Oriental Art —— Chinese and Indian Movies in China's Traditional Opera

Eight kinds of operas let you relive the beauty of traditional operas.

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Tonight and tomorrow, "The Voice of China -2005 Musical Concert by Famous Artists" will be staged at Zhongshan Memorial Hall in Guangzhou, followed by performances in Foshan and Shenzhen on1October 3rd and 5th.

How long has it been since citizens walked into the theater? Where is the heady beauty of China's traditional operas? How to let the essence of ancient art touch the softest part of people's hearts again?

Before the performance, the reporter interviewed the representatives of Beijing, Kunming, Guangdong, Vietnam, Sichuan, Bang, Henan and Boss Huang who participated in the Guangzhou performance. In the eyes of famous artists, the beauty of opera is everywhere: the lyrics of "Listening to his words makes me sweat" and the tragic and tense long string of clappers are beautiful; With a wave of his hand, the "changing face" stunt of black face, white face, painted face and red face is beautiful; The girls in the Yue Opera "Five Girls' Birthdays" are all beautiful. The playful feeling of "Lang's flowers and sister's flowers are in pairs under the ridge" in Huangmei Opera Flowers is still beautiful. ...

Experts lamented that compared with the intense passion in the opera Carmen, in the final analysis, China people still like the love of "the sleeves are so hooked, the eyes are so soft, and 20 minutes is just flirting" in the Kunqu Opera Peony Pavilion. How many years of great changes, ancient dramas floated in the rivers and lakes, accompanied by the strings of bamboo and silk, singing and singing. With the famous corner of the fans, China people from generation to generation suddenly "tasted the nine flavors of life". However, today, the situation of the old opera, as Bai Xianyong, a volunteer of Kunqu Opera, said, is like a porcelain with dusty corners, and no one knows its beauty.

How to wipe the drama carefully and make it shine again? Whether it's the director of Sichuan Opera Theatre who claims that "the survival of Sichuan Opera is not a problem", or Shang, the chairman of Chinese Dramatists Association who thinks that "the dawn of opera is just ahead", or Mao, the group leader of Zhejiang Xiaobaihua Yue Opera, who quietly admits that "the opera has been marginalized", all the famous artists have a common aspiration, that is, the beauty of opera in the cracks is destined to be carried forward, although it has temporarily fallen into a low tide, because it is rooted in the people and thousands of people in Qian Qian. Only the lowest things can achieve great tolerance. As Malan, the representative of Huangmei Opera, said, "They are voices growing from the land of China with a population of 65.438+300 million". Famous artists sincerely admire that this concert gives us a chance to rediscover the beauty of China's traditional operas.

1

Where is the beauty of traditional Chinese opera?

Shang: The lyrics are mainly poetry, and the singing rhythm is moving.

The beauty of Peking Opera is both masculine and feminine. Its expressive charm is diverse and has profound aesthetic connotation. It can play both the emperor and the general, and the Red Chamber in the West Chamber. There are both Jin Ge iron horse and talented person and beautiful woman. Poetry is the core of Beijing Opera's lyrics. Singing skills move with the rhythm and intonation is very particular.

Zhu Shihui and Wang Lijun: Peking Opera has become a national quintessence because its beauty lies in freehand brushwork.

The reason why Beijing Opera can become a "national quintessence" is that its beauty lies in freehand brushwork. Beijing opera can reproduce the complex world in a simple and artistic form, and show different scenes with dances and characters. The stage set is extremely simple, with only one table and two chairs. Actors can show doors, boats, horses and even thousands of horses through performances, and add simple props such as whips and paddles to show the transformation of time and space. If the actor on the stage holds a whip, it can be said that he is riding a horse; Holding a wooden paddle can represent rowing; Turning around on four walk-on platforms can be said to be "traveling a hundred and eight thousand miles" or "leading an army of eight million". However, the "costumes" of Beijing opera actors are complicated. From makeup to costumes, from head to face to embroidered robes, everything is not a work of art, and it is very appropriate to use simplicity to set off complexity. This expression of freehand brushwork comes from life but is higher than life.

Zhang: Different colors of facial makeup reflect the beauty of Beijing Opera.

