Taihu Red Plum, when will it bloom again
--Thinking and research on the current situation of Xi-ju opera
Taihu Lake in the Jiangnan water town, the mountains and water, rich in produce, developed agriculture, industry and commerce, convenient land and water transportation, the literati, the literary lineage of the long-distance, is the birthplace of Wu culture. It is the birthplace of Wu culture. The simple Wu songs, elegant Kunqu Opera, and colorful countryside slang songs have given birth to the largest local theater in Jiangsu Province, Xizhou Opera, which has the charm and characteristics of the Jiangnan water town.
The Xizhou Opera, known as the "Red Plum of Taihu Lake", used to be the first of the three new styles (Xizhou Opera, Yueju Opera and Huangmei Opera) in East China after the founding of New China, and was known as the "Xizhou Boss". Because of its production and popularity of the region are the most economically developed region of China's Yangtze River Delta, economic prosperity, developed transportation, cultural heritage. Under the guidance of the Party's cultural and artistic policy, under the correct leadership and support of the government at all levels, Xizhou Opera has gone through a remarkable and praiseworthy development course since the founding of the country. There have been plays that have had a wide influence in the country, such as: "Double Push Mill", "Meeting at the Nunnery", "Recognizing Mother at the Nunnery", "Pearl Pagoda", "Night Trial at the Red Mansion", "Song of the Red Flower", "The Red Seed", "Meng Lijun", "Jade Dragonfly", "Searching for the Child", "The Three Mistresses", and "Female Militia of the Sea Island" ....... Also emerged: Yao Cheng, Wang Lanying, Shen Peihua, Mei Lanzhen, Yang Qiwen, Wang Binbin, Wang Hanqing, Wu Ya Tong, Liu Hongru, Ni Tongfang, Wu Xiaoying, Wang Jianwei, Yu Jiejun, Zheng Hua, Xu Chengyu, Sun Zhong, Qian Huirong, Xu Ying, Tianfu, and so on, a large number of artistic achievements and impact of artists.
Since the reform and opening up, the market economy has developed vigorously, especially the modern media means to present diversified, to China's traditional opera genre has produced unprecedented test and challenge. And Xiqu Opera is like a small boat in the wind and waves of the Taihu Lake in the stormy sea, there is consternation! There is lamentation! There is anxiety! There are also shouting! Tin opera audience plummeted, the performance market shrinking, practitioners of the ideological instability, some personnel take the initiative to change the line of business to the sea ...... become an indisputable fact.
Also facing the "opera slump" situation, the Yueju Opera has found its own position - inheritance and development of the Yueju Opera school of art, take the initiative to actively cultivate new forces. Only one play "Five Daughters Worship Their Longevity" almost integrates all the genres of Yueju Opera into this play, and at the same time, a number of young generation of actors and actresses who are loved by the audience of Yueju Opera have emerged. And is located in the less economically developed areas of Anhui Huangmei Opera in the reform of the torrent, in the plight of the opera, to find their own direction of development - to reform the music of Huangmei Opera singing, carry forward the advantages of the actors to open up the situation. Anhui TV alone has filmed 1-2 Huangmei Opera music TV series every year, expanding the influence of the genre and the actor's popularity through modern media means.
And in the economically developed areas of Jiangsu Province, the largest local theater Xiqu Opera, how is the situation?
Since the reform and opening up, in all sincerity, the practitioners of Xi-ju Opera, through continuous efforts, also appeared, such as the "Merry Mothers and Daughters", "when the family", "Bing", "three ladies", "South return" and so on, a number of special characteristics of the genre, to produce a certain impact of the good opera. Also emerged like Wang Jianwei, Chen Yunxia, Zhou Dongliang, Tang Zhenhua, Wan Jianhuan, Bian Yanmin, Li Ju, Zhang Meihua, Shen Huilan and a number of rising stars.
But in terms of the overall development of the genre, can be summarized in three words: the main direction is unclear, group cooperation is not only powerless, and each engaged in their own way, and alone. The internal friction of the theater is serious, and the performance is very exciting off-stage. With nearly 200 years of history of the play, so far the language can not be unified, the stage said Wuxi, Changzhou, Suzhou, Yixing, Jiangyin words have ...... how to talk about the development and revitalization of the play? We can use "still smooth and lack of simplicity, like fancy and less thick; rely on pattern renovation and lack of basic skills, seek less labor and lack of perseverance and perseverance" (see "100 years of Shanghai Opera") to illustrate the current situation of the Xizhou Opera is more apt.
