Dramatist Wu Bi was drawn into the variety show "Cat in the Box" by Huang Lei. At first, both of them were obsessed with those two words - drama.
"Drama is so important to us!"
When Wu Bi participated in another variety show about drama, he always had a long face and seemed particularly anxious. The root cause is that he was involved in behind the scenes. If you have too many things to worry about, the burden will inevitably be heavy.
"At that time, I would be nervous and worried. I was particularly worried about what others would say after watching it, but that's all."
Stills of "Cat in the Box", Wu Bi plays the perfect community guest Wu Yu
Wu Bi is a serious actor, From "Four Generations Under One Roof" to "Green Snake", from the self-written and directed "Stillness" which won the award in the youth competition unit, to becoming a member of the jury of the Wuzhen Theater Festival, and now to "Spring Dawn on Su Di", he has Wu Bi, who has multiple identities as an actor, screenwriter, and director, in addition to plays and musicals, his works span the stage, film and television.
Every time there is a new character in front of him, he will always first get to know "him" and study "him". What is the character's language style, what is his personality, how to deal with things in the play, and what are the external stimuli? Reaction... He feels that the process of studying a character is to study people.
The inner liner of "Cat in the Box" is "Schrödinger's Cat", also known as the variety show "The Truman Show". This seems to be a good opportunity to "research people".
This is Huang Lei's first variety show as the chief producer. The screenwriting consultant Gu Shuyi and the art team Zheng Chen are both from the crew of the movie "The Disappearance of Her". All those invited were Huang Lei's friends. In a variety show, the audience saw two men with classic IPs being stuffed into a box at the same time. The show had not even aired yet, and the expectations were already high. The number of people pre-heating the program soon exceeded 4 million, setting a new peak for Youku variety show pre-heating users.
Stills of "Cat in the Box", Wu Bi plays the role of a teacher at Fengding School
The true openness of the reality show gives the audience enough room for imagination, but the creator behind the scenes means greater adventure.
Comedy + suspense + drama, is it possible that you have everything but nothing is needed?
How to smoothly integrate connotative topics into the process of game play without appearing abrupt?
Wu Bi, who serves as a behind-the-scenes team and drama consultant, was still worried about this when he was interviewed by a reporter from The Paper. "After all, this is a brand new attempt. It is curious and full of surprises."
The guests broke into the box without knowing it, and the stage was disguised as reality. In the "box" are people closely related to the real society. In the parallel world, guests will gain a new identity after opening the box and become a "cat" with nine lives, and then enter it to complete levels. After the game, the guests were immersed in a small ending scene, which lengthened and deepened the entire theme.
"The guests really have no preset script?" the reporter asked.
"No, I won't reveal a word!" Wu Bi replied.
Like the audience, the guests need to slowly explore to piece together the complete plot. The guests are like arterial blood, supplying fresh oxygen, and the dramatists are like venous blood, transporting blood back to the "heart." Drama is Huang Lei's biggest "ambition" hidden in the show.
Wu Bi took a deep breath, "The most risky thing is, if we invite the audience to the stage, you can't ask him, he may do 100 things you don't know."
"In the Box" "Cats" poster
The performance of the short play is 100 degrees Celsius
Due to the differences in improvisation, theater and camera communication, as well as the integration of variety shows and dramas, there are many congenital rhythm violations, and the start of "Cat in the Box" is not small.
A large drama performance lasts about 2 hours, and a variety show may take about 10 hours to record. Wu Bi believes that this is the biggest challenge, "There is no arrangement at all, it is pure improvisation, and it is recorded for 10 hours. I actually have to prepare at least 50 hours behind the scenes, and at the same time, it meets the needs of the variety show audience, and there are many games in it. "
's script creation process is also "judgment at the moment."The
writing team began to create stories based on the theme of each issue. After figuring out the flow of the entire story, they began to fill in small stories one by one in each big story, laying out the links, and finally slowly formed a big script. Wu Bi said, "As long as I feel that this topic can be done and is interesting, I will write it immediately and take action immediately. There is no time to look back." In the first episode of the
program, we saw the tense relationship between father and son. From the complete arc of rupture, confrontation, and reconciliation, it also discusses the currently hotly discussed topic of AI "resurrecting" relatives and using digital life to extend family ties. The last little scene in the second episode of
's program starts from the inner monologue of a dog about to be euthanized, and confronts the internal friction of human spirit. The reason why
thought of using the psychological portrayal of dogs to tell the story of human internal friction is because Wu Bi once saw a news where the owner put the dog on the passenger seat, and the dog was photographed and fined for not wearing a seat belt.
"At that time, I was thinking, how would the dog feel when he learned about this? If I think about it further, based on the little experience I have accumulated on the stage for many years, I told myself that the effect should be more special."
