China News Service Client, Beijing, January 27 (Reporter Yuan Xiuyue) Red plastic bags, pressure cookers, "Canon" cell phone ringtones, Tao Yinghong's crying and smiling expression... These have recently become the "psychological shadows" of many netizens.
"The Beginning" stills
The web drama "The Beginning" starring Bai Jingting and Zhao Jinmai recently ended.
With its popularity, the actor Liu Dan in the play got a lot of attention.
Tao Yinghong played by Liu Dan is a passenger on the No. 45 bus and a former middle school chemistry teacher.
Five years ago, her life with her husband was thrown into chaos by the unexpected death of their daughter.
Five years later, she was the culprit behind the "bus bombing".
From a people's teacher to a "criminal" who hurt innocent people with a pressure cooker, what has Tao Yinghong experienced?
Not only the audience was curious, but when Liu Dan first received the invitation, what he wanted to know most was the past.
Tao Yinghong played by Liu Dan.
"The Beginning" stills
In the play, the role of Tao Yinghong is not much.
She was neatly dressed and her expression was indifferent, and only her daughter could make her heart pound.
Some people use "calm and madness", "pain and determination" to describe her, and the most intuitive feeling of more audiences is "scary".
"Aunt Guo" is actually an old acquaintance.
From "The True Color of Criminal Police" and "Children of the Qiao Family" to "Skyscrapers", "Love is Delicious" and "The Sea of Stars", Liu Dan has accumulated many years in the film and television industry.
What is less well known is that she is also a child star. She starred in "Snow City" in 1987, which was her first TV series.
In addition, she is also an actress in the National Theatre and has been active on the stage.
When a middle-aged person suddenly became popular because of a drama, Liu Dan does not feel sorry.
She told a reporter from Chinanews.com that after the age of 30 is the time when actors really begin to mature.
Liu Dan.
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
The excerpts from the dialogue are as follows:
"I didn't quite understand Tao Yinghong's approach at first"
Reporter: How did you become attached to the show?
Liu Dan: At first, the company told me that there was a play they wanted me to perform. At that time, there was no script, only a novel.
After reading the novel, I found two interesting points: one is the form of circulation, and the other is the role of Tao Yinghong.
At that time, I still had some doubts about this character. In the novel, except for Tao Yinghong's "exploding" action, her past was not very rich, so I decided to meet the director to discuss the details.
All three directors were there at the time, and they probably told me about the way to shoot in the future, including whether to extend Tao Yinghong's past.
After some chat, everyone felt that there was a possibility of cooperation, so I dared to perform.
Reporter: What attracted you most about this role?
Liu Dan: I want to find out what's going on, because I don't quite understand why Tao Yinghong did this.
As a teacher and a woman, it is really hard to understand what she has gone through in the end.
I think this character has a lot of tension.
"The Beginning" stills
Reporter: In the eyes of many people, most of the mothers who have suffered the loss of their daughter are in a state of "weeping tears".
But many times, Tao Yinghong is very restrained, why?
Liu Dan: If she (Tao Yinghong) can find a way to vent, she can cry and vent, and she may have a chance to save herself. Tao Yinghong has really been unable to come out.
When her daughter lost her life, she wanted to know the truth, but before she could find the answer, her dead daughter was subjected to cyber violence again, and all her ideals collapsed.
She seemed to be abandoned, thrown into a place where no one could see or understand. All she faced was swallowing her own mouth. It was probably such a feeling.
So I think, after so long indulging in the pain of bereavement, it seems that it is not easy to cry in the car.
Reporter: When Tao Yinghong's "car bombing plan" was discovered, she was hysterical again.
How to express her despair and obsession?
Liu Dan: Actually, I didn't think about how to express this mother's despair and madness. I didn't think about it. (I) just tried my best to understand her past, her ideals, and the shining things in her humanity.
The calm after the crash of belief is really scary, I was just trying my best to think about the process and only noticed the "horrible" when the audience had feedback.
Liu Dan.