Faced with the severe situation of the opera, the governments of Wuxi and Changzhou, the birthplace of the opera, have set up the "Revitalization of Xi-Opera Leading Group". A series of programs and measures have been formulated to revitalize the Xiyu opera, and the "Government Literary and Artistic Reward Conditions" and special funds for artistic production have been introduced. The introduction of these policies and measures to stabilize the tin opera team, activate the enthusiasm of practitioners, play a certain role in promoting the play. But a congenital deficiency is not yet fully mature, acquired disorders, the quality of the practitioners of the fundamental problem has not been resolved, to survive in the wave of reform, innovation, development, still seems to be unable to do. A set of figures of change, visible theater the status quo a spot.
In order to revitalize the Xiqu Opera, Jiangsu Provincial Department of Culture, Jiangsu Xiqu Opera Research Association from 1984 to 2002, has been in conjunction with the People's Government of Wuxi City, Changzhou Municipal People's Government and Suzhou Municipal People's Government *** with the organization of the six "Xiqu Opera Festival of Jiangsu Province".
October 1984, the first Xiyu Opera Festival was held in Wuxi City. ***Three provinces and one city (i.e., Jiangsu Province, Anhui Province and Shanghai Municipality) 24 Xi-Theatre troupes performed 28 Xi-Theatre plays, which can be described as colorful, unprecedented, and a group of heroes.
November 1986, the second tin opera festival was held in Changzhou City. There were 16 troupes performing 16 plays. (At this time, three tin opera troupes in Shanghai, one tin opera troupe in Anhui Province should have been disbanded, and 19 of the 35 tin opera troupes in Jiangsu Province had already withdrawn, retained their establishments or ceased their artistic activities.)
In November 1988 the third Tin Opera Festival was held in Suzhou. Only 10 tin opera troupes performed 10 plays.
In June 1993 the 4th Xi-Opera Festival was held in Wuxi City. Only 8 troupes performed 8 plays.
In April 1999 the fifth Xi-Opera Festival was held in Changzhou City. There were 16 Xi-Theater troupes in the province and 16 plays were performed.
In June 2002, the 6th Xi-Opera Festival was held in Suzhou together with the 3rd Comic Opera Festival of Jiangsu Province, in which 11 Xi-Opera troupes performed 11 plays.
According to the 2004 statistics of the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Culture, there are 24 Xi-Theater troupes in the province. Among them, 8 troupes have been retained, relying on financial allocations to support the troupes' retired staff, and have ceased all artistic activities. There are still 16 troupes that are still performing. In all fairness, these troupes only rely on the annual government financial allocations and the annual 100 - 200 business performance input, the practitioners of life and income is sufficient to protect. Changzhou City, Wujin District (county-level) Tin Opera Troupe, for example, the number of people in the troupe of 42 (2004 statistics), the financial allocation of 570,000 yuan, the annual income of 500,000 yuan, led by the Government Troupe and the Wujin steel mills, steel mills to pay 500,000 yuan a year troupe, coupled with the District Cultural Affairs Bureau of the annual row of theater fees to support the 150,000 -200,000 yuan, the whole troupe's annual income **** 1,750,000 yuan, an average of more than 40,000 yuan a year can be spent. Expenses more than 40,000 yuan. If compared with the Liujin Opera and Huaihai Opera styles in the north of Jiangsu Province, the conditions for the survival of the Xiqu Opera are vastly different from theirs.
The governments at all levels in areas where Xiqu Opera is popular have done a great deal of work to promote institutional reform and activate human resources, and there are many successful examples. Changzhou City, jurisdiction of the Jintan City (county-level) Tin Opera Troupe into the new century since the two bold breakthroughs and attempts: a breakthrough in the nature of the original troupe's establishment, full dismissal, for a one-time economic compensation, and then the troupe's employment system. The second is to break through the original salary structure, reform the distribution system. The implementation of post salary + performance subsidies + efficiency salary distribution. The number of performances of the reformed Tin Theater Troupe climbed all the way up. Teenager Hua Luogeng" won the Jiangsu Province in 2003, "the performance of a thousand awards". Modern large-scale children's drama "Fly, the geese" in April 2004 knocked on the door to participate in the Shanghai Fifth Excellent Children's Theatre Exhibition, and won the "Outstanding Performance Award". And in the "May Day" holiday and "June 1" Children's Day "Fly" play twice across the Shanghai Grand Theater. It caused a sensation in the Shanghai theater world.
