Stills from "Towards Yan'an".
The Shanghai-style spy drama "Toward Yan'an", a tribute to the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Shanghai, will soon be performed in Beijing at the National Center for the Performing Arts after winning a good reputation in its first performance in Shanghai. As a stage play with the main theme that was created and arranged by a theater that directly caters to market entities, this work can be called "popular and popular". Specifically, "red" means that the work conforms to mainstream values and conveys truth, goodness and beauty; "hot" means that the work is artistic and ornamental and can withstand the test in the performing arts market.
So, what is the success of "Towards Yan'an"? The author tries to make an analysis.
Shows the youth and passion of a generation of young people and demonstrates the power of faith
"Toward Yan'an" is a passionate group drama from the beginning.
The progressive students of Shanghai Huaguang Radio School strode onto the stage and recited loudly: We must face the cold wind from the north, we must flatten the barren weeds, we must flow through the rapid rivers, and we must climb over the steep hills. The high mountains, the cold is tempering for us, and hunger is a test for us... We are progressive students of Shanghai Huaguang Radio School, and we are going to Yan'an!
Yan'an was not only the foothold for the victory of the Red Army's Long March, but also the starting point for establishing the anti-Japanese national united front, winning the war of resistance, and then winning national victory. Yan'an is the holy land of the Chinese revolution and a symbol of progress and brightness, just as the "Anthem of the Anti-Japanese Military and Political University" sings: On the banks of the Yellow River, a group of outstanding descendants of the Chinese nation gather. The responsibility for human liberation and national salvation rests entirely with us. Classmates, study hard, be united and tense, be serious and lively, this is our style. "Towards Yan'an" symbolizes the belief and pursuit of light and progress of a generation of passionate and awakened young people.
Every generation has its own youth, and the eternal themes of youth are ideals, bravery, and dedication. "Toward Yan'an" tells a story of dark night and dawn, a story of the eternal light of ideals in the alternation of the sun, moon and stars, allowing the audience to see the youthful figure of the revolutionary predecessors and see the youthful figure of the revolutionary predecessors in an immersive experience of nearly three hours. Their shouts and fights during the war years saw them interpret with their lives that "even if we are torn into pieces, every piece is filled with loyalty." It is worth pointing out that "Towards Yan'an" not only positively shows the actions of the progressive students of Shanghai Huaguang Radio School to "move to Yan'an", but also vividly expresses the wish of Xiang Jinxi, an underground worker lurking in Shanghai, to "move to Yan'an". Hai Fei, the author of the novel "To Yan'an", once said: "To Yan'an" means "the heart is longing for". The protagonist has never been able to leave Shanghai in his life, but he arrived in "Yan'an" in a secret and great way. In the play, on the eve of the students leaving for Yan'an, Xiang Jinxi accepted an organizational task and stayed in Shanghai. After that, he fought in the devil's nest between the Japanese and the Kuomintang. Under the eyes of being misunderstood and despised, he risked his life to work silently for the party. This is the call of faith and the power of faith.
Liu Zhiyang plays Xiang Jinxi (Xiang Yan'an) in the play.
We believe that in the rapidly advancing era and diversified society, how contemporary young people should choose their own lives and careers, how to choose their own life goals, we can learn from the book "To Yan'an" which contains the power of faith. And get inspiration from the drama about the spiritual purity, spiritual hardness, and spiritual brightness that our era needs.
It creates an "atypical" character image of a revolutionary, allowing the extraordinary achievements of ordinary people to be seen.
Li Bonan, the director of "Toward Yan'an" once said in the director's explanation: ""Toward Yan'an" is not a single spy war theme. It uses little people and the fireworks of the world to spell out the unknown and anonymous heroes. ""Toward Yan'an" shows the daily life in Shanghai during the Anti-Japanese War and the War of Liberation. The grand historical narrative is only the background and is presented to the audience. They are ordinary and trivial details of life, and the characters in the play are also ordinary people. The reason why the play resonates with the audience is precisely because it describes the inspiration of faith to ordinary people, their spiritual history and growth history under the guidance of faith, and their tragedy and sublimity hidden under the ordinary appearance.
