Stills of Mei Lanfang
The poster of Mei Lanfang’s performance in Japan published in Japan’s Asahi Pictorial
“Mei Lanfang Song Score”
Part of “Map of Mei Lanfang’s Visit to America”
On February 17, 1930, the first performance of Mei Lanfang’s visit to the United States officially kicked off at the 49th Street Theater on Broadway in New York. On the same day, the “New York World” commented: “Mei Lanfang appears on the stage for three minutes, and you will admit that he is one of the most outstanding actors you have ever seen. Actor, singer and dancer, the trinity, combined They are so close together that you can hardly see the boundaries between these three arts, which are indeed inseparable and inseparable in Peking Opera.”
Mei Lanfang’s performance in the United States has caused a sensation in the drama world, and has been well received by dramatists and critics. Before this visit to the United States, Mei Lanfang performed two visits to Japan in 1919 and 1924, which had already become famous in Asian cultural circles; after the visit to the United States, the performance in the Soviet Union in 1935 caused a sensation again. Mei Lanfang visited and performed several times, successfully integrating traditional Chinese drama into the world trend, which became a milestone event in cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries.
Although it has been 60 years since Mei Lanfang left us, since the Mei Lanfang Memorial Hall and other units held the “Mei Lanfang – Mei Lanfang’s Art and Life Exhibition” at the National Museum in early 2022, people from all walks of life have actively visited and received rave reviews. . Recently, the Mei Lanfang Memorial Hall has compiled and published Mei Lanfang’s classic oral history “Forty Years of Stage Life” (collector’s edition), and launched “Mei Lanfang’s Art and Life Essay Collection” (10 types), once again forming a multimedia dissemination of Mei Lanfang’s art attention boom. Indeed, as a dazzling art master and cultural master in the 20th century, Mei Lanfang still has a lasting and far-reaching influence on his art, his ideological spirit, the performance art system he constructed, and the cultural consciousness and cultural transmission he embodied. The global nature of Mei Lanfang’s art is still a topic that we need to systematically summarize and study today.
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The significance of Mei Lanfang in the world lies in the fact that he was the first to take Chinese Peking Opera abroad and enter the world stage, making Chinese and Western dramas enter a space of equal exchange and mutual dialogue. This is Mei Lanfang’s unique contribution to art.
In 1935, shortly after watching Mei Lanfang’s performance in Moscow, German dramatist Brecht wrote The Fourth Wall of China: On the Disillusionment Effect of Chinese Drama. Italian art critic Marco Scotini considers this book one of Brecht’s most profound and extraordinary contributions to the history of international theatre in the 20th century. In his discussion on Mei Lanfang, Brecht used the term “distancing effect” for the first time, which means that Mei Lanfang’s art provided a theoretical definition for Brecht’s research and helped him find a way to establish A completely different approach to European bourgeois theatre based on naturalistic fantasies.
If it is said that Mei Lanfang, Stanislavsky and Brecht are both known as “the world‘s three major drama systems” from the theoretical induction of Chinese scholars, then the famous American dramatist and drama critic Stark Yang proposed that Peking Opera The understanding that it is “very similar” to ancient Greek dramas and Elizabethan dramas can be regarded as a comparison of the “three major dramas” in the eyes of Westerners. He bluntly said, “Mei Lanfang’s dramas are one of The most profound interpretation of ancient Greek drama”.
Therefore, the contribution and influence of Mei Lanfang’s “going out” lies not only in the fact that Mei Lanfang brought Peking Opera art to the West for the first time, but more importantly, Mei Lanfang’s art has influenced Western drama and contemporary art, and triggered dramas in Europe, America, and Russia. The world and the art world absorb and learn from the possibilities of stage art from Chinese opera, so as to reflect on the limitations of their own drama. As a representative and cultural symbol of Chinese theatre, Mei Lanfang has had a long and profound influence on the development of world theatre, and so far it can be said that there is no second person.
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The success of Mei Lanfang’s five performances in Japan, the United States, and the Soviet Union, in addition to the unique charm of Chinese Peking Opera art and the audio-visual impact of Mei Lanfang’s superb performances on foreign audiences, lies in the performance itself. It is the embodiment of Mei Lanfang’s active promotion of traditional art and cultural awareness.
Mei Lanfang came from an aristocratic family in Liyuan. He became famous at a young age, but he was not arrogant or impetuous. The era that Mei Lanfang lives in is a time of revolution and change, the feudal dynasties are declining, and foreign ideas and cultures are coming in like a tide. Leading, the confidence of traditional opera itself has been shaken. Against this background of times, Mei Lanfang’s persistence and “going out” is itself a kind of prosperity, and the sensational effect obtained through the performances abroad is also the best response and proof to cultural anxiety.
After 1913, Mei Lanfang’s income has been considerable, and he is not only popular with Chinese audiences, but also by foreigners living in China. Although acting was a livelihood at the time, Mei Lanfang’s overseas trips were not from an economic point of view. In 1919, after his first visit to Japan, Mei Lanfang said: “This is just the first shot of my attempt to spread Chinese classical art. Thanks to the joint efforts of the troupe comrades, it has been welcomed by the Japanese people, so I have the confidence to go further. Then travel to Europe and the United States to perform.”