Facial makeup is an important embodiment of the beauty of Beijing opera. Paint a certain color on a person's face to symbolize his character and quality, role and destiny. Simply put, red face contains praise and represents courage; Black face is neutral, representing a fierce and wise man; Blue face and green face are also neutral, representing rebellious heroes; Yellow face and white face are derogatory, representing fierce and treacherous people; Gold and silver surfaces are mysterious, representing gods and demons. In addition to color, the sketch form of Facebook has a similar symbolic meaning. For example, the pink face symbolizing fierceness and white face, and the pink face with only the bridge of the nose and eye socket painted, indicates that the degree of cunning is different. Generally speaking, the larger the area, the more vicious it is. In a word, color represents individuality, and different drawing rules indicate the degree of individuality.

Zhang Jingxian: With three sighs, Kunqu Opera has a unique charm.

Known as the "ancestor of hundreds of operas", Kunqu Opera is an outstanding representative that can best reflect the beauty of oriental art. In 200 1 year, Kunqu Opera was listed as "representative work of human oral heritage and intangible heritage" by UNESCO. The beauty of Kunqu lies in the script first. The script of Kunqu Opera is rigorous in literature and art, with a large number of classical poems, beautiful and far-reaching artistic conception and rich in the humanistic spirit of China traditional culture. Secondly, beauty lies in singing, which has a strong musicality. The singing of Kunqu Opera is often full of sighs, euphemistic and lingering, and has a special charm. The stage of Kunqu Opera is a combination of singing, dancing, poetry and painting, with a blend of scenes. In singing, the words are few and the cavity is many, which is complex and precise, and the performers are rich; There is a strong sense of stage picture, which embodies the classical beauty of traditional art in all directions, and the actors are just like the people in the painting.

Xu Heying: Hebei Bangzi has a loud voice and is especially good at performing tragedies.

Hebei Bangzi is powerful, tragic and euphemistic, unstoppable and gurgling. The unique beauty of Hebei Bangzi lies in its sonorous and tragic timbre. As the saying goes, Zhao Yan has been generous and sad since ancient times. Hebei Bangzi is good at performing tragedies. Its sad cavity and high range can vividly show the grief and indignation of the characters in the play and make the audience listen to it heartily.

Chen Zhilin: Sichuan Opera is humorous and has been integrated into people's lives.

Sichuan Opera is a very rare opera in China, which combines Kunqu Opera, Stilts, Tribal Tiger, Balloon and Deng Guang. It can be described as a master of China opera tune. In the development and evolution of more than 200 years, it has been integrated with Sichuan dialect, local customs of immigrants, folk songs and dances, rap and folk tunes, and finally formed a local opera with Sichuan characteristics. Sichuan opera embodies the humorous character of Sichuanese. The script of the play has profound literary foundation and diverse expressive techniques, just like Sichuan cuisine, with rich colors and techniques. For example, stunts such as lifting, changing face, drilling fire rings and hiding knives are all integrated into the solid experience of people's lives, which is both mysterious and cordial.

2

Can you adapt to modern life?

Shang: Some people say that the pace of Beijing opera is very slow. We must use the scientific concept of time to express the leisure and elegance of the ancients. Fast is fast, slow is slow. It should be said that the "slowness" of drama art has its special cultural value in the "fast" rhythm of the network age.

Mao: Modern people are not immutable and generalized, nor are they always pursuing a fast pace. The spirit of modern culture is diverse, and the individual's pursuit of beauty is different. There will always be people who like drama, which is attractive and infectious. I think people who like Yue Opera may find it more difficult to like rock music. Drama art originated in Greece and has a certain religious temperament. After modern people have solved the problem of food and clothing, they will certainly seek a spiritual medium. The "slow" ancient drama can just cause some people to sing in their hearts.

Xian Nvhong and Chen Xiaohan: Now, the younger generation thinks that the rhythm of traditional Chinese opera is too slow, which is a misunderstanding. Just like Cantonese opera, the rhythm of all aria in all programs is not slow. We decide when to be fast and when to be slow according to the needs of the plot development and the inner conflicts of the characters. When expressing the fierce inner struggle of the characters, the rhythm is relatively accelerated and even tense. So the content of the opera determines the program. Cantonese opera keeps pace with the times according to its own characteristics, not blindly speeding up the pace and speed, but innovating. Talking about innovation can't be divorced from the "source" of "tradition" or cut off from the source, otherwise, our traditional opera will lose its foundation.

three

How to attract young audiences?