Liu Zhiyang plays Xiang Jinxi (Xiang Yan'an) in the play.
The main storyline of "Towards Yan'an" is about the life journey of Xiang Jinxi, the third young master of the Xiang family, who gradually awakens and transforms into a revolutionary after the Songhu Battle. Xiang Jinxi is an "atypical" protagonist that is different from previous red-themed creations. He had no worries about food and clothing since he was a child. He had two brothers and one sister, and was the youngest child in the family. He has no appeal and sense of presence among his classmates, and is a "rookie" character. Other students were eager to go to Yan'an, so he wanted to go too. If he had to find a reason, it would just be because his favorite classmate was going. Xiang Jinxi was passive when it came to going to Yan'an at first. He only really liked cooking and wanted to make Shaanxi steamed buns taste like sweet and sour short ribs. But after his father was accidentally killed by a stray bullet, he saw his classmates rise up to fight, his second brother became the executioner of Wang Puppet No. 76, a revolutionary sacrificed heroically, and his brother-in-law fought on the front line of "hoeing out rape", he finally stopped following his sweetheart. The stage of ignorance about wanting to go to Yan'an transitioned to the stage of awakening of fighting bravely for the revolutionary cause. Under the arrangement of the party organization, he sneaked into the Japanese army as a cook, successfully assassinated Japanese soldiers and destroyed the Japanese secret service Akita Company; later he lurked in the Kuomintang Songhu Garrison Headquarters, sent a large amount of intelligence, cleverly destroyed the traps set by military commanders, and wisely Save the arrested progressive students.
However, although his work was arduous, it remained unknown. In the eyes of outsiders, he is a coward, a deserter, and a traitor. Xiang Jinxi is like Lin Daojing in "Song of Youth", walking on the road of constantly breaking with the "old self", but the difference is that Xiang Jinxi's faith and feats are always silent. In the end, the person on the line died and the organization could not be found. Xiang Jinxi was lost among all living beings, but he still yearned for Yan'an, so he changed his name to "Xiang Yan'an". People are not born with ideals and beliefs, but they are gradually formed through the tempering of life. It was the dark social reality and the yearning for light that prompted Xiang Jinxi to embark on the revolutionary road step by step, and slowly realized what faith is and what "Yan'an" means. Xiang Jinxi's name change symbolizes that his faith will never fade in his heart, and it is also a monument to his spiritual history and growth history.
An audience member commented after watching the play: "The drama "To Yan'an" embraces the complexity of human nature and the uncertainty of fate, allowing young hearts to resonate, hesitating steps to be encouraged, weaknesses to be understood, and the extraordinary lives of ordinary people to be seen. ". This speech represents the voice of many viewers. Although Xiang Jinxi is ordinary, he is forbearing, persevering, witty and brave, and has extraordinary strength. As Haifei said: Jinxi is like a grain of dust, but when the sun shines, it will flicker solemnly. A very important reason why "Towards Yan'an" shakes people's hearts and arouses emotion and resonance from the audience is that it successfully portrays an "atypical" revolutionary with an appearance as ordinary as dust, allowing the extraordinary achievements of ordinary people to be seen .
Focus on exploring "humanistic value" and create full and three-dimensional character portraits
Literature is humanistic, and the main subject of the narrative object of literary and artistic works is human beings. Regarding the creation of characters, the drama "To Yan'an" adapted by Haifei himself continues the "human narrative" characteristics of his novels. Whether it is the creation of revolutionaries, the Kuomintang military commanders, Wang Puppet agents, or ordinary citizens, they all express It reflects the character's personality and the rich and complex inner world of the character. Li Bonan said: The play should not only restore history, but also look at people, human hearts, human feelings, and human nature in history. What we pursue is not to provide the audience with external plot stimulation and audio-visual impact, but to hope that this drama will have more humanistic value and poetic character based on the spy war genre. It is precisely because "Toward Yan'an" is different from traditional spy war dramas that it focuses on exploring the "value of humanities" and works hard on the characterization of the characters. The characters are full and vivid, which greatly improves the aesthetic quality of the drama. .
