Original title: A picture of the times is slowly unfolding on the Beijing People's Art Stage (title)
"Yongding Gate" innovatively explores Beijing-style opera in the new era (theme)
Beijing Daily reporter Wang Run
The moving turntable slowly turns out of time and space Changes, the passage of time, and the indescribable internal twists and turns of the characters; thirty years of customs, joys and sorrows, and all kinds of intriguing details are like a picture of the times full of Beijing flavor slowly unfolding on the stage of human art...
5 Starting from the 1st, Beijing People's Art Theater's first original Beijing-style drama "Yongdingmenli" this year, written by Jin Yun and directed by Tang Ye, starring Miao Chi and Yang Mingxin, will be staged at the Capital Theater. Based on the competition and competition between the two male protagonists for more than thirty years, the play interprets a war without gunpowder in the changing times, a period of persistence and transformation of faith, and also shows the Beijing People's Art Theater's new era of Beijing-style opera. Inheritance, exploration and innovation.
"Cat and Mouse Game" Shows Faith and Humanity
As the opening bell rang, the curtain printed with a huge black and white photo of Laoyongding Gate opened, opening up a history with mixed emotions. The story of the drama "Yongdingmenli" begins in 1952, shortly after the founding of New China. Kuomintang agent Feng Jingbo accepted the task of lurking in Peking and hid in an alley courtyard as a "cultural teacher" of the drama school. The police station director Xiao Dali saw the flaw. , the two began a decades-long "cat-and-mouse game" contest. At the same time, New China has experienced more than thirty years of great changes. In the storm of the times, the fate and relationship of these enemies of life and death have undergone earth-shaking changes...
Stills of "Yongdingmenli". Photographed by Beijing Daily reporter Fang Fei
"Yongdingmenli" allows old theater fans to see the old Beijing courtyard house that is extremely well-crafted, full of fireworks and a sense of age; young audiences lamented that every detail in the small courtyard is realistic and the atmosphere of life is rich. Even the faucet can actually flow water. The audience soon discovered that, unlike the traditional realistic stage style, the play created another spiritual space outside of the real space through the flowing double-layer turntable and the lights that follow the psychological changes of the characters; The freehand technique and the long monologue in the stream-of-consciousness style combine physical time and space with psychological time and space, highlighting the characters' strong inner conflicts and soul collisions, and also giving the audience greater space for imagination and thinking.
The play adopts a "dual male protagonist" character setting. It is not a simple confrontation between good and evil, but highlights the personality and complexity of the characters and digs deep into the depths of the human soul. The two leading actors, Miao Chi and Yang Mingxin, have been on the Beijing People's Art Stage for many years. This time they collaborated together for the first time, creating a lot of sparks and winning the audience's approval. "One is a complex, melancholy and swinging character. Intellectuals, one seems to be dug out of the soil, full of stubbornness, and both characters stand firm. "Police officer Xiao Dali, played by Yang Mingxin, spends his life implementing his ideals and beliefs, adhering to the eternal destiny of the country, and always pursuing the truth as his life pursuit. , the spirit of no hesitation is moving; Feng Jingbo, played by Miao Chi, was inspired by the new regime and influenced by his opponent Xiao Dali's step by step watch and belief, and struggled to correct the wrong choices he had made. After being broken and reorganized, he finally completed The transformation and redemption of the soul. Although the two are in opposing camps, they are both highly idealistic characters. From tit-for-tat to each other's deep connection, their confrontation and friendship are intertwined and touch people's hearts.
Other characters in the play are also flesh and blood. Yan Xueyan, a famous Peking opera actor played by Yuan Yu, interprets the grace and righteousness of a generation of famous actresses in a soul-stirring way. A few authentic drama lines also show the actor's daily efforts. Although the big spy Yan Diankun played by Zou Jian does not have many roles, he leaves a deep impression every time he appears. Liu Yaqin, Xiao Dali's wife played by Zhou Jiayu, Liu Meimei, Feng Jingbo's wife played by Li Xuege, drama school employee played by He Jing, Xiao Dali's mother played by Meng Xiu... all the actors continued the Beijing-style works of Beijing People's Art with their authentic and simple performances. A fine tradition full of lively characters in Taiwan.