Yu Kuizhi: "Everyone has his own love". The reform of traditional Chinese opera does not have to please the audience. As a Peking Opera artist, we should first improve our artistic level and polish our artistic works into fine works. With the gradual enrichment of young audiences' life experience and the continuous improvement of their cultural quality, they will truly appreciate the beauty of traditional Chinese opera. Chinese opera is a long-flowing industry. Unlike popular culture, which pursues sensational effect and great success, popular culture is short-lived after all, while Beijing opera is eternal.

Wang Lijun: Not long ago, Tianjin organized two groups of activities of "Peking Opera Art Entering Colleges and Universities", and the students and audience responded very strongly, even to the point of "idolization". It can be seen that as long as our traditional operas actively approach the audience and young people, they are still willing to sit down and enjoy it.

Zhang Jingxian: Different operas have different audiences. Since the 1980s, we have been doing the popularization of Kunqu Opera, mainly aimed at cultural professionals and college students. Fortunately, we have now seen the results of our efforts. Our Shanghai Kunqu Opera Troupe regularly gives lectures in colleges and universities every year, holds activities such as "Kunqu Opera approaches young people", offers free lessons to teach singing, and offers low fare concessions, introduces the performances, trades and selections of Kunqu Opera to young people, and invites them to perform on stage, so that they can feel the unique charm of Kunqu Opera in interaction.

Malan: I don't deliberately cater to young audiences. I think good things must be good. Spectators seeking excitement should not go to the theatre. Going to the theatre is a wonderful edification. I believe that as people grow older, they will have memories of traditional things and passwords that will be touched at some time. He doesn't need to come to the theater every day. As long as he goes to see it a few days a year, his heart will be awakened.

Li Shengsu: I think young people should take the initiative to enter the theater. If they watch TV and play opera at home, they won't feel the aesthetic atmosphere at all. In recent years, I have often sent operas to universities. Some students sighed after watching them: Peking Opera is so beautiful. Of course, we also need to package traditional operas. This requires our stage design, beautiful lighting, clothing and other visual effects to make the audience shine. For example, our newly rehearsed Mei Lanfang absorbed the advantages of drama in form. As the saying goes, "the more you stay, the less you stay." On the basis of retaining the original content, traditional operas should cater to the tastes of young people and make targeted innovations.

Introduction of famous artists

Shang (Beijing Opera)

The third son of Peking Opera master Shang Xiaoyun, the first plum blossom award winner in China drama. At the age of five, he performed on stage, studying under Hou, Chen, Su Lianhan and other famous artists. Her voice is loud and generous, combining "shelf" and "bronze hammer" to pursue "personality" performance. The characters are majestic or simple and vigorous, performing, singing and reading at the same time, relaxed and full of passion, forming a unique performance style. Representative plays: Cao Cao and Yang Xiu, Zhenguan Event, Yu Chenglong, Honest Official, etc.

Yu Kuizhi (Peking Opera)

, Wu Zixu, Yang sent famous dramas "Biography of Xiangma", "Wild Pig Forest" and so on. Has been staged, with its fresh singing charm and stage style won the love of the old, middle-aged and young audience, has won the plum blossom award and Mei Lanfang gold award.

Zhu Shihui (Peking Opera)

Experts call it "the ugliest Peking Opera in China today". He starred in Xu Jiujing's Promotion, Plaster Seal, Life of Fame, etc., which is said to be a necessary role. He has won the Plum Blossom Award for Chinese Drama and the Mei Lanfang Gold Award.

Zhang (Beijing Opera)

Tsing Yi, a famous Cheng School of China Peking Opera Theatre, is excellent in singing, acting, reading and dancing. The performance highlighted the magnificent, pure, profound, solemn and distant characteristics of Cheng School art, and formed its own performance style. In singing, it is called "Cheng Qiang Zhang Yun". The representative works include Suolinnang, Tears of the Barren Mountain and Dream of a Spring Girl, and the innovative premieres include Qiu Jiang, Tian Wen, Legend of the White Snake and Jiang Jie. Won the plum blossom award for drama.