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
"Canon is less scary to me"
Reporter: "Canon" has become a psychological shadow for many people. Are you afraid when you hear this ringtone?
Liu Dan: It's not that scary to me, because that's Tao Yinghong's clarion call to do this.
Just like going to the battlefield and hearing the drums, there is no feeling of fear.
In reality, if you hear the bell, you may hesitate to regret it, but obviously that is another scene.
Reporter: Some netizens refer to Wang Xingde and Tao Yinghong as "Aunt Siguo". What do you think of this?
Liu Dan: I think it's very cute, but the Internet is more young people.
It's because people like it very much that they give other people nicknames and so on.
"Skyscrapers" stills
Reporter: During the shooting process, which scene was the most difficult to shoot?
What is it like to work with Huang Jue, Bai Jingting and Zhao Jinmai?
Liu Dan: A scene with a lot of people is a little more difficult, because it is necessary to show the content without being chaotic. We have worked together and rehearsed many times.
There was a scene where Huang Jue and Huang Jue went to see his daughter on the bridge, which was rather subtle. I have been pondering how to more accurately represent Tao Yinghong's current state.
Huang Jue is a very gentle person, he is very cute, we will discuss some details together, including how to say the lines better, and we trust each other very much.
Bai Jingting and Zhao Jinmai are simple, bright, and cute, and they can do anything for their characters.
I remember when I was acting with Bai Jingting on the first day, I was still a little apprehensive. There were a lot of torn parts in our opponent's play.
I said, "Please take care of me," he said, "It's alright, sister." It became familiar, and I felt relieved.
And Mai Mai (Zhao Jinmai) too, I will tell her what will happen to me later.
She said, "Sister Dan is fine, you can do whatever you want."
Liu Dan.
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
"'Drama'? There's really nothing special to say"
Reporter: Many netizens call you a "thumbs up", what do you think of this evaluation?
Liu Dan: "The drama throws the face" means that it has strong plasticity and can shape different characters.
I think that's what actors should do, there's nothing special to say, it's our job.
Reporter: The first play you starred in was "Snow City". Did this play have any influence on your career in acting?
Liu Dan: In 1987, the second year of my junior year, the TV series "Snow City" came to Harbin to shoot. I played a small role by chance.
Director Li Wenqi said, "Liu Dan, you're so good, you've passed it all. You really should be an actor. Let's go to the Film Academy in the future." Teacher Lan, I started to like acting at that time.
With the affirmation of the two mentors, I am more determined to go further on this road.
Liu Dan.
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
Reporter: You are also an actor in the National Theatre. How has your stage performance helped you?
Liu Dan: Because the drama is rehearsed, you will have more time to consider the exact scale of the play, the positioning of the characters, how to act, etc. (That) is also a great opportunity to exercise the actors' thinking, which will help the actors learn to think and understand themselves. Find your own creative style.
When filming a film and television drama, you not only need to use your emotions, but your understanding and cognition are also very important. This may have a lot to do with performing on stage all year round.
Liu Dan (left).
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
Reporter: In your opinion, what advantages do young and middle-aged actresses have?
What difficulties are you facing?
刘丹：我觉得，30岁以后才是演员真正开始成熟的时候。之前是成长期，在摸爬滚打、在试错，都是在积攒各个方面的经验，可能到30岁之后，才更了解自己和他人，以及自己和群体之间的关系等等。也就是说开始定性了，经历了一些时间上的考验，更清醒了，对世界的理解会更有意思一些。
我看过一本书，是讲演员表演的，叫《风姿花传》。大概是说，年轻时候开的那个花是因为你的天赋、你的年轻、你的初生牛犊不怕虎，可能直觉很好，但还不太了解这行的难度。只有经历过磕碰和风雨才能慢慢地成熟，成熟之后再开出的那个花才是真正的花。
每个人在成长的过程里都会遇到困境。其实人活着，很重要的一件事就是要学习怎么去面对自己的困境，怎样走出自己的困境，然后朝着自己要去的那个方向走。(完)