China News Agency, Beijing, January 16th: Concubine Yu and Cleopatra, what is the difference between the beauty of women in Eastern and Western dramas?
——Interview with Wei Haimin, a disciple of the Mei School and Taiwanese Peking Opera performer
China News Agency reporter Li Hanxue
As the eldest disciple of Mei Baojiu, the descendant of the Mei School of Peking Opera, Taiwanese Peking Opera artist Wei Haimin not only presents classic female characters in Mei School repertoires such as Concubine Yang and Mu Guiying on the stage, but also portrays female characters adapted from Greek classics in new dramas. The Loulan girl in the tragedy "Medea", and even the "bad woman" in the traditional concept—such as Cao Qiqiao in "The Story of the Golden Lock".
From the Mei school's "either fairy or queen", elegant and innocent female characters, to diverse women who cross cultures and have different personalities, China News Agency "Dongxi Wen" recently exclusively interviewed Wei Haimin on this, discussing the beauty of women in different aesthetics of Eastern and Western dramas, ancient and modern. .
The interview transcript is summarized as follows:
China News Agency reporter: As a descendant of Mei School, how do you think Master Mei Lanfang interprets women in Chinese classical aesthetics? Why can it give people an elegant and pure feeling?
Wei Haimin:
In 2021, when I created the one-man show "The Millennium Stage", I especially used the two roles of Yang Guifei in Master Mei Lanfang's "Taizhen Gaiden" and Mu Guiying in "Mu Guiying in Command" to express my love for Mei School art. The characteristics of the characters created by Master Mei observed in the book.
Master Mei Lanfang was born in the late Qing Dynasty, but it was during the period of the Republic of China that Peking Opera was no longer restricted to the royal family of the Qing Dynasty, but directly based on ordinary audiences.
The whole society seeks innovation and change, which is different from the openness of the old era.
In the past, dan roles were mostly supporting roles in Peking opera, but under the creation of artists led by Mei Lanfang, dan has become the protagonist of dramas.
As for the male role, the completely new sense of mystery from being a man disguised as a woman creates an aesthetic distance and a stylized space.
A wax figure of the drunken concubine Mei Lanfang exhibited at Madame Tussauds Beijing.
Photo by Xiong Ran
In the 1920s, entertainment was not so diverse, but there were records, which enabled the creation of the golden period of Peking Opera to spread.
In 1927, Master Mei Lanfang was selected as one of the Four Famous Danes in the evaluation held by "Suntian Times" for "Taizhen Gaiden".
This play is very bold in terms of material selection, for example, Huaqing gives a bath, such a "bath" plot, Master Mei Lanfang has a way to delicately lay out and interpret it as a key scene.
With a completely innovative singing style, Master Mei carefully laid out the shyness of the imperial concubine; the steamy atmosphere of Huaqing Pool fully displayed the imagination space of a peerless beauty for future generations.
Master Mei Lanfang is male. He symbolizes the nude body of a noble concubine with a plain skirt and white gauze, completely sublimating it into a visual beauty that satisfies the imagination of the audience.
A section of "Listening to the Palace", with a melodious singing voice, elegantizes the "color", creating a kind of elegant and graceful style, which makes people feel the character's icy muscles and bones, a kind of whiteness and cleanness in the bones.
This kind of presentation of the character's clean and true nature is still vivid until Master Mei Lanfang's final work "Mu Guiying in Command".
By 1959, Mei Lanfang had not created for a long time. He drew materials from Henan Bangzi opera, and transformed the old Mu Guiying, who had been neglected by the imperial court for many years, into a very classic "Holding Prints" a scene.
Under She Taijun's persuasion, Mu Guiying understood that when she returns to her original intention and only asks what she can do for the country, the cold reception of the court in the past or the fact that she has not been on the battlefield for more than 20 years is no longer a problem.
Unbelievably, Master Mei did not directly express this leap and transformation of state of mind in words, but drew inspiration from "Jiang Wei Watching the Array", performed in the form of pantomime, and purely danced to illustrate Mu Guiying's thoughts.
In 2004, Mei Baojiu (the youngest son of Mei Lanfang) and Ma Jinfeng (right), a well-known Henan opera artist, performed "Mu Guiying in Command" on the same stage.
Photo by Jiang Jianhua
When Mu Guiying finally sang "Could it be said that I have no loyalty for the country and the people", the character's clear and clean mind has unspeakable moving power.
Master Mei has kept this pure glass heart all his life, and it is also reflected in the characters he creates.