Wang Lijun (Peking Opera)

Actor, worker, martial artist and old student of Tianjin Youth Peking Opera Troupe. From 65438 to 0992, Li, a famous Peking Opera performer, personally awarded the prizes for his plays, such as "Sailing Against the Current" and "Sun Tower". He is handsome, solid in skills, generous in acting and good at singing. Representative works include La Kuai and Heroic Righteousness. He was awarded the Plum Blossom Award and the title of "The First Star of Peking Opera".

Zhang Jingxian (Kunqu Opera)

He is mainly famous family and upright family, with a wide range of performances, exquisite and vivid performances and full singing, and has created many stage images with different personalities, such as Yang Guifei in the Palace of Eternal Life, Du Liniang in Peony Pavilion and Zhuo Wenjun in Sima Xiangru. Won the plum blossom award twice.

Xu Heying (Hebei Bangzi)

For more than 20 years, drawing lessons from the singing advantages of sister art, a new singing method with both dramatic characteristics and aesthetic feeling of the times has been formed. He is a leading figure in Hebei Bangzi. His masterpieces include Du Shiniang and Dou Eyuan, and he won the Plum Blossom Award.

Xin Nvhong (Cantonese Opera)

In the past 60 years, she founded the Red School Art, starring in dozens of popular Cantonese operas and more than 100 films, and created a series of female artistic images. The red-cavity and red-school performing arts created represent the highest achievement of Cantonese opera. He was awarded the Outstanding Artist Award by the Asian Performing Arts Association of the United Nations and the Performing Arts Award by the United Nations Symphony Association.

Chen Xiaohan (Cantonese Opera)

The performing arts are elegant and gentle, natural and unrestrained, exquisite in workmanship and graceful in figure, especially sleeves, fans and feathers. He is good at portraying characters and expressing feelings with traditional programs. His vocals developed the vocal art of Cantonese opera, and formed his own style-sentimentality, sentimentality, sentimentality, sentimentality, flexible change, full of charm, delicate and vivid, and created a unique genre of vocal music "B tune".

Li Shengsu (Peking Opera)

Gong Qingyi, with elegant appearance, charming voice, clear and sweet voice, standardized and natural performance, is the most brilliant successor and disseminator of Mei school art today. Won the plum blossom award.

Mao (Yue Opera)

He studied under the Yin School of Yue Opera and was a student. He has won the "Five One Project Award" in Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China four times, the "Wenhua Performance Award" in the Ministry of Culture four times and the "Plum Blossom Award" twice. He is one of the most important representatives in the innovation process of contemporary Yue Opera in China. He is good at accurately shaping characters with different personalities on the stage, and endows the "female niche" of Yue Opera with brand-new humanistic spirit and professional charm.

Hu Meiling (Henan Opera)

He studied under Chang Xiangyu, the master of Henan Opera, and became an outstanding successor of Chang School. He is good at playing the blues of Niangzi Dan, Hua Dan, Tsing Yi and Peking Opera, and has formed a euphemistic, elegant and lofty singing feature and a beautiful, subtle and simple performance style that pursues Beijing-Kunming style. Representative plays include "Carrying the Flower Bridge", Mulan, and "The Great Sacrifice Piles". The new version of The Legend of the White Snake won the Plum Blossom Award.

Chen Zhilin (Sichuan Opera)

Won the plum blossom award for the second time. He has starred in dozens of plays such as Bashan Scholar and Entrusting the Country into Wu. Formed its own unique artistic charm in performance. Gong Wen and Wu are handsome.

Malan (Huangmei Opera)

Starring romantic apricot blossom village, dusty female painter, much ado about nothing, a dream of red mansions, playing peony, etc. He also filmed Huangmei Opera's artistic film Dragon Girl, Huangmei Opera's TV series Yan Fengying, Scared Dream, Cut the Coffin, The West Chamber, The Journey to the West and so on. Handsome appearance, solid foundation, beautiful figure and beautiful singing skills have won the Wenhua Award and the Plum Blossom Award.

Guangzhou repertoire

Excerpts from Yu Kuizhi's "On the Roof" and "Three Stores"

Farewell My Concubine by Li Shengsu and Guiying in Command by Mu.

