Chinanews.com, Fuzhou, March 9 (Ye Qiuyun) "The new generation of actors is underrepresented, and local operas generally face this problem." Lin Dehe, director of the Xiamen Gezai Opera Research Center (formerly known as: Xiamen Gezai Drama Troupe), said in an interview with reporters .
The final of the 16th Fujian Provincial Drama Narcissus Award started on March 1. According to the arrangement of the competition, the final will last for 12 days.
On the 7th, participating actors from Xiamen Art School and Xiamen Gezai Opera Research Center made their debut at Fuming Theater in Fuzhou City, with a strong local flavor of southern Fujian.
Gezai Opera, also known as Xiang Opera, also known as Zidi Opera, is one of the five major operas in Fujian. In 2006, it was selected as the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage in China.
It is mainly based on folk stories, and its vocals are spoken in the southern Fujian dialect. It is a precious cultural resource rich in local characteristics and international influence in the southern Fujian region.
An opera tone resonates on both sides of the strait.
Lin Dehe bluntly said that Gezai Opera has its roots in the mainland and was formed in Taiwan. It is a local opera jointly cultivated by people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.
With a short history of a hundred years, in the roundabout and melodious tunes, it uses local accents and sentiments to interpret the joys and sorrows of the world.
In 2008, "Butterfly's Love" co-created by Xiamen Gezai Opera Research Center and Taiwan Tang Meiyun Gezai Troupe appeared.
The theater circles on both sides of the strait called it "a milestone in the development of Gezai Opera", and the Taiwanese media even called it an "ice-breaking journey".
Lin Dehe said that since then, the exchanges between Gezai opera artists on both sides of the strait have become increasingly close.
Because of the "cross-strait" nature of Gezai Opera, the local opera genre has developed rapidly in just a hundred years.
Lin Dehe said with emotion that now that old actors are retiring in batches, it takes a long period of time to cultivate new opera talents. Who will succeed?
It's what the troupe has been worrying about.
"Next year, more than a dozen 'post-60s' actors like me will retire."
Yang Wanting (first from the right), a student from the Gezai Opera Troupe of Xiamen Art School, is arranging makeup and hair for her classmates.
Photo by Ye Qiuyun
No one, why play?
Opera talents cannot be broken, which is the consensus of all actors, musicians, and screenwriters.
In 2018, Xiamen Gezai Opera Research Center cooperated with Xiamen Art School to conduct six-year junior college training. In 2024, this group of students will graduate.
Zhuang Hairong, deputy director of the Xiamen Gezai Opera Research Center, told the reporter that in order to enable these students to grasp the essence of Gezai Opera as soon as possible, it can be said that they are cultivating the whole group.
The center sends excellent actors to the campus to teach them hand in hand. The way of "leading the profession with the profession, the merit with the play, and the new with the old" is very helpful for their growth.
One of Zhuang Hairong's students, Yang Wanting, a student of the "post-00s" Gezai Opera Troupe of Xiamen Art School, who is arranging makeup and hair for her classmates, participated in the performance of an excerpt of the Gezai Opera "Dingshan Crying Spirit" that afternoon, playing the role of Xue Dingshan.
As for what Zhuang Hairong said, "leading the profession with business, leading the merits with drama, and bringing the new with the old", Yang Wanting said that she has benefited a lot.
Zhuang Hairong is good at playing the role of a niche, and Yang Wanting also likes this line of work. Zhuang Hairong once directed Yang Wanting's "Eighteen Lovers" and "Dingshan Crying Spirit" and other opera selections.
Yang Wanting said: "From Mr. Zhuang, I have learned the charm of a female reverse role and the characteristics of the characters in the repertoire, as well as how to interpret the characters with singing and speaking."
Regarding how the new generation of actors work hard to "take the lead", Yang Wanting said that the knowledge taught by the teacher lays the foundation, and then absorbs new knowledge from outside. Only by superimposing the two can they go further and further.
The cultivation of new opera talents is very important, and it is also very necessary for Gezai Opera to reach the younger generation of audiences.
Zhuang Hairong said that the Xiamen Gezai Opera Research Center has been committed to making Gezai Opera accessible to more people, especially to the younger generation.
In recent years, the movement of Gezai Opera into campuses has been in full swing, and many primary schools in Xiamen have established Gezai Opera clubs.
There are also many overseas fans of Gezai Opera. Because they often go out to perform, Xiamen Gezai Opera Troupe was once rated as a "cultural export unit" by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Singapore is one of the main export destinations.
"The popularity of theater fans in Southeast Asia has given us great confidence to inherit and develop Gezai Opera." Lin Dehe revealed that they are planning the next performance trip of Gezai Opera to Singapore.
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