The above success stories are indeed exciting, but the current survival of the drama is still not optimistic.
One, from the city theater back to the rural plaza.
From the rural plaza to put down the performance and the development of the tin opera, from the theater back to the square, from the city back to the countryside seems to seem to be nothing worth fussing about, some people call this retrogression as a return to the good! This involves the historical development of the Xi-Theater, in the end, how to gain or lose? Is it right or wrong? Is it good or bad? This is not an issue for in-depth discussion at this conference. But in terms of reality, this regression or called the return of the problem is multifaceted, with the troupe and theater distribution relationship issues, troupe and theater management system is reasonable issue ......, but the city of Xi-ju opera audience in the loss or called disappearance is indeed an indisputable fact. Only take the Jiangsu Provincial Tin Opera Troupe as an example, if not to participate in what will (tune) performance or what commemorative performances, in Nanjing, such a metropolis almost do not see their performances. And what you hear is to what county's temple, what festival performances, to put it bluntly, is to the rural plaza performances.
The loss and aging of the urban Xiqu Opera audience is one of the fundamental reasons why the troupe's performances have retreated from the city to the countryside. This, of course, is closely related to the troupe's old-fashioned, monotonous performances and low standard of performance skills. With the urban audience, especially with the young audience's aesthetic interests, appreciation habits change the contradiction has a direct correlation.
Second, the performance of the attack and push the ticket system has become the second career of the troupe performers.
In economically developed areas such as Changzhou, Wuxi and Suzhou, it is impossible for theater companies to rely on normal theater ticket sales to maintain performances. This has made ticket-pushing a second career for the actors and actresses. They have both power and joy, but also pressure and helplessness.
Said power: is to sell out a ticket, you can get 40% -50% of the ticket value, which is a lot of income. Therefore, the actors and actresses to mobilize all normal and abnormal social relations, racking their brains to promote the ticket and get a considerable return is joy. According to the author in a few counties in the investigation of the troupe learned that the number of people who can rely on the sale of theater tickets to win a small number of people, most people just look at the ticket sigh.
Said pressure: some troupe leaders to ensure that the normal income of the troupe, the difference between the monthly salary of the cast part of the staff to let the staff contact the chartered field and marketing tickets to solve their own income. Which push the ticket of the theater outside the play is exceptionally wonderful, not to go in-depth understanding is very difficult to imagine. Also to individual rich and powerful people to take advantage of the opportunity. Some abnormal and even improper transactions arise, affecting the unity of the team also affects the stability of the team. If this goes on, the actors and actresses can have how much energy to spend on professional training and quality improvement.
Three, foreign monks to read the scriptures, the main consciousness of the drama gradually disappeared.
Since the reform and opening up, a wide range of various types of meetings (tune) performances and awards held several times a year, the sense of participation and award-winning consciousness in the troupe is exceptionally strengthened. Leaders in charge of the use of performance awards to engage in their own performance projects is also an indisputable fact. Therefore, the financial investment for a performance is generally double or more than double the annual allocation of the local financial troupes. To win awards for a variety of means of attack repeatedly renovated. Outside the theater of the play is wonderful, the circle of people a sigh of relief and helplessness.
In order to perform award-winning, at any cost to hire a famous playwright, director, composer, choreographer to participate in the repertoire of the creative team has become a fashion, a foreign monk to read the wind is blowing more and more intense. There is no lack of successful works. However, most of these foreign monks are in the style of the characteristics of the play, music and singing characteristics and actors performing personality characteristics of the situation, the command is determined to edit, guide up, and the result is often either a drama plus singing, either the form is greater than the content, or let the actors to shape the characters out of their bones. A troupe invested more than a million dollars in a play, because it does not adapt to the performance of the play, but in a peer reproach in the hasty end. Some of the old artists of the Xizhou opera lamented: "This way, will definitely make the Xizhou opera into a four-uniform. The style characteristics of the genre, the main sense of loss!" A provincial director spit out the truth after drinking: "Xizhou opera grows in the economically developed areas, in order to perform awards, the competent authorities will spare no effort, it is a good time for us to use our imagination and show our talent, this opportunity should be grasped, the drought and floods to ensure a good income!"
