China News Service, Beijing, October 30 (Reporter Ying Ni) The original opera "Border Town" jointly produced by the Central Opera House and the People's Government of Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in Hunan Province premiered at the Central Opera House Theater on the 28th, and will continue to perform until October 30.

Photo courtesy of the Central Opera House

　　The original opera Border Town was adapted from Mr. Shen Congwen's novel of the same name. Yuan Ding, the chief permanent conductor of the Central Opera House, helmed the baton. Soprano Lei Jia, baritone Sun Li, tenor Wang Chuanliang, Han Junyu and other main actors joined the concert. Artists from the opera troupe, choir, and symphony orchestra of the Central Opera House have used music to weave a colorful Xiangxi world.

　　As a native of Hunan, this work is of great significance to Lei Jia.

Because of years of experience in collecting wind, she was deeply infiltrated by Western Hunan culture, so that the opera dream of "Border Town" lingered in her heart for more than ten years.

In this drama, she not only serves as the art director to control the overall artistic quality, but also plays the roles of "Cui Cui" and "Cui Cui Ma".

At the beginning of the first act, Lei Jia gently launched with the ferry, using the embellishing accent of Miao folk songs to assist Cuicui's appearance, and sang Cuicui's theme song "Clear Waters and Mountains", which runs through the whole play. The audience was brought into the Misty Rain Mountain City in western Hunan, and Cuicui's spirituality also emerged spontaneously.

Photo courtesy of the Central Opera House

　　On the stage of "Border Town", it not only tells about the green but hot love between Cui Cui and Nuo Zong and Tian Bao, but also implies the tragic fate of Cui Cui's mother.

In order to show the two dramatic clues of light and dark, Lei Jia needs to keep a balance between the transitions of roles, showing the innocence and ignorance of the girl on the one hand, and the "tyrannical" and heavy affection of the Hunan girl on the other.

The two figures are sometimes separated and sometimes overlapped.

Under her interpretation, Cuicui, who is weak on the surface, has a strong temperament because she lives in Cuicui's mother.

The so-called "Xiang women are affectionate" has been fully confirmed by the two generations of women shown by Lei Jia.

　　There are also many episodes of Cuicui looking for her grandfather in the play, which also paved the way for the tragedy of the old boatman.

In the aria of "Crying for Grandpa", the last paragraph of the third act, the stage is turned to create a picture of the grandfather being washed away by the river.

Lei Jia's movements are light and his voice is stable, showing strong control and expressiveness, pushing the tragic color of the whole play to a climax.

　　The opera "Border Town" not only retains the poetic natural landscape and the beauty of simple human nature written in the original work, but also incorporates the unique customs of the Chadong area.

The folk customs of dragon boat racing and courtship with songs subtly activate the genes of Tianbao and Nuozao as citizens of border towns.

Wang Chuanliang's Nuozao has a clear and charming singing voice. Compared with Tianbao played by Han Junyu, he is a little more shy, but his uprightness is exactly the same as his brother.

Photo courtesy of Lei Jia at the Central Opera House in Xiangxi, Hunan

　　The entire opera music is performed by the Central Opera House Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Yuan Ding, the chief permanent conductor of the Central Opera House.

The harp plucks the heartstrings of Cui Cui, the oboe and cello play the emotion of Nuo, and the bamboo flute, plate drum and other ethnic percussion instruments play the nostalgia, focusing on weaving the colorful world of Xiangxi, which contrasts the composer Yin Qing's passion. Ingenious.

"In 2014, we went to Western Hunan for the first time to listen to music. We listened to a lot of folk songs of the Tujia and Miao people, especially when we went to the mountains to hear that many old people sang very well, which was a great inspiration for creation. In operas , I incorporated a lot of Xiangxi music elements, and it is really difficult to make local music opera, so that people feel that it comes from the folk and has been sublimated."

　　The director of the play, Wang Xiaoying, believes that compared with Shen Congwen's original work, the opera "Border Town" has more dramatic tension, "When we move literary classics to the opera stage, we pursue more lyricism and freehand brushwork, and put the relationships and emotions of the characters here. The connotation and life experience are presented on the stage. We hope that the stage will be more lyrical and can convey the inner meaning of the border town. In addition, we must emphasize its drama. Cuicui is the continuation of her mother's life, and the reincarnation of this fate is in Presented on stage, it gives the audience a stronger and more intuitive feeling.”

　　Lead actor Lei Jia said with emotion, "There are three border towns in the world, one is in Xiangxi, Hunan, one is written by Mr. Shen Congwen, and the other is in Mr. Huang Yongyu's painting. I also hope that there will be another one that will appear in the music of the opera "Border Town" It appeared in the singing of 'Cuicui', 'Nuo Send' and others."

　　It is reported that the play will run until October 30.

At the same time, the "Mysterious Xiangxi, Dreaming of Border Town" cultural and tourism integration exhibition was held simultaneously in the theater hall of the Central Opera House. The exhibition introduced the beautiful scenery and profound culture of Xiangxi to the guests with vivid pictures and texts. Beautifully dressed in batik costumes The Miao girls of the Miao family dynamically display the charm of intangible cultural heritage, allowing the audience to gain an immersive experience of viewing exhibitions and performances.

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