The Era Improvement of the Modern Aesthetics of Chinese Opera
——An essay after viewing the modern drama “Revolutionary Family” by Pingju Opera
Wang Yunming(Vice President of Chinese Opera and Modern Opera Research Association)
In the century-long life journey of creative transformation and innovative development of Chinese opera, modern opera has thrived and achieved fruitful results. Under the nourishment of sunshine and rain in the new era, the majority of theater workers have not forgotten their original aspirations, kept their mission in mind, went deep into life, took root in the people, and with full of passion and intelligence, urges the blossoming of Juyuan to bloom. Among them, after watching Pingju “Revolutionary Family”, one can’t help but feel a kind of joy of “flowers blooming in a different way”, and also see the successful artistic practice of the blending of life and drama, with distinct artistic personality, and the beauty of choreographer, director, music and dance. , to see the improvement of the era of opera aesthetics.
As far as the selection of themes, the exploration and the condensing of the theme are concerned, on the dazzling red theatre stage, we are used to splashing ink on the sand, competing for heroes, or crayon heroes overcoming obstacles. The Pingju “Revolutionary Family” is characterized by two family photos at the prologue and at the end, which closely integrates the family and the revolution, and the two depend on each other to live together. When the young girl Fang Cheng got married, it was the day when her husband Jiang Meiqing decided to join the revolution, and a revolutionary family was born. Parents, children and a family of five devoted themselves to the revolution one after another. After nearly half a century of ups and downs, blood and rain, full of loyalty and fierceness, the family was reborn.
This is a contemporary autobiographical memoir. The narration of events and the laying of scenes naturally alternate between the present and the past. In many previous works, we often see that the background, characters, narrative, and lyrical chapters and tables give people a sense of alienation. The play is closely related to the theme of family love, and the protagonist Fang Cheng is immersed in the revolution’s marital love, children’s love, and comradeship throughout the whole play. deduction.
The tear-jerking historical scenes are displayed in Fang Cheng’s affectionate memories. It was not until the time flashed back to 1949 when thousands of people celebrated the liberation of Shanghai that they returned to the call of his daughter Jiang Xiaowen and his youngest son Jiang Nianqing, who had grown into a young officer. The present time and space of joy and happiness. Here, the emotions, ideals, character, and spirit of the protagonist are like a red line connecting the scenes and events on the stage. In this way, the first is to strengthen the penetrating power of art, and it is easier to lead the audience to resonate with the emotional world of the protagonist. The great cause of innovation fulfills the historical mission entrusted to us by the new era. Undoubtedly, this is a trend of aesthetic thinking and practice. At the same time, in this alternate progression of narrative and lyricism, the director also pays great attention to the combination of hot and cold scenes, the balance between static and dynamic, and the dialectical connection between group images and the protagonist. As the prelude, in the warm scene of people celebrating the liberation of Shanghai, Fang Cheng suddenly turned to the affectionate memory of one person; in the second scene, in the lively scene of the villagers “dividing the land and dividing the land” and the sisters “cutting the revolutionary head”, Jiang Meiqing was gentle and careful The place is Fang Cheng’s haircut, both of which have harvested the aesthetic pleasure of the poetic artistic conception of the deep pool under the waterfall and the stars holding the moon.
Pingju, which originated in the folk “Lotus Falling”, has absorbed the nourishment of modern culture for hundreds of years, learned and learned from the artistic experience of Bangzi, Peking Opera, and drama, and gradually grew into a national drama. Under the immortal art greatness. However, many of these creations are still in the form of realism and drama. Zeng Zhaojuan, a leader in the art of Pingju of the new generation, over the past 40 years, from the several excellent plays she has created, it can be clearly seen that with her innately beautiful appearance, crisp voice, diligent study and hard training, she is in the process of innovation. The persistent pursuit of improving the aesthetic quality of Pingju Opera. From the shaping of the characters in the past, we can see that Zeng Zhaojuan is good at interpreting the performance talents of different characters in ancient and modern times by using various styles of opera. She is originally from the flower school (Shulan), and relies on her talented, crisp and sweet voice. According to the character and emotional changes of the characters in the play, she absorbs the musical elements of the sisters’ art without any trace. The strength and weakness are relieved, and the swaying is free, forming a singing style that combines rigidity and softness, pure and elegant, full of charm, and beautiful and agile singing style. Looking at Fang Cheng, portrayed by Zeng Zhaojuan in “Revolutionary Family”, from the shape, voice, emotion, mood, mood, emotion and anger of the characters, and the elegant and mellow quaint charm in the warm and healthy modern life behavior, it can be seen that his performance art is very good. Pure fire. Look at her gestures and walks. She is both flexible and natural, but also standardized and refined, without roughness and rigidity. Whether it is a shy bride, a kind and virtuous wife, or a rich businessman’s wife, they are all decent and full of classical charm. of modern beauty. She sings tenderly (as in the newlyweds) without being snarky, and exasperated (as when her husband died with her son in prison) without hissing. The high and low strength, relaxation, timbre and sound quality, and the breath of the vocal cavity are controlled precisely and delicately, with ease and ease, which is pleasant to the ear. The most powerful in the whole play is Fang Cheng’s character development, emotional ups and downs, and the instant transition between the present and the past, which is a great test for the actor’s acting talent.
It is to show the sudden change in the mentality and appearance of the characters in the instantaneous transformation of time and space, and an artistic model with a unique brilliance and biographical drama stands in front of the audience, allowing us to appreciate Zeng Zhaojuan once again. Talent and artistic attainments have seen the improvement of the era of modern opera aesthetics.
“Guangming Daily” (July 06, 2022, 16th edition)
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责编：孙宗鹤 ]