Yu Kuizhi and Li Shengsu sang Sitting in the Palace in the chorus Shiro Visiting Mother.

Wang Lijun's Wild Pig Forest Excerpt Snow Drift

Zhang's Dream of a Spring Girl

Shang's My Beauty Case and Cao Cao and Yang Xiu (oratorios)

Zhu Shihui's "Promotion of Xu Jiujing" and "Plaster Seal" (Beijing Opera)

Excerpts from Zhang Jingxian's Peony Pavilion: Like a Dream and Like Hangzhou (Kunqu Opera)

Excerpts from Xu Heying's Wang Baochuan, Da Deng Dian and Du Shiniang (Hebei Bangzi) "Open the treasure chest with your bare hands"

Mao Tao Wei's excerpts from Lu You and Tang Wan, A Wandering Wanderer for Three Years (Yue Opera)

Hu Meiling is excerpted from Hua Mulan's Who Says Women Are Not Better than Men and Hua Mulan's Shy Worship (Henan Opera).

"So Worldly" in Ma Lan's Dream of Red Mansions (Huangmei Opera)

Chen Zhilin's Bashan Scholar and Cut the Yellow Robe (Sichuan Opera)

Xian Nvhong's "Zhaojun's Embankment" (Cantonese Opera) (Capella)

Chen Xiaohan Fan Li Seeking Beauty (Cantonese Opera)

Revisiting Classics and Returning to Tradition

Chen Zhi

As a part of traditional culture, China's traditional operas have been intoxicating for thousands of years. Countless masterpieces, such as The Orphan of Zhao, Mu in Hands, My Beauty Case, describe the ideal in my heart, the situation of the times, the sincere and outstanding spirit. In the "small world of drama", they show the "world theater", those touching legends and those immortal romantic figures.

The "Good Voice of China -2005 Guangdong Famous Concert" unveiled today will bring you a feast of China traditional operas. Eight domestic dramas and 14 famous artists performed on the same stage in Guangdong, with a strong lineup and excellent repertoire, which can be described as a rare drama "summit" in China for many years. Invited by the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, Zhang Dejiang, Secretary of Guangdong Provincial Party Committee, and Huang Huahua, Governor, Emerald became this grand event, which reflected Guangdong's deep intention to inherit the essence of national culture.

There is no denying that today's traditional opera art is facing challenges, not only gradually withdrawing from the urban stage, but also the rural performance market is shrinking day by day, and some operas are disappearing sharply. A young actor once said irreverently, "If Master Mei Lanfang were alive today, he wouldn't be as popular as he was then." Indeed, compared with the era when opera was almost the only entertainment activity, people's cultural and entertainment activities are much richer today. How to make China traditional opera closer to the audience and occupy a place in modern people's life like pop music?

Mr. Bai Xianyong, a famous writer in Taiwan Province, has set a successful precedent in this respect. His adaptation of the Kunqu Opera Peony Pavilion has been performed in Beijing, Shanghai, Taipei and Hongkong for 50 consecutive performances, which has caused a whirlwind among young students in Peking University and Tsinghua. The success of The Peony Pavilion reminds us once again that the China traditional opera art, which is getting farther and farther away from us, does not lack the vitality of keeping pace with the times.

When babbling children marvel at the gorgeous stage modeling on the opera channel, when young students are dazzled by the graceful flow of sleeves, and when the fast-paced modern life suddenly falls asleep in a long aria, we will suddenly find that the roots of traditional culture have been deeply buried in everyone's heart in China. "Good Voice of China -2005 Guangdong Famous Music Concert" provides a stage for Chinese artists to show their elegance, and also provides an opportunity for Guangdong audience to discover the beauty of China traditional operas. The seeds it sows, in the sunshine of national rejuvenation and yearning for excellent traditional culture, will let us look for lost treasures in the 5000-year cultural treasure house again.

Special topic writing: Our reporter trainee reporter He (except signature)

Figure:

Mao, a famous Shaoxing opera actor.

Yu Kuizhi, a famous Peking Opera artist.

Li Shengsu, a famous Peking Opera artist.

Chen Xiaohan, a famous Cantonese opera artist