The success of Mei Lanfang’s visit and performance is also due to the careful preparation before each trip. Taking the visit to the United States as an example, the 1930 trip took nearly 10 years of preparation and preparation, involving various aspects of work. Qi Rushan, a Chinese opera theorist who went with him, introduced the whole process in detail in “Mei Lanfang’s Travels to the Beauty”. First of all, Mei Lanfang and her team have a meticulous and clear division of labor. Feng Youwei is responsible for fundraising and diplomatic matters, Wu Zhenxiu and others are responsible for understanding the hobbies of American audiences, Qi Rushan is responsible for publicity, writing, and drawing, and Mei Lanfang is responsible for the design and production of stage installations and The patterns and colors of costumes and props, as well as the selection of the repertoire, were made by everyone and the opinions of Chinese and foreign friends who were familiar with the situation in the United States were solicited.
Taking into account that foreigners watching Chinese operas, “the pomp, costumes, manners, movements, etc. are easy to catch the eye”, “the only one layer of singing is the most difficult to listen to”, Mei Lanfang and his team edited the “Mei Lanfang Song Score” , compose the arias in the play prepared for the visit to the stave. Specifically, the traditional gong-chi notation was first written down by the violinists Xu Lanyuan and Ma Baoming, and then translated into the stave notation by Liu Tianhua. The violinist proofreads the first draft with the huqin and flute, and then Liu Tianhua auditioned for the violin, and the violinist made further corrections. Then, let Mei Lanfang sing it repeatedly, Liu Tianhua revise it according to the accent, and play the revised score on the violin to Mei Lanfang and others for comments. The work of changing the score lasted seven or eight months, and the score was painted by Wang Yi, and proofread by Yang Xiaolian, Cao Anhe, and Zhou Yi, and it was finally completed. At the same time, the team also started to prepare for the compilation of “Mei Lanfang’s Visit to the United States“, and drew nearly 2,000 works including costumes, costumes, scarves, costumes, masks, dance scores, and chopped musical instruments. It is exquisite and beautiful, and has both Chinese and English, which also plays a great role in publicity.
These preparations not only enable the general audience to appreciate the specialities of the East, but also enable American theater and art workers to cross cultures, recognize and evaluate Mei Lanfang from a professional perspective, and promote Mei Lanfang and the Chinese opera art represented by it to truly form with Western theater. Dialogue and exchange.
Mei Lanfang’s performance is not a flash in the pan, but a collision that touches and enters the mainstream Western drama from an artistic level. Behind the lively applause, flowers and continuous praise from the media, Mei Lanfang’s art and Chinese opera performance system have had a profound impact on Western drama and contemporary art creation, making “Chinese discourse” into Western drama theory. So far, “Mei Lanfang and the International Stage of the 20th Century” is still an important topic discussed by scholars in Western theatre circles. Because of Mei Lanfang, there are more exchanges, integration and new changes in Western drama creation; because of Mei Lanfang, Chinese opera has become an indispensable member of the world drama family. The pedigree of Chinese opera performance represented by Mei Lanfang has been incorporated into the world stage, truly constructing the multiple forms and overall appearance of world theater.
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It is often said that the more national the more the world. Different histories and national conditions, different ethnic groups and customs have given birth to different civilizations, making the world more colorful. As an ancient civilization, China has a splendid 5,000-year history that stretches continuously, forming a unique Chinese cultural and ideological system. Peking Opera is rooted in the fertile soil of traditional culture and has a profound cultural heritage. Mei Lanfang’s art is not only at the level of language, voice, body and dance, but also at the level of thought and spirit. The enlightenment education and opera skills he received were deeply imprinted by tradition. He has a deeper understanding and love for tradition than the average person.
Mei Lanfang also keeps up with the times and keeps pace with the times. He is a representative of upholding integrity and innovation. When the traditional culture was attacked and criticized, he pushed the art of Peking Opera as the representative of the “old culture” to a new historical height. In the old days, most of the actors were from poor people, and they might have excellent skills in learning and practicing and improving their skills, but limited by their educational level, it was difficult to understand the meaning and characters of the works they performed. And ideological is precisely the important reason why Mei Lanfang is extraordinary and at the forefront of art, making him have a high degree of cultural awareness. This ideology is also reflected in his previous visits and performances. When Mei Lanfang visited Japan, the United States, and the Soviet Union for performances, he not only considered his own artistic performance, but also focused on understanding and paying attention to the history, culture, drama tradition, and audience acceptance of the target country. Know yourself and others.
Mei Lanfang belongs to the 20th century, also belongs to the 21st century, and also belongs to the new era. Mei Lanfang’s experience is a valuable asset in the dissemination of Chinese culture. Today, China’s comprehensive strength is continuously increasing, and the new era has provided an unprecedentedly broad stage for the prosperity and development of literature and art; today, the theater troupe system has undergone fundamental changes, and the funds to support the theater troupe have become more and more abundant; information and communications have brought countries and people closer. With the distance, the exchanges between Chinese and foreign cultures are becoming more and more frequent. My generation should draw nutrients from the vivid case and valuable experience of Mei Lanfang’s “going out”, better promote Chinese culture to go out, and explain and promote more Chinese culture to the world with the words that convey the truth, the words that convey the voice, and the people who are literate. It is an excellent culture that embodies the Chinese spirit and contains Chinese wisdom.
(The author Liu Zhen is the director of the Mei Lanfang Memorial Hall)
(The picture in this article is provided by the Mei Lanfang Memorial Hall)
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责编：杨亚楠 ]