The dog's anthropomorphic play was very captivating, and the audience was very engaged in watching it. At the end of the performance, several guests' eyes were red.
"Actually, from the dog episode, the real drama begins. In the past, the guests stood there and watched, but this time they were not used to it. At the beginning, they had to walk up to the stage, wondering what the link was. , and then they found out that they were starting to act, so they all sat there and watched it. "
But Wu Bi said that it was more difficult to perform in this kind of small drama.
"Performing a big theater play basically starts with two and a half hours. The first 15 minutes is shaping, letting the audience know what kind of character I am. After that, I rely on some skills and the actor's personal charm to fill the flesh and blood of the character. . But in a short performance in a show, it only lasts 6-10 minutes. The audience has to quickly understand the story in a short time, and there is no time to shape the characters. Acting in a large theater can be performed at 10 degrees Celsius. The temperature continues to rise to 100 degrees Celsius, and then reaches 150 degrees Celsius in the climax. However, a small play may reach 100 degrees Celsius, so we often say that a big play lasts 15 minutes and a small play 15 seconds. In the length of 15 seconds, the audience's appetite must be intrigued and creative techniques "It's different."
Stills of "Cat in the Box", Wu Bi plays the perfect community guest Wu Yu
The non-player characters are all professional drama actors
The reality show flashes the life and social status of the guests, in different scenes Communication is enough to connect the emotional points of the public.
Do you feel panic when faced with so many "already mature" men?
Wu Bi admitted that he would be nervous before because Wu Bi would play the role of controlling the field in every issue. Judging from the rich experience in variety shows compared to my brothers, I was indeed worried about the shortcomings. "But fortunately, I just found out after recording the first episode that everyone will cooperate with you completely. They will drag you along, a bit like acting, helping each other." They are indeed great, but their acting ability is still different."
Speaking of the embarrassing moments during the recording, Wu Bi said that he was "a bit of a social phobic." "I'm not a talkative person at home. I'm a bit naughty. I'm very happy when I go out. When I go home, I like to be alone quietly. It's not good to have more than three close friends. And just two or three of them are sitting there. You don’t have to talk specifically, just sit there, it’s the most comfortable. When there are more people, the air suddenly becomes quiet, and I start to feel embarrassed in three seconds.” Wu Bi was fortunate that when there was a problem in connecting with others on the show, everyone usually understood. , can continue to go down. When recording the
program, the most embarrassing part was that they were too familiar with each other.
Wu Bi was immersed in the performance of his character on the stage when he was suddenly called out by an old friend in the audience, "Wu Bi, stop making trouble!
He might break his defense in an instant, "Do you know this feeling? The waistcoat fell off all of a sudden..." In the
program, Lin Gengxin, who was said by netizens to be "poisonous", teased Wu Bi when he was in high spirits, "Look, the decoration on Wu Bi's hair looks like seaweed. "As soon as these words came out, the scene became even more crazy.
has no fixed lines. Even if you prepare them, you may not be able to use them. The guests will "go off track" at any time. The dramatists can only rely on their tenacious will to push the direction of the plot. Therefore, in the first episode, all the members seemed to have not yet found the right state, and were slowly testing and gradually integrating in a somewhat tense relationship.
"The first program is very much like the premiere of our stage play. You don't know what the audience's reaction will be. Once you meet a familiar face, you will know, oh, it turns out that what the audience likes to see, what they don't like to see, and where It should be released a little, and some areas should be withdrawn a little. Now after a few issues, everyone has relaxed a lot, and many points have been grasped very accurately," Wu Bi said.
Improvisational performances often cause outrageous things, and they can also gradually lose control due to being too excited.
Wu Bi said that, just like creating, he would get lost while chatting. He could not press pause even if he forgot the words. He had to find a way to continue and urge his brain to pull back quickly. When
and the guests are together, they are basically exposed to the unexpected all the time. The dramatist who was supposed to be in control of six guests was actually faced with six guests testing him together. Fortunately, unlike previous script-killing shows, this time everyone is a professional drama actor, so it is difficult for the audience to see the collapse of the laughter scene.
Breaking through oneself is the ambition of an actor
Wu Bi was once a mainstay of the variety show "Tonight at Paramount". His clips imitating Fan Wei and The Voice mentor Wang Feng are still vivid to this day. He is also the fifth in "Happy Comedian" Season's top five nationally. In the first episode of the show, Wu Bi turned around and shouted, "Are you Shawshank?" It was enough to create an emoticon.
"Comedian" Wu Bi's understanding of comedy, he believes that most of all types of performances are a matter of performance rhythm. But in recent years, Wu Bi has deliberately done less comedy.
