Chapter 179: Farewell My Concubine Premiere
The Capital Theatre was exceptionally lively today, and as soon as the few people entered the theatre they felt the huge sound field.
"Wow, what a show!"
When he was in the Institute of Literature and Art, the institute would occasionally organize students to watch plays, and Jiang Zilong himself would often go to watch plays, but today his feeling of watching "Farewell My Concubine" was particularly different, and he discovered it as soon as he entered the door.
As he walked down the stairs, his eyes scanned the seats on both sides and then he noticed something different.
In addition to the performance program, many people also had books in their hands. It seemed to be the novel of "Farewell My Concubine". While waiting for the performance, they actually spread out the books and discussed the plot and characters of the novel with people around them.
Jiang Zilong walked along the way and found a few people in almost every row. As everyone chatted, people in the front and back rows could even chat together, making the atmosphere lively.
This is why, even though everyone in the theater spoke in a very restrained voice, there was a huge sound field.
No matter how soft the voice is, it can’t stand the frequency of so many people talking!
"Weimin, your novel has a solid mass base." Jiang Zilong said enviously.
Although Jiang Zilong has been very popular in recent years and almost every one of his works has caused quite a stir, the sales of his novels have only been around for at most 300,000 or 400,000 copies.
In a situation like today where almost every audience has a novel in their hands, not to mention him, even those established literary predecessors cannot reach such a level.
Lin Weimin also noticed what Jiang Zilong said. He said modestly, "Maybe it's because of the drama adaptation. Everyone's enthusiasm is so high."
While they were talking, they each found their seats.
Mr. Ni Zhen from Yanying found his seat first, followed by Jiang Zilong, and then Lin Weimin.
His seat was still in the first row, and next to him were the leaders of the People's Art Theatre and several behind-the-scenes creators of the crew. In the same row were members of the People's Art Theatre's Art Committee, leaders of the Yanjing cultural community, and reporters from major newspapers...
Looking at the rows and rows, the audience are almost all people working in areas related to culture.
Mr. Wan also came today to support the premiere of "Farewell My Concubine" and sat next to Lin Weimin.
After Lin Weimin greeted him, he said hello to a few familiar people around him and then waited quietly for the performance to begin.
A few minutes later, the lights dimmed, meaning the performance was about to begin, and the originally huge sound field in the theater fell silent in a short period of time.
After the announcer announced the show, the curtain opened.
The first scene is the one where Xiaodouzi’s mother takes him to the opera troupe to ask for shelter. The actor who plays Xiaodouzi is seconded by the People’s Art Theatre from the Peking Opera Theater.
Li Wanfen plays Xiaodouzi's mother.
The People's Art Theatre pays great attention to the training of actors. Sometimes, a role that is not too important is often played by several people in turn, so that more actors can have the opportunity to practice. Mr. Jiao often did this when he was rehearsing "Tea House".
Li Wanfen on the stage is "Grandma Pang Si" in "Tea House". This role, which does not have important scenes, has been played not only by her, but also by several veteran actors such as Li Pin, Wu Shukun, and Jin Yaqin.
Jiang Zilong had read the novel Farewell My Concubine. When Lin Weimin asked him to submit manuscripts, he specifically mentioned that Farewell My Concubine would be published in People's Literature. He bought and read the April issue on the first day it was published.
Literati all have their own yardstick to judge the quality of a work, and Jiang Zilong is no exception.
After watching Farewell My Concubine, his first impression was that it was good, but after thinking about it carefully, he felt it was awkward.
This novel incorporates many elements, and any one of them, taken individually, would be considered a third-rate novel.
But the magic lies in the fact that although it is such a clichéd story, Lin Weimin was able to write it with spirit and vitality, and a feeling of grandeur and lingering sadness.
Especially Cheng Dieyi, who is crazy and cannot live without him, he is simply amazing!
Jiang Zilon feels that, at least in the novels of the past ten years, no work's description of the protagonist can be compared with Cheng Dieyi.
This character alone is enough to make "Farewell My Concubine" leave a significant mark in the history of contemporary novels.
On the stage, Xiao Douzi was covered in wounds. Under the whipping of his master, he repeated over and over again: "I am a girl, not a man..."
"Alas!" Jiang Zilong sighed softly. Dieyi, oh Dieyi, this is the beginning of your lifelong madness.
Ni Zhen sat in the middle of the theater, holding a notebook in his hand, his eyes fixed on the actors on the stage.
He is a teacher at Yanying. When watching a drama, he would habitually bring a pen and paper and write down the good processing, lines and performances of the actors in the play. This can be considered a kind of learning and also a kind of lesson preparation, which can be used when teaching students in the future.
He was quite far away from the stage, so he couldn't really see the actors' micro-expressions clearly. He was more able to see the actors' movements and hear their voices, and thus feel the characters' emotions.
As the plot continues to develop, Ni Zhen's attention gradually shifts to the protagonist Cheng Dieyi.
This actor acted really well.