Fortunately, "Mu Guiying in Command" has become the Mei School play that I have performed the most, and I am also eager to do my part in purity.
Reporter from China News Agency: You have been immersed in the classical Chinese performing arts of opera for many years. How do you understand the beauty of women in Chinese classical aesthetics? How is it different from the shaping and aesthetics of women in Western dramas?
Wei Haimin:
Opera has comprehensive requirements for actors, unlike Western classical performing arts which are divided into opera, ballet, etc., and the characters are shaped by the perfection of voice and body.
Women in Chinese opera cannot satisfy the audience with their sweet voices alone. They must also have a sense of visual and physical beauty and a graceful figure.
It seems that the Chinese do not believe that people have limitations, and the requirements for the beauty of opera actors are not only comprehensive but also omnipotent.
Everything is beautiful.
Visitors watch the "Sword Dance Flowing Fragrance--The 100th Anniversary Exhibition of Mei Lanfang's Classic Drama "Farewell My Concubine"" at the Mei Lanfang Memorial Hall in Beijing.
Photo by Tian Yuhao
In addition, I have a very strong feeling that the perception of women's "sexiness" is very different between the East and the West.
I once arranged a "Cleopatra and Her Clowns", telling the story of Cleopatra.
Cleopatra is a very beautiful and wise female emperor in Western stories.
When I played this role, I felt that the "sexiness" of women in the Western context actually exudes in all aspects of this woman, such as her speech and actions.
In the eyes of Orientals, this may be called "showing off" coquettishness, but Westerners seem to regard the sexyness of the body as a very natural thing.
This sexy is not a derogatory term, but a commendatory term, and it is a style that can be seen in women.
In China, although the old saying goes that "food and sex are sex", but in various dynasties, in order to prevent the disorder of the relationship between men and women, we seem to always regard "sexy" as "not allowed to happen", especially in dramas.
Although you can still see the description of women's amorous feelings in Fengyue places in the poems of the past dynasties, it seems that it is absolutely forbidden to talk about this in normal people. I think this is a very different place between China and the West.
The female beauty I understand from Master Mei Lanfang's plays lies in the way she moves her hands and feet to make her feel like a spring breeze.
For example, Teacher Mei Baojiu has always told me that the beauty of Yu Ji lies in her beauty in Xiang Yu's eyes. Even if Xiang Yu is down and out, she still greets her with a smile. This kind of tolerance, generosity and gentleness is what makes Xiang Yu charming.
This is probably the presentation of beauty under different cultures.
In 2008, Mei Baojiu (left), the son of Peking Opera master Mei Lanfang, visited Taiwan. When giving a speech at Taipei University of Science and Technology, he performed "Farewell My Concubine" at the request of fans. His Taiwanese female disciple Wei Haimin (right) accompanied him and studied hard try to figure out.
Photo by Geng Jun
Reporter from China News Service: Among the roles you have played in new operas in recent years, there are "Lady Macbeth", "Loulan Girl", "Wang Xifeng" and "Cao Qiqiao". They are all characters with very strong personalities, even distorted or vicious characters, completely different Kind, generous, and gentle female characters often seen in traditional operas. Has this deductive experience also brought you shocks and contradictions?
Wei Haimin:
These female characters are traditionally called "bad women", but to me they are closer to women with personality.
The Loulan Girl, which premiered in 1993 and was adapted from the ancient Greek tragedy Medea, is a newly created play that I have performed repeatedly for decades.
When I was young and first took on this role, I also wondered, why should I show the audience a dark heart that kills children?
Later, it became more and more felt that everyone had grief in their hearts, and there was a side that felt let down and abandoned.
Perhaps it is impossible for the audience to take Medea-style revenge, but in the process of watching the drama, the injured part of themselves can be vented and sublimated through the role.
"The Story of the Golden Lock", adapted from Zhang Ailing's novel, is the play I polished the most.
On the one hand, Cao Qiqiao is controlled by fate, and partly in her own hands, but she has no ability to take responsibility for her own choices.
In order to three-dimensionally present Qiqiao's state of mind from young to old, and finally distorted and perverted, I made several designs for her personality.
Her family used to run a sesame oil shop, and there were only her brother and sister-in-law, who were proud and sociable.
Facing marriage, Qiqiao resolutely chose a noble family, but she didn't expect that the title of the second wife of the principal house would bring her a lifetime of disillusionment.
Qiqiao always fights back with sharp teeth, she never admits defeat, everything that goes wrong is the fault of others, and she refuses to accept her fate.