"For example, teachers Song Dandan and Zhao Benshan, the comedies they perform are so classic. As soon as they get on stage, the audience wants to laugh. In fact, they have already acted very seriously, including teacher Song Dandan, who often performs dramas and has many classic roles. This is also her It’s a very distressing thing, and this is what worries me the most.”
Comedies are indeed more down-to-earth, but Wu Bi prefers dramas in his heart.
"It's easy to act a certain image. Whatever you are good at, the industry will want you to be good at it, right? There will always be voices telling you, don't break through easily and stay in your comfort zone. But as an actor, it's not easy. Throughout my life, I hope to perform more colorful roles instead of just being accepted by the audience. Of course, this is the ambition of an actor. "
[Dialogue]
"I'm scared to be there myself."
The Paper. : If your identities are swapped and you enter the box, what are your responsibilities?
Wu Bi: It should be similar to Chen He, but I am not as funny as him. I'm timid and autistic, I can't speak well when I'm nervous, the box is really scary, and I'm also afraid of the dark.
The Paper : You are already familiar with the environment in the box, and you are the one who scares others.
Wu Bi: Familiarity is useless. It’s too dark inside and I can’t see anything. I’m scared to be there myself, let alone scare others. Especially in the episode where "The Lord of Jue" is played, it's scary when the music starts...
The Paper : In the episode of "The Lord of Jue", are you satisfied with the look?
Wu Bi: Still not very satisfied, but I decided to be satisfied with it. Because I told you to wear a hood before, I had to change it back and forth, but it was too late, and ordinary hair was too mediocre. I didn't add so much hair at first, just a small handful, which was not bold enough. Then I got a bunch of things from somewhere at the last minute. Normally, it should be held at the back, but I decided to pin it to the side. This would be weird enough, so that when the light is on, it will have an effect.
Stills from "The Cat in the Box", played by Wu Bi as the master of Shuolaitingtingjue
The Paper News : There are often news that NPCs in secret room games are scared to death by players. Do you have this situation?
Wu Bi: We didn’t, but I was really scared, because there was no one there. People in other dramas were in another room, and the sound effects were scary, but fortunately, the players couldn’t get in due to the process, so it was given. Get yourself a protective device.
The Paper : Are you impressed by the performance of the guests?
Wu Bi: I really think they are all very good, because everyone has different personality traits. Chen He’s output is the highest, it’s really interesting, and his brain is too fast. Brother Xun (Wang Xun) seems to be always bullied, because Brother Xun is so nice, and Zheng Kai is also very good at breaking through obstacles, with outstanding physical strength and excellent intelligence. Lin Gengxin is stunned, very cute, and very funny. Wang Junkai is a very shy young man, similar to me. He doesn't like to talk much, because they won't have any communication with us before they come in. Once we meet, it's like meeting directly in the box, and I have to take care of a lot. . There are many interesting details in it, too many to remember. We are too pressed for time, so many more detailed things cannot be paid attention to in detail.
The Paper : How do all the dramatists distribute their roles? What do you think of their performance in the variety show?
Wu Bi: These actors are all professional and good actors. I am very familiar with them. In fact, anyone can play the role. Even if they have not worked with me before, they are all selected by me. I will look at his past information or what he is good at, and then give him a suitable role based on my judgment. It is up to me how to play everyone's role. Normally, acting with an artist would be stressful and stressful, but they were very calm.
"The Cat in the Box" poster
I want to make my own drama
The Paper News : Have you ever thought about parallel universes? What do you think your life journey would be like in another parallel space? If you could travel through time, which era would you want to go to?
Wu Bi: I have thought about it. In the past two years, I have especially enjoyed watching videos related to the universe. If there is a parallel time and space, if it does not mutate my genes, that Wu Bi should be doing the same thing and also be a drama actor.
The Paper : What do you want your genes to mutate?
Wu Bi: I don’t really want to mutate. Although there are various situations in life, at least I am very satisfied with the fact that I am a drama actor. Now I can't think of any other career that I want to do.
When it comes to time travel, I might want to travel back to when I was studying opera as a child, including later when I was in college. I didn’t understand many things, and now I think about it and I feel regretful. When I was a kid studying Peking Opera, I basically gave up on cultural classes, and the school also gave me time. I just played it myself. I was very young when I went to college. I graduated from college at the age of 20. I was a bit rebellious when I was in school. I always wanted to go against the teacher, so I wanted to go back and learn it all over again.
Now when you create, the last thing you focus on is cultural heritage, otherwise you will definitely get stuck at a certain stage. Although my performance experience will continue to increase now, it will not be as fast as when I was young. When I want to make a breakthrough, I find that I have to have more things in my mind, which becomes a problem.