"Let people see the power of drama"
Among the audience of Renyi, there are many extremely professional and knowledgeable people.Some viewers noticed that in the first few scenes, the distant view showed the silhouette of the tall Yongding Gate, but then it disappeared. "Because Yongding Gate was demolished in 1957, it was such a good detail that I was moved immediately!" There is also carefulness. The audience discovered that "Xiao Dali's hometown Zhaitang belonged to Hebei before liberation and was an old area of the Anti-Japanese War. After 1952, it was included in Beijing. Therefore, although his wife lived in Yongdingmen, when he complained about not being able to get a radio station, he said: 'I want to hear Xin Fengxia's opera review'... As expected of the Beijing People's Art Theatre, I don't know how much homework goes into a play! "
In the "Interrogation" scene, the carefully designed sound effects convey the psychological ups and downs of the characters and the ups and downs of their fate. It was so vividly rendered that some viewers commented: "When the two people were in the interrogation room, there was thunder and heavy rain outside. The sound of rain was chaotic and violent, just like Feng Jingbo's mental state. When a burst of thunder happened to strike, it was Xiao Dali When the announcement was made that she was going to the northwest, people were shocked. "Some viewers were filled with emotion because Yan Xueyan appeared in "The Phoenix Returns to the Nest" thirty years late, "I was still thinking about it at the beginning. Why did I choose this play? After seeing Yan Xueyan return from the Northeast, I understood the meaning of this echo. It is just like the plaque on the theater in the play, "Life is like a play." It's really amazing!"
Chinese Drama Literature Society! Wu Tong, executive vice president and drama critic, said: "The drama "Yongdingmenli" allows people to see the weight, quality and power of drama. Due to the weight of teacher Jinyun's text, director Tang Ye, together with Miao Chi, Yang Mingxin and others, The new talents performed this "life as a drama" in which "a scholar dies for his confidant", and his heart was filled with excitement... If the theater world can produce such a drama with character and content, there is hope! "
Gathering people and art! The creation of "Yongding Gate" embodies the efforts and emotions of several deans of Beijing People's Art Institute. The screenwriter is Jin Yun, the second president of Beijing People's Art Theater and a famous playwright who has written classic dramas such as "The Nirvana of Dog'er Ye", "Ruan Lingyu" and "Boundless Love". The play was created and planned during the period of Zhang Heping, the third president of Beijing People's Art Theatre. The late director Ren Ming, who was a member of the Humanities and Arts Committee at the time and later became the fourth president of the Humanities and Arts, wrote his "After Reading" after reading the script: "This is a very beautiful tragicomedy. It is very story-telling and dramatic. Captivating. The lines are well written, with character and humor, and the main characters have personalities." The casting of outstanding young and middle-aged actors from Beijing People's Art Theater as the leading actors shows that the current director Feng Yuanzheng "enables the younger generation." "The actor stands in the center of the stage and tells the story of China". He said: "This creation is very important to us. It is not only to launch a big drama, but more importantly, to cultivate young people and let young actors mature as soon as possible. . Because Beijing-style opera needs to be passed down from generation to generation, this is a major feature of Beijing People's Art and a very important content in the development stage of Beijing People's Art in the new era. "
"Yongdingmenli" is a script written by Jin Yun ten years ago. , for this performance, the 86-year-old playwright revised the script dozens of times. "The screenwriter gives his heart to the characters, and then the characters give it to the audience." His consistent opinion in writing plays is to "write about the characters' personalities": "The author must get into the hearts of the characters in the play, and follow the actions of the characters in the play." Clues, coupled with his own understanding, shape the characters. "Jin Yun has personally experienced the changes of the times in the play, and many people and events are still vivid in his mind, which made him invest a lot of life insights and thinking in his creation.
"Such a play is difficult to write and arrange, but we want to make a work that can be retained." Director Tang Ye, who actively promotes the reappearance of this script that has been dusted for many years, said that what moved her most about "Yongdingmenli" is: "This is a play about people. A good script touches the soul." Jin Yun told her that Mr. Cao Yu once said back then that good playwrights write stories and better playwrights. Therefore, in her second creation, she also attached great importance to helping actors create full characters and "find the characteristics of people of that era." To this end, she led the crew to do desk work for more than two months, inviting expert teachers from the public security front, national security front, and party history to give lectures on human art, and took the creators to experience life and learn historical knowledge.
In terms of directing techniques, Tang Ye has also made many new attempts, exploring ideas from the script, and working with the stage, lighting, costume and props team to enrich the romantic and freehand linear narrative into a complete stage performance, allowing the audience to see the vivid The characteristics of the times and rich characters. "The innovation of Beijing-style opera is not only about the form, but also about making new explorations in the way of character creation, stage scheduling and presentation."
The play will continue to be performed until May 12.
Source: Beijing Daily