Not only did he play the role of Cheng Dieyi, but he also showed the charm of Cheng Dieyi as a famous Peking Opera actor in the play.
Ni Zhen even suspected that this actor was actually a Peking Opera actor. He lowered his head and glanced at the performance program, which said that the actor who played Cheng Dieyi was
——Yang Lixin.
A name he had never heard of.
Ni Zhen had a feeling that this actor was going to become famous!
One play makes a star!
Just like what happened in "Farewell My Concubine".
Zhou Meng sat at the edge of the front rows. Tickets for the premiere of Farewell My Concubine were unexpectedly hard to get, and she had to ask someone for help to get this ticket.
This time she was not accompanied by her classmates, and there was only one ticket, which she did not have time to enjoy.
Ever since she entered the theater, her eyes had been searching the front rows.
Teacher Lin is the screenwriting teacher of the People's Art Theatre. He will definitely come to today's premiere, and his seat will definitely be in the front two rows.
After waiting for a long time, she finally saw Teacher Lin shortly before the show started.
Zhou Meng was in a conflicted mood. She knew that even if she saw Teacher Lin, what would happen? But she just couldn't help wanting to see him.
The last time I wrote to Teacher Lin, he only replied once and never replied again. Zhou Meng felt a little discouraged, but still continued to write to him at the frequency of one letter every half a month.
Whether you reply or not is your business, but whether I write or not is my business.
She looked at Lin Weimin's figure and felt inexplicably angry.
At this time, the performance began, and Zhou Meng's attention temporarily shifted from Lin Weimin to the stage.
Cheng Dieyi on the stage was crazy and he shouted to his senior brother: "We agreed to spend a lifetime together. One year, one day, one hour less, it doesn't count as a lifetime."
Zhou Meng couldn't control her tears and they fell down. It was clearly just a line, but she heard Cheng Dieyi's stubbornness and infatuation. At this moment, she felt the same way as Cheng Dieyi.
The drama on stage entered the second half, with twists and turns in the plot.
Xiaolou betrayed Dieyi, Dieyi betrayed Xiaolou, Xiaolou betrayed Juxian, Sier betrayed Dieyi...
Brother Xun once said in "On the Collapse of Leifeng Pagoda Again": "Tragedy is to destroy the valuable things in life for people to see."
This sentence is often quoted in later generations, and it is modified as: "Tragedy is when beautiful things are torn into pieces for people to see."
The meaning is clear. To sum up, tragedy is the disillusionment of all beauty.
Cheng Dieyi's life is far from perfect, but he also has his own spring.
He practiced hard for ten years off stage and became famous overnight on stage;
He and his senior brother had a deep relationship and agreed to sing opera for the rest of their lives;
He took in the orphan, hoping that he would have a taste of the food God had given him...
But in the end, all these good things are just illusions.
They were shattered one by one in front of Cheng Dieyi's eyes, making him heartbroken but helpless.
The only thing he can decide is his own destiny.
He was fed up with the betrayal and misery in this world, so he chose to put on a costume and leave the brightest light of his life on the stage.
"Die Yi!"
On the stage, Duan Xiaolou shouted at the top of his lungs.
Countless audience members couldn't help but burst into tears, and some emotional female comrades even burst into tears.
The three-hour-long drama finally ended. Duan Xiaolou was still holding Cheng Dieyi on the stage. The theater was silent except for the crying of some lesbians, which made the crying sound particularly clear.
Yang Lixin and the actor who played Duan Xiaolou on the stage were already accustomed to such scenes. They just waited quietly, one lying down and the other holding, waiting for the audience to come out of the sad atmosphere.
After about three or four minutes, the audience finally calmed down and the crying of the lesbians gradually subsided.
Some audience members began to applaud spontaneously, and some stood up while clapping, expressing their love and admiration for the drama.
More and more audience members stood up in the theater, and the applause became more and more enthusiastic, reaching its climax like a tsunami.
At this time, Yang Lixin finally stood up and, together with Duan Xiaolou, bowed to the audience. Then the other actors walked from the side curtain to the center of the stage and bowed to the audience.
This was a glorious moment for the actors, who enjoyed the long-lasting, warm and heartfelt applause from thousands of audiences. Everyone's hearts were filled with pride and gratitude for the drama "Farewell My Concubine".
Until the actors finished their curtain calls and the stage curtain slowly drew up, the audience's applause continued. The applause lasted for more than ten minutes. The audience expressed their love for "Farewell My Concubine" in this way.
Such a situation is extremely rare in the history of the People's Art Theatre.
Ouyang Shanzun, who was sitting next to Lin Weimin, leaned close to his ear and said loudly, "Teacher Lin, this play is done!"
Amid the thunderous applause, Lin Weimin understood what Ouyang Shanzun meant.
It’s fine, just like “Teahouse”, “Thunderstorm” and “Longxugou”!
"The People's Art Theatre has another classic work!"
Mr. Wan muttered to himself as he looked at the curtain that had been drawn on the stage, with a glimmer of hope in his eyes.
(End of this chapter)
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