Li Shiwei plays the underground party Yuan Chunmei in the play.
In the play, Yuan Chunmei is a rich girl from a wealthy family. She is a wife, mother, teacher, and a revolutionary warrior. When portraying this character, the play not only portrays her intellectual elegance as a wealthy lady, her gentleness and humiliation as a wife and mother, her professional ethics as a teacher who is serious and responsible for her students, but also her composure and calmness as a revolutionary. , strength and determination, which deeply moved the audience. Also worth mentioning in the play is Lao Tang, the general manager of Akita Company. Red-themed literary and artistic works often tend to portray revolutionaries as "Gao Daquan", but in "To Yan'an", revolutionaries are diverse, and any type of person may devote himself to the revolutionary cause. Lao Tang was well versed in human relations, got along well with the Japanese, and was deeply trusted; as a Shaoxing native, he loved Shaoxing opera and would sing a few lines of "There is a little nine sisters in my family" from time to time; he missed his hometown and had deep fatherly love for his daughter who was far away in his hometown, but In order to complete the tasks assigned by the organization, he stepped forward and died generously. His scenes were few but unforgettable. Li Chuanying, a veteran actor who plays Old Tang, said when talking about his role: I hope the audience will put a label on me first and then slowly tear it off. This is very insightful and thought-provoking.
Li Chuanying (middle) plays the role of the underground party Old Tang in the play.
In addition, the portrayal of other supporting characters in the play is also remarkable.
Xiang Jinshui is an action member of Wang Puppet No. 76. Because he is in troubled times, he has to choose a special way to survive. He believes in carpe diem, is addicted to power, and advocates force, but beneath his fierce appearance, he has a warm and soft heart. He protects Xiang's family from being trampled by the Japanese, cares about his younger brother, loves his woman very much, and has a complex and multifaceted character that impressed the audience deeply. Guoliang is a military agent. He is loyal to the party and the country, dedicated to his career, loyal to love, and caring for his family. Regardless of his political stance, he is a pure man and his moral character is almost perfect. It is precisely the play's portrayal of this character that is not symbolic or facial, so the audience recognizes it very much. Cheng Haonan is the character who has changed the most in the play. He is handsome and handsome, and lives a sophisticated life. In the early days, he was the most enthusiastic and passionate leader among the students who went to Yan'an. However, he wanted to pursue progress, but he never thought of the price he would have to pay. As a result, he died in the harsh struggle against the enemy. Depart from the original intention and change sides. The play's description of Cheng Haonan's changes before and after not only expresses the opportunism and egoism deep in his heart, but also highlights the greatness and nobility of those who still insist on their faith in a high-pressure environment. It also reflects the great waves in the revolutionary struggle, which is very interesting. Deep meaning. As the woman of No. 76 Wu Sanbao and the dealer of the casino, Fengxian, Jin Shui's lover, has a side that pursues pleasure and is domineering. However, as a woman who comes from the lower class and has been insulted and harmed, she is also simple-minded, affectionate and righteous. , is not afraid of rape. Liang Tian, who plays Fengxian, once described this character as "a rare intimate lover in turbulent times." In the end, with the change of fate, she was willing to live an ordinary life and got along with Xiang Jinxi. It is precisely because the play fully demonstrates the versatility of Fengxian's character in the ups and downs of her fate that it gives this character a strong charm.
Screenwriter Hai Fei condenses the choices and paths of different people in troubled times into the children of the Xiang family.
British novelist and critic Forster divided the characters in novels into two categories: flat characters and round characters in "Aspects of Novel". Flat characters are "shaped based on a single concept or quality". Character traits are single; round characters have multi-faceted and complex personalities, more similar to people in real life. Most of the successful characters in literary and artistic works are round characters, because the multi-faceted and complex characters can better reflect the true face of life, enrich the story plot, and enrich the connotation of the work. The success of "Toward Yan'an" is inseparable from the fact that the play has created full, three-dimensional, vivid and vivid characters.
Author: Zhao Jianzhong
Text: Zhao Jianzhong Pictures: Pictures provided by the theater Editor in charge: Huang Qizhe
Please indicate the source when reprinting this article.
