On July 1st, the Cantonese opera film "The Lady of Qiao" held an advanced viewing event in Beijing. More than a thousand viewers watched the film in advance, most of whom were born in the 90s and 00s, demonstrating the innovation of the combination of traditional Cantonese opera culture and film art. The form has a strong appeal to contemporary young people. Many viewers at the scene were moved to tears by the story of Mrs. Xian who devoted her life to protecting her country and expressed their hope to know more about Mrs.
The movie "The Lady of Qiao" is another innovative masterpiece in the field of opera films by Pearl River Film Group and the Guangdong Cantonese Theater after " Legend of the White Snake·Love ". It is also the second part of the "Innovative Trilogy of Cantonese Opera Films". The film uses the characteristics of opera movies to reproduce the legendary life of "China's first heroine" - the famous politician and military strategist Madam Xian (also known as "Mrs. Qiao") during the Southern and Northern Dynasties. The film skillfully integrates traditional culture and popular film art. Through a gripping female growth story, it expresses strong and profound feelings about family and country, creating a spiritual resonance between the characters in the film and the current audience that spans the ages.
Sun Jinhua, chief producer of the movie "Mrs. Qiao" and deputy general manager of Pearl River Film Group, director Xiao Feng, leading the cast, director of the Guangdong Cantonese Theater and famous Cantonese opera performing artist Zeng Xiaomin, starring national first-class actor Wen Ruqing, Peng Qinghua and other main creators attended the event and communicated with the audience. Zeng Xiaomin said that she is willing to boldly try all methods that are conducive to promoting the beauty of Cantonese opera. "Movies are a very good carrier. I believe that the combination of Cantonese opera and movies is a very beautiful thing. "Mrs. Qiaoguo" is dedicated to all the audiences who love movies and Cantonese operas. I hope you all like it."
Previously "Mrs. Qiaoguo" Has won the "Best Opera Film" award at the 36th China Golden Rooster Awards. This is another time that Cantonese opera films stand out in the field of opera film creation across the country. The Cantonese opera movie "The Lady of Qiao" will be officially released in theaters across the country on July 5.
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Winners of the Mandarin Award and Plum Blossom Award gather together
to interpret the legendary lives of heroines
In 2021, the first work of the "Innovative Trilogy of Cantonese Opera Films" - China's first 4k panoramic sound Cantonese opera film "White Snake: Love" broke through the boundaries of opera films Market ceiling, it broke the box office record of Chinese opera movies in just 20 days after its release, and even won the "Best Feature Film" award at the 19th China Film Huabiao Awards. "The Legend of White Snake: Love" has received an excellent reputation after its release. In the past three years, more than 60,000 people have rated it on Douban.com, and the rating has been stable at above 8 points. The film has also successfully achieved "breaking the circle". So far, it has been played more than 20 million times on Station B where young people gather. It is loved and respected by a large number of young audiences for its exquisite American style and modern expression.
As the second part of the "trilogy", "The Lady of Qiao" adheres to the ingenious spirit of "The Legend of White Snake". Its creation is rooted in tradition but not limited to tradition, and it has the courage to innovate and express; it strives for excellence in production, based on Different themes tailor-made national style aesthetics. The film takes the heroine Madam Xian, who was a famous politician and military strategist in the Southern and Northern Dynasties and was named the "Mrs. Qiao" as the protagonist. It combines the strengths of Cantonese opera and film to show the audience the wonderful life of this legendary woman. Lifetime - She succeeded the clan leader when the Li clan was in danger. Internally, she had a heart-to-heart relationship with her brother, eliminated the traitors and avenged her father. Externally, she united with Baiyue, and devoted her life to protecting the peace and contentment of the people of Lingnan. She promoted the Han system in Baiyue, advocated intermarriage between Han and Han people, and took the initiative to set an example by marrying Feng Bao, the governor of Gaoliang County. She made outstanding contributions to promoting the development of Lingnan and promoting national unity. As the lyrics in the film say: "Life is a heroine's ambition, heading north to the Central Plains. We are both queens of the Yan and Huang Dynasties, so how can we separate our hearts."
"The Lady of Qiao" has a very luxurious creative lineup. It is directed by the famous director Xiao Feng, and Wang Zhiwei serves as the screenwriter. Chen Jinrong serves as the screenwriter of Cantonese opera, and the famous actors in the Cantonese opera world play the leading roles - Zeng Xiaomin, a national first-class actor, winner of the Wenhua Performance Award and the Chinese Drama Plum Blossom Award; national first-class actor Wen Ruqing, a national first-class actor and winner of the Plum Blossom Award Starring Peng Qinghua; ten national first-class actors including Ding Fan, winner of the Wenhua Performance Award and Plum Blossom Award and national intangible cultural heritage inheritor, and the famous Cantonese opera performing artist Peng Chiquan are invited to co-star.