"Foreign monks" of the rise, the play itself cultivated screenwriters, directors have nothing to do, to change careers! The first time I saw this, I was in the middle of a long journey, and it was a long time coming! The writers and directors of many troupes have long since disappeared from the personnel list. Peers in the field of tin opera are crying out: the individuality of the character of the play is the basis for the reproduction and development of the play. Out of the plight of the main force or to rely on themselves.
Four, "tin opera singing group" flourished and thinking
In the professional troupe performance slump, the audience fell sharply, the box office is difficult to protect the situation, in the rural areas of Jiangnan and Suzhou, Wuxi, Changzhou urban and rural areas, a semi-professional nature of the "tin opera singing group In the rural areas of Jiangnan and the urban and rural areas of Suzhou, Wuxi and Changzhou, a semi-professional "Xiqu Opera Oratorio Group" has been unusually active. Some business owners and village committees to hold activities and some people's wedding, funeral, marriage, marriage, the completion of the new house, when the soldiers go to school, are invited to perform Xiqu Opera Oratorio Group. The group was invited to perform. They were provided with food and accommodation, cigarettes and alcohol. Performers have a daily income of 50-100 yuan per person, the leader of the group (head of the class) income is even more abundant. According to the author's incomplete statistics, the towns and villages along the Su, Xi-Chang are active in more than 200 Xi-Opera oratorio groups. Not thin economic income attracted some of the recession troupes of the actors to join the singing group ...... so far the momentum is not decreasing. The prosperity of the oratorio group, can not help but make people think, this form of production in the rural areas of Jiangnan, growth and development in the city of Xi-ju opera, in the end, should take a path of development? At the same time, it also makes people worry. Singing group not only activates the performance activities of Xiyu opera in the countryside, but also brings negative impacts on the content of the repertoire and performance forms, which should be highly valued by the government authorities and colleagues of the opera. How to guide the singing group towards a healthy and formal road is imminent. Jiangsu Provincial Research Institute of Culture and Arts researchers are embarking on together with the relevant parties, the Xixi opera singing group of the causes: audience base, singing form, singing content, etc. to make a comprehensive and in-depth research, in the complete acquisition of first-hand information on the basis of the Xixi opera singing group of the fostering and norms and the development of the competent cultural authorities to put forward proposals to make it can be a healthy development.
Taihu Plum Blossom, when will it bloom again? Is every tin opera practitioners and care, love this kind of theater people care and look forward to things. Jiangsu Provincial Research Institute of Culture and Arts and the Shanghai Art Research Institute, Zhejiang Provincial Art Research Institute and Shanghai Tongji University College of Arts and Law, into the new century since the survival and development of the Yangtze River Delta Tangling Opera carried out the second academic symposium. At the end of this year will be held in Shanghai, the third Yangtze River Delta beach spring theater Symposium. The author is full of confidence in the future of tin opera. Because: it is, after all, growth and activity in the economically developed areas of Jiangsu, there is a more solid economic foundation; still have a large number of care and love of the audience of the Xiqu Opera (singing group of the active prosperity is the best example); over the past few decades, the party did cultivate a batch of various Xiqu Opera talents with artistic achievements and influence, and the play grows in the Wu language area of the cultural heritage of the south of the Jiangnan water town! ....... However, Xizhou opera workers are still facing new twists and turns and severe tests. The theater so far the language is not unified, the line is not clear, the performance skills lack of merit. The stylization, diversification, and innovation and perfection of music and singing are all realities that cannot be avoided in the development of the opera. How to adapt to the requirements of the times and the changing aesthetic needs of the audience, how to inherit and carry forward the traditional artistic characteristics of the theater as well as troupe system reform and management issues have yet to be resolved in the in-depth exploration and practice. With the pace of the times, the art of tin opera will win new opportunities and unlimited vitality in the test. Taihu Red Plum will surely shine again. (Zhu Guofang)