic and ornamental, and carries forward the main theme. It reveals the essence of * * * party members' building the party for the public and governing for the people. I am very proud to be a soldier "

Experts praised Huangtu Ballad

In order to turn Huangtu Ballad into a stage art masterpiece with excellent ideological, artistic and ornamental features, the General Political Drama Troupe invited the Chinese Dramatists Association, Script Magazine, Literary and Art Newspaper, the Art Bureau of the Propaganda Department of the General Political Department and the Ministry of Culture of the State Council to hold a special seminar to listen to experts' comments and opinions. People from all walks of life said that they were deeply infected by the play after watching "Huangtu Ballad", and they all commented and praised "Huangtu Ballad" in unison.

Liao Ben (member of the leading group of China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, secretary of the Secretariat):

I sum up this play with three "should's". The first "should" is that the main theme play should be written like this, the second "should" is that the material should be treated like this, and the third "should" is that the theme should be expressed like this. This is an induction of real life, a spiritual impact, and a touching drama. I think the play of the main theme should be written like this. I want to appeal to those writers who are good at writing the main theme to have a good look at the play and ponder it.

Hu Ke (former vice minister of the General Political Department and the Ministry of Culture and former vice-chairman of the Chinese Dramatists Association):

This play has profoundly reflected the "three rural issues" emphasized by our party today by our military playwrights and our military drama groups. This play fully reflects the problems of farmers, rural areas and the current corruption in society, and writes about the sense of justice and responsibility of farmers, rural areas and demobilized military cadres. This play tells what we all want to say, the spirit we advocate and praise, and the main theme of the times, so I am very satisfied with it.

Wang Xiaoying (vice president and director of China National Theatre Academy):

After watching the drama, I really have a strong impulse. I think not only the drama with the main theme should be written like this, but also such a creative state should be advocated when using drama to express real life.

creators can use their truest feelings to get close to such a crowd, such a life, which is what contemporary artists should have, a concern, a concern close to life, not a condescending concern. The General Political Drama Troupe has a kind of simplicity of the army, and they can also pay attention to such feelings, which makes me very emotional.

Yibing Ouyang (former director of China Children's Art, playwright):

When I saw this play for the tenth minute, a sentence popped up in my mind: This is the last myth on the land of China, so noble that I can't open my eyes ... I said sadly that there used to be a movie called "The Village of Faithfulness", but now it has almost become "The Land of Faithfulness". Can this old branch secretary be trusted? If he is the last myth, what is his use to our country and nation? Our nation has created a noble moral standard by itself. Why can't it continue today? What's wrong with even the last myth? This is the greatest truth.

I think the most valuable value of this play lies in that it answers a very sharp question in an era, that is, where is morality in an era of cross-flow of material desires, or in an era of cross-flow of the sea?

Only artists with a sense of mission to the people will hear the needs of the times.

Qi Zhixiang (former director of the International Federation of Literary and Art Circles, a famous playwright and literary theorist):

The Ballad of the Loess has made me so moved and appreciated artistically. Why? It really integrates party member's responsibilities with those of playwrights and artists. This play is calling for moral conscience and thinking about human life at the same time.

We should clearly praise those realistic dramas that are close to the lives of ordinary people, because although our country is developing, it is always in all kinds of difficulties and hardships, and we should encourage the country and the people. The charm and tension of this play lies in "conscience", and this conscience is not only a responsibility, but a representation of art on the stage.

As a realistic drama, Huangtu Ballad has both seriousness and humor, both past and present, which combines the exhaustion of life with the immortality of life and finally achieves the eternity of life.

Liu Yanjun (director, Drama Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Literature and Art):

I am very moved by this play. It fully shows the image of soldiers, but its capacity is very large, which has gone beyond the scope of the military theme. It describes a soldier's responsibility to him, the relationship between farmers and the land, and also describes the feelings of modern "westward-going" farmers for the yellow land. In the second creation, through the use of some visual effects, such as loess, Yellow River and some musical effects, the song "Walking West" has been echoing, pointing out the span of time and the eternity of the nation and land. In terms of space, loess is not only a symbol of regionality, but also an extension of space, which makes people's moving and thinking transcend this family and extend to a larger area and space, including hawking and shouting, which has such a role, which fully shows the heavy feeling of the play, and also shows the creator's broad vision and strong control ability.

Yan Su (first-class screenwriter of Air Administration Art Troupe):

After watching this play, I was moved and wept. This play is a three-in-one play and a return to realism. Make the heavy people-oriented proposition by a very beautiful means. Editing, directing, dancing, lighting and all the actors are in place. The production of dance beauty is very beautiful, such as the use of caves. After the director's treatment, the use inside and outside the cave is very harmonious, as smooth as water. After reading it, I feel the feeling of Death of a Salesman, which is a good play of "Three Closes".

Zhao Lizhong (Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Li Keran Foundation, Chinese Painting Research Institute):

After watching the play, I thought a lot. I think the play is very correct and accurate, especially the question of responsibility. As the General Political Affairs Group, it is very difficult and valuable for a military professional literary and art group to pay such attention to the countryside. This play is very forward-looking

Huang Dingshan (director, professor and director of drama department of PLA Art College):

The overall feeling is power and strength. The power of drama, director, actors and stage art, including music, are perfectly integrated. The overall strength of this work is to show the strength of people, and the excavation of people is very strong in the work, and it has such great artistic appeal.

This work reveals the exploration of thoughts and humanity, the rigorous structure and the gradual progress, which also shows that the performance of the General Political Theatre Company has the spirit of realism. Zongqi Hu's realistic directing technique, the atmosphere of Huang Haiwei's beautiful dance design, and the grandeur and beauty of Guo Dingli's music are all well presented.

Lei Da (researcher, Creative Research Department, Chinese Writers Association):

This play really cuts into the contradiction of rural life at present, and it is a work that reflects the market economy, poverty and isolation that farmers have encountered in the 21st century, and gives a thorough perspective of farmers' spirit. I feel that the height and depth of the discussion of this play do not lag behind the thinking of the literary world at all. This is a moral myth, and we need such a moral myth in our time. The Ballad of the Loess gave me a soul baptism.

Tong Daoming: (Researcher, Institute of Foreign Literature, China Academy of Social Sciences):

After watching the play, I felt very shocked. This play is undoubtedly realistic, but I think there are some expressionist things in this play, which raise realism to thoughtful and exciting symbolism and make realism more glorious. I think it's good that the old branch secretary is on the verge of death and can't swallow this tone. This play is also harmonious.

From the perspective of character structure, Huangtu Ballad, as a play that promotes the main theme, has successfully shaped feelings and characters. Now there are few such touching works, like the old branch secretary in the play. What really touches people is that it completely abides by traditional ethics, and an important problem we are facing today is how to combine traditional ethics with our current values. This play is very successful.

Su Shuyang: (former vice chairman of China Film Association, writer)

As a very serious drama of the People's Liberation Army, the author still boldly made the people in the drama tell many true things. At this time, we need such a drama to hold high the banner of this criticism and use this spirit to establish the fine tradition of our nation.

At present, this is a very fresh play, and it brings a very fresh wind. I believe that the drama that is the pillar of China drama circle should be like this.

This drama may become an epic drama, in order to pursue an atmosphere in artistic form and use all kinds of artistic forms. Now this drama is very touching and shocking. Huangtu Ballad should be an army drama.