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Movies are an excellent carrier of Cantonese opera culture
Professionalism has made "Mrs. Qiaoguo"
Chief producer Sun Jinhua said on the spot that "Mrs. Qiaoguo" is an "innovative trilogy of Cantonese opera films" jointly produced by Zhujiang Film Group and Guangdong Cantonese Opera Theatre. "The second part. The first "White Snake: Love" has been a success and has become the box office champion of Chinese opera movies. As a producer, he is very pleased and hopes that the second "Mrs. Qiao" can surpass the previous one and reach more audiences. Go into the cinema. He was deeply impressed by the professionalism of the creators of "The Lady of Qiao" and "The Legend of White Snake" during the filming process, and believed that it was this professionalism that made these two films possible.
Director Xiao Feng has made many opera films before. He frankly said that "The Lady of Qiao" is the one that impressed him the most. In addition to personally experiencing an opera actor's "one minute on stage and ten years of work off stage" skills and particularly strong comprehension ability, he is also very confident in the innovation of this film. "We came up with many ways to innovate. After receiving this subject, we did not directly use the opera script of "Mrs. Qiao Guo", but created a movie script for this "Mrs. Qiao Guo". What is the result of innovation? It’s up to the audience to evaluate. But one thing is that in this drama, we are using a movie to tell the story of Mrs. She grew up from a young patriarch to the "Lingnan Dinghai Shenzhen" who calls herself "Lao Shen". If we use the opera industry to distinguish, it is from Xiao Dan to Lao Dan. But she said that the large age span is not the biggest challenge. On the contrary, it is a good space for mature actors to perform. The real challenge is how to restore historical themes. The creator must not only look up to the sages as a younger generation, but also perceive the situation at that time as a participant in the play. The switching of perspectives and the control of scale are the most difficult parts of the performance process.
Wen Ruqing, who plays Feng Bao, said that it is a big test for Cantonese opera actors to be good film actors. Because on the Cantonese opera stage, every gesture and gesture of the actors is exaggerated, which is not appropriate in a movie. Moreover, due to the tight schedule and heavy tasks during the filming of "Mrs. Qiao" this time, we often had to work around the clock, so everyone's eyes were red every day. When not acting in crying scenes, the only way to eliminate redness is through eye drops. "At that time, I just wanted to work together to make this film. I feel that since this film can touch all of us actors, I believe it can also touch the audience."
Mrs. Xian's brother Xian Ting, played by Peng Qinghua, is an original character in the film. Previously, he played Madam Xian's childhood sweetheart and suitor in the stage version of "Mrs. Qiao". In the movie, he needed to completely "throw away" the relationship between the characters on stage and re-enter the role. On the stage, the performance is performed along the timeline, but in film shooting, it may be that the scenes of teenagers, middle-aged people, and old people are skipped and shot. "I need to do a lot of preliminary work - understand which section of the script the scene is about and how it should be handled, including knowing which scene this scene is connected to that was shot a few days ago, etc. I have to do this myself. I have a good record, otherwise I would have skipped (the play), thank you Director Xiao for giving me a lot of help."
Zeng Xiaomin described the "Cantonese Opera Innovation Trilogy" jointly launched by the Guangdong Cantonese Theater and the Pearl River Film Group as a strong collaboration. The styles will be different. She said: "We are willing to boldly try all methods that are conducive to promoting the beauty of Cantonese opera. Movies are a very good carrier, and I believe that the combination of Cantonese opera and movies is a very beautiful thing. I hope to dedicate "Mrs. Qiaoguo" to To all the viewers who love movies and Cantonese opera, I hope you like it.”
It is reported that the Cantonese opera film "Mrs. Qiao Guo" is produced by Pearl River Film Group, jointly produced by Guangdong Cantonese Theater and Guangdong Pearl Film and Television Production Co., Ltd., filmed by Guangdong Pearl Film and Television Production Co., Ltd., and jointly produced by the Propaganda Department of Maoming Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China, Guangdong Province Wang Chuilin, Secretary of the Party Committee and Full-time Vice Chairman of the Federation of Literary and Art Circles, Wang Yijun, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the Pearl River Film Group, serve as the producer, Li Bin, Secretary of the Party Committee and Director of the Guangdong Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, serves as the chief planner, and Sun Jinhua, deputy general manager of the Pearl River Film Group, serves as the chief producer. The film is produced by Liu Jiajia, general manager of Guangdong Zhuying Film and Television Production Co., Ltd., and Sun Hongtao, a national first-class actor.
Written by: Nandu reporter Fu Yuanyuan
Video: Nandu reporter Shao Xin
Pictures. : Picture provided by the organizer