Wei Haimin (right) plays Cao Qiqiao in the Peking Opera "The Story of the Golden Lock".
Photo by Zhang Lijun
From Cao Qiqiao's point of view, her control over her children makes perfect sense and is out of goodwill.
When I analyze these psychology thoroughly, and then create characters, the scale is relatively easy to handle.
Later, many people told me that they saw their own mother in Cao Qiqiao, who I played.
Too many mothers cling to their children all their lives, forcing their lifetime grievances on the next generation in the name of love.
I deeply feel that behind every difficult relationship in this life, there are lessons that must be learned.
Drama is my mentor, teaching me how to spend my life; as long as I focus, I will get a new understanding of life.
China News Agency reporter: In your opinion, why is it so important to explore and shape more diverse female roles?
Wei Haimin:
In the era of master Mei Lanfang, the distance between men enabled him to create many extremely beautiful women in a stylized way in terms of artistic techniques.
Each of the four famous dancers has a different voice and image, and the characters they portray are also different, so a style can be established when the gender is switched.
However, when female actors dress up and perform, their voices and figures are actually quite similar, and there is not much room for talking about the establishment of image style.
As a woman, what I have uniquely is the real life experience of women and the modern situation, which also makes me better at analyzing human nature.
For actors in our era, I think the most important thing is to dig out the inner nature of women, how to dig out the various spiritual aspects of women.
Drama follows the times. People of different times have different life experiences. As an actor, I have to think about what audiences in this era need and what new looks people have.
In 2018, the special exhibition "Wei Haimin and They" was held at the Taiwan Opera Center.
The special exhibition takes Wei Haimin's diverse appearances in opera roles as the theme, showing this ever-changing Tsing Yi "Life is like a play • Drama is like life".
The picture shows Wei Haimin at the special exhibition.
Photo by Zhang Yu
I feel that today, it seems that women are less restricted, but there is still a lot of space to truly understand the inner nature of women. There are still many places where women are misunderstood, and many women are still imprisoned and ignored.
Many evaluations of women are simplified.
And this world needs the coordinated energy of yin and yang to create a peaceful and beautiful society.
Of course, the so-called negative energy does not only refer to the power of women, it refers to the power of tolerance, compassion and gentleness among human beings.
In 2007, Wei Haimin, the descendant of Taiwan's Mei School, joined hands with his master Mei Baojiu to perform the classic "Drunken Concubine" on the same stage.
Photo by Yang Grace
My own life experience has also become the nutrient for performing dramas.
I grew up in a family that was not particularly happy in the secular sense. When I was about fifty years old, I felt more and more that theater was a kind of "mirror image".
The life choices made by many female characters may be what the audience wants to do but cannot, but the characters do it for them.
Actors are emotional healers at heart, creating a journey that the audience can experience together.
Experience brings awareness, and knowing more about women's inner being can bring about understanding and reconciliation.
(Finish)
Respondent profile:
Wei Haimin, an internationally renowned Peking Opera artist, descendant of the Mei (Lanfang) School, and Guoguang Opera Troupe lead the lead role.
He was taught by Zhou Mingxin when he was young, and by Qin Huifen when he was a child. After graduation, he was taught by Chen Yongling and Tong Zhiling.
In 1991, he joined Meimen and became the first student of Mr. Mei Baojiu.
Wei Haimin has a profound tradition and is deeply rooted in the essence of the Mei School. He is good at portraying and interpreting different roles. The stage characters he plays span genres and travel through ancient and modern times, and are highly recognized by theater fans and performing arts circles around the world.
He is good at performing classic dramas of Mei School such as "Mu Guiying in Command", "The Drunken Concubine", "The Legend of the White Snake", "The Phoenix Returns to the Nest", and "Farewell My Concubine".
Wei Haimin not only specializes in classical repertoire, but also creates a model of contemporary opera performance.
Including: "Contemporary Legend Theatre", "City of Desire", "Lou Lan Girl"; "Guoguang Opera Troupe", "Wang Xifeng's Havoc in Ningguo Mansion", "The Story of the Golden Lock", "Quick Snow and Sunny", "Meng Xiaodong", "Eighteen Arhats" and so on.
In 2009, he cooperated with the internationally renowned director Robert Wilson in "Olando"; in 2011, he starred in Bai Xianyong's adaptation of the drama "A Dream in the Garden"; in 2021, he published "The Millennium Stage, but I Haven't Lived Much".