This year marks the 90th anniversary of the publication of Cao Yu's "Thunderstorm". Beijing People's Art Theater will hold the "2024 'Friends of People's Art Day' and a series of activities to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the publication of the script of "Thunderstorm"." As the first invited work, Shanghai Baoshan Hu Opera Troupe's innovative work, the dialect drama "Thunderstorm" will be performed at the Caoyu Theater from May 17th to 19th. According to the organizer, only one week after the ticket opening, more than half of the tickets for the three performances have been sold. Hua Wen, the artistic director of
Theater Company and the lead actor of the play, was surprised and surprised when she received the invitation: "This is the first time Baoshan Shanghai Opera Company has tried a dialect drama. I didn't expect it to be popular among young people and recognized by the market." In her opinion, Shanghai Opera also Well, regardless of the dialect drama, spreading the voice of Shanghai and inheriting the Shanghai dialect is always the unswerving responsibility of Shanghai opera people. "Being able to stand on the stage of Beijing People's Art Theater and perform "Thunderstorm" in Shanghai dialect is an affirmation and an honor in itself. "
The dialect drama "Thunderstorm" was created in early 2022. After experiencing a downturn in the performing arts market, the stretched Baoshan Hu Opera Troupe is seeking a "breakthrough" in the market. The regular Shanghai Opera Troupe went to put on a dialect drama. This decision initially encountered considerable resistance and controversy. Hua Wen, who is retiring, does not have to take risks, but she is worried about the future of the theater company and even the theater genre, and insists on exploring: "In the past, we always thought about how to change the status quo of Shanghai Opera. We felt that it was already very difficult for traditional opera to face the challenges of the times, but now we may have to Facing the crueler reality - the weakening of the Shanghai dialect environment, how can we talk about the future of Shanghai opera if we don't even speak Shanghai dialect? "
has the mentality of giving it a try, and does not expect that the test work will make a splash. It was a big splash, but the box office feedback from the market and the popularity among young people gave the troupe confidence. The show's first eight performances continued to be a hit at the box office, and in just one year it performed more than 20 times throughout the Yangtze River Delta. At the same time, the crew also visited East China Normal University, where "Fanyi" and "Lu Gui" appeared to teach the new generation of college students how to pronounce the "sharp pronunciation" accurately and speak authentic Shanghainese dialect. In May last year, "Thunderstorm" was performed at Majestic Theater for three consecutive performances, spreading the influence of this work to the whole country.
invited the dialect drama "Thunderstorm" to appear on the Majestic Stage, and the theater also conducted detailed research. "We are based on the excellent reputation of this work in the industry and word of mouth from the audience." said Chu Baojie, deputy general manager of Shanghai Performing Arts Co., Ltd., "Hua Wen is not just riding on the popularity, but creating it. In the Thousand People Theater, Shanghai dialect Cultural products are very scarce, so we must invite "Thunderstorm" to Meiqi." It is worth mentioning that Yang Mei, who plays Lu Ma in the play, also won the Shanghai Magnolia Theater Performing Arts Award for her outstanding performance in the play. Supporting Actor Award.
"Thunderstorm"
was able to receive an olive branch from Beijing People's Arts this time, which is also due to word-of-mouth. After receiving the invitation, Hua Wen was also curious: "Why did you find us?" The other party said that it was also spread by word of mouth: "I heard that in the past two years, a movie "Thunderstorm" speaking 'Shanghai dialect' was released in Shanghai. Young people Everyone is attracted by it, so I want to take this opportunity to invite you to perform." It is reported that Tianjin People's Art Theater's drama "Thunderstorm" and the Shandong Provincial Theater Theater's full version of "Thunderstorm" have also been invited. Beijing People's Art Theater's classic version of "Thunderstorm" will also be staged.
is different from today's stage works that often cost tens of millions of dollars. The stage set of the dialect drama "Thunderstorm" produced at a low cost is different from the real stage with a traditional hall structure. The visual presentation combines reality and reality, pursuing the atmosphere of a "dark fairy tale". Seven or eight giant carved window lattice spans across the stage as the background. The main colors are black and white and gray. Young stage designer Wang Yu bought malachite green sofas and walnut furniture, and controlled the cost of the stage design to 200,000 yuan. Including "Fanyi", each leading actor only has one set of costumes. Director Wu Wenchong said: "Fortunately, the story takes place in one day, and it makes sense to dress up in one outfit. But in order to match the actors' emotional changes, the same costumes will reflect different luster under different lighting changes, echoing the whole play's transition from dull thunder to The situation changed from thunder to thunder. "
At the climax of the play, thunder exploded, and the giant chandelier that had been hanging in the center of the main hall broke into pieces and fell down, as if the whole world had collapsed.This design seems to be "eye-catching", but it actually cleverly uses a blinding method, which is not very expensive. Hua Wen said: "Because this is a trial work, we strictly controlled the cost. In the end, the production of the whole drama was completed, and the settlement was only 690,000 yuan." Unexpectedly, this drama produced by a group of Shanghai Opera actors earned more than 500,000 yuan at the box office in the first round of performances, not only recovering the cost but also making a slight profit. This is undoubtedly a successful market operation for a district-level Shanghai Opera Troupe.
Compared with economic benefits, Hua Wen attaches more importance to market recognition and audience reputation: "After all, our original intention is to consolidate the soil for the future of the theater troupe and opera types and cultivate a Shanghai-language environment. The key to the revitalization of Shanghai opera is the revitalization of the general environment." This time, Baoshan Hu Opera Troupe was able to "play" on the same stage with a number of drama troupes to spread the "voice of Shanghai" with the dialect drama "Thunderstorm". She said with emotion: "Thank you to Beijing People's Art Theater for the invitation. Dialect is the flavor of the city, Shanghai dialect It is unique, romantic, Shanghai-style and inclusive. This edition of "Thunderstorm" is invited to go north, hoping to allow more people to unlock the charm of Shanghai culture."