The Paper : You can learn it from the beginning with your daughter.
Wu Bi: My child’s homework is really difficult now, and she has to learn a lot. I really feel it’s very difficult. My daughter is only in the first grade. I have to go through some questions in my mind. Many of them are thinking questions. We didn’t think like this when we were children. Of course, I also learned a lot from her, and spending time with my children is also a process of self-growth.
The Paper : Will your daughter watch your drama?
Wu Bi: Yes, but her feelings will be different. She went to see "Spring Dawn on Su Di" a few days ago. The play lasted nearly three hours and she really couldn't sit still. There were also a lot of poems and she couldn't listen. Yes, but she will watch some short plays in "Drama New Life" because they are easy to understand and more lively and interesting.
The Paper : "Pippi has changed into a little fresh meat". At the beginning of the program, Reuters revealed such an entry. Will I have a mid-life crisis?
Wu Bi: Occasionally, I suddenly feel that I have matured and am about to run away. I don't have any worries about my image. I have grown up since I was a child, and I have no requirements for appearance, because I don't rely on my appearance to make a living. I only know how to act well and take one step at a time.
's so-called sense of crisis can also be defined as feeling that one's progress is getting smaller and smaller, and one has to be responsible for more and more things. My wife talked to me before and said that when the children are older, you can work hard. In fact, that is not the case. A large part of the energy is given to the children. Life is getting richer and richer, but there is less and less time for what I really want to do. Since "Still" that year, I haven't done a play that is truly my own. I have been wanting to make a drama for the past two years. I should direct and act myself. Yes, I must make a drama of my own this year.
Drama Performance "Pippi"
The Paper News : Some people think that only by being busy can you improve, while some people need to stop and think. Which one do you belong to?
Wu Bi: I especially need the kind of time to stop and think. Maybe many people think that if they are busier, they will be more fulfilled and have a sense of superiority. For me, stopping to think is the time when I can grow the most. , when you can’t stop, it’s actually quite painful.
The Paper : Can it be solved?
Wu Bi: Any obstacle in life will pass. It’s just a matter of time and what method you use. When you look back at yourself ten years ago, you were a child ten years ago. When you look back at yourself ten years later, the same is true for you now.
The Paper : AI technology has already begun to show its promise. Will there be any changes in the future on the drama stage?
Wu Bi: I’m not worried about AI entering dramas, because I don’t think it will. The most precious thing about drama is the moment when the two of us meet in the theater. Every night I act for you in a down-to-earth manner, and you watch the show quietly. This is its charm. The performances in the theater are all real. You don't care whether it's a human being or an alien acting there, it's all real. No matter how imaginative the performance in the theater is, it's impossible to use technology to replace the performance. No matter how real the AI is, it's still fake. Theater is needed because that's true.
The Paper News : What are you most grateful for in life?
Wu Bi: When I graduated from college, I did not rush to film and television dramas. Instead, I chose the stage very wisely and continued to act for eight years.
The Paper : As a senior dramatist, do you think the current living conditions and the general environment have changed?
Wu Bi: There are too many plays, but there are fewer people watching them. There are two reasons for this. First, the country is now vigorously supporting cultural tourism, and there are more and more plays. However, after the epidemic, the entire society is in a state of economic recovery, and everyone is struggling. Watching a play in a month may become a play in three months. I think people who are willing to choose the stage and are willing to stick to the stage should not be thinking about life.
The Paper : There will still be people who are in pain. For example, the money she earns cannot support her life and acting in dramas at the same time.
Wu Bi: Choose life or love, we have to choose one end. I remember that at that time, I had to leave the rehearsal venue at 11 o'clock every night. There were no buses after 11 o'clock, so I had to walk from Di'anmen to Chaoyangmen, which took almost an hour. Sometimes I really forgot the time during rehearsals. I have to walk back, taking a taxi is too expensive.
If I love this thing very much, I am willing to reduce consumption to a minimum.If that doesn't work, you can also find a part-time job. Theater workers like us can deliver food during the day and go to the theater at night. I used to sell plane and train tickets during the day. I would get up at around 6 o'clock every morning, ride an electric bicycle to deliver tickets to people, and go to the theater to perform at night without any delay.
Anyway, I am like this. Things that I am particularly passionate about, other things are easy to discuss, so I have never thought about giving up. I have never thought about it.
The Paper : Most actors and ordinary people still have mental barriers.
Wu Bi: How? In fact, the training of life is also very helpful to actors. The most important thing is to always remind you that you are not an "actor", because when you let go, you can only act after you become a "person". If you keep holding on to it and think that I am an actor and I am different from you, then that’s the end of it.
