Chapter 37 The third part: "The Tale of the Red Lantern" with one chants and three sighs, from "I have a descendant" to full bloom

In 1963, the movie "My Descendants" was being released nationwide, and a "movie whirlwind" of "My Descendants" became more and more intense.In the streets and alleys, in institutions, factories and mines, people's main topic is talking about this movie, and everyone's blood is boiling and their emotions are high. Therefore, the Harbin Peking Opera Theater, which was close to the water, restored the original name "Revolution Has Its Descendants" based on this film literary script. Shi Yuliang, Wang Hongxi, and Yu Shaotian jointly wrote it and quickly adapted it into a modern one In Beijing opera, the famous Peking opera actor Yun Yanming plays Li Tiemei, Liang Yiming plays Li Yuhe, and Zhao Minghua plays Li Grandma.Shi Yuliang personally acted as the director.Because Yun Yanming played Li Tiemei on the Peking Opera stage for the first time, and because this modern Peking Opera was listed as the first among the "eight model operas" that Jiang Qing personally grasped during the "Cultural Revolution", he enjoys the "No. 1" of modern Chinese Peking Opera in terms of seniority. "Li Tiemei".

The Harbin Peking Opera Theater was in full swing. After working overtime day and night to catch up with this modern Peking Opera, it performed more than 100 performances in the local area without even a chance to breathe, which is enough to show the enthusiasm of the audience and the popularity of the play.Although movies and Peking opera are two completely different forms of artistic expression, the audience likes such stories and comes to watch them for the purpose of being deeply educated. Among them, the righteousness in the plot deeply affects the audience, Therefore, they also have a soft spot for modern Beijing operas adapted from movies. In June 1963, Premier Zhou Enlai accompanied the distinguished North Korean guests to visit Heilongjiang Province. "Revolution has its own descendants" held a grand welcome performance for the distinguished guests in Harbin, which also won warm applause from the North Korean guests.Li Tiemei, played by Yun Yanming, has a sweet appearance, solid singing skills, passionate performance, and a good grasp of character development. Premier Zhou Enlai praised her performance very much.After the performance, Premier Zhou personally rushed to the backstage to praise the actors one by one. Yun Yanming was deeply encouraged and couldn't think of any gift to present to Premier Zhou as a souvenir. Premier Zhou smiled and said to Yun Yanming : "Isn't the script you are holding the best gift?" Yun Yanming hurriedly handed the performance script to Premier Zhou, and earnestly asked him to give his valuable opinions.

Not long after, Premier Zhou really wrote a long letter to Yun Yanming himself in Beijing. In addition to expressing his great appreciation for the heroic feats of the Northeast people in the struggle against Japan in this Peking opera, he also said that he had put The script of this modern Peking opera was handed over to Chairman Liu Shaoqi, who was engaged in revolutionary work in the Northeast, and conveyed the details of "Li Tiemei touched the neighbor's house through the soil kang" that he proposed after reading the script. Think carefully.This detail does not appear in the movie, but in Peking Opera it is only a very small action designed through stage props and plots.Because Chairman Liu Shaoqi was engaged in revolutionary work in his early years, he once served as the secretary of the Manchuria Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China, and he has been engaged in underground work in the Northeast for a long time.At the end, Premier Zhou sincerely mentioned in his letter that for the long-term performance of this modern Peking opera, the crew must go deep into life, improve the script and perform better.Yun Yanming read Premier Zhou's letter carefully over and over again, and the warm current in his heart strengthened his confidence to play Li Tiemei well.

According to Premier Zhou’s instructions, the Harbin Peking Opera Theater temporarily suspended public performances of Peking Opera in order to rehearse this modern Peking Opera more solidly and touchingly. The crew, mainly composed of writers and directors, came to “Northern Manchuria” for the first time. Beian, Longzhen, Heihe and other places where the "Anti-Japanese War" once fought to experience life on the spot.These Peking opera actors, directors and other main creative personnel, eat, live, and work together with the local railway workers to carry out "three sames", from which they not only gradually understand and become familiar with their customs and living customs, but also learn from the common people's behavior in one fell swoop. Every movement, every word and deed, is seen in the eyes and remembered in the heart, to discard the rough and save the fine, and to make a choice. "Life is the source of creation", after more than a month of on-the-spot investigation, not only verified the untrue details that Chairman Liu Shaoqi proposed that the kang caves of two local residents in Northeast China could not be connected, but more importantly, they learned from the real In the observation and experience of life, I understand and understand many things that I didn't know before.It seems that Peking opera actors who are engaged in stage performances, like other artistic creation actors, must have the indispensable step of going deep into life and accumulating emotions.Everyone deeply understands that if you just rely on quick rehearsals and imitation performances, and take it for granted to perform out of real life, its artistic vitality will be greatly reduced and will not last long.Therefore, the director immediately changed this detail to "Li Tiemei went to the neighbor's house through the small window in the back room", so as to make this small plot more in line with real life.Subsequently, the Harbin Peking Opera Theater once again resumed the performance of this modern Peking opera. The performances performed by the actors on the stage had a significantly different perception. The vast audience who came here to watch it were even more amazed.The "red light" prop used by the heroes and heroines in the performance is a square railway signal light that was given to him by an old railway worker when he was experiencing life. needs.

The successful performance of modern Peking Opera by the Harbin Peking Opera Company also inspired the Aihuahu Opera Troupe far away in Shanghai and couldn't hold back.Ling Dake and Xia Jianqing adapted "The Revolution Has Its Descendants" into a modern Shanghai opera "Red Lantern", which was performed publicly in Shanghai in the same year.Not long after the performance, the Shanghai Opera script was passed on to Jiang Qing. After reading it, Jiang Qing expressed an unusually strong interest in it. Therefore, after the National Day in 1963, Lin Mohan, the vice-minister of the Ministry of Culture, instructed the chief director of the Chinese Peking Opera Company, A A, let him form a lineup for the rehearsal of the modern Peking Opera "The Story of the Red Lantern" at the China Peking Opera Theatre. The famous Xusheng actor Li Shaochun plays Li Yuhe, the famous Danjiao actor Du Jinfang plays Li Tiemei, the famous old Dan actor Gao Yuqian plays Grandma Li, and the famous painted face actor Yuan Shihai plays Hatoyama.In July 1964 of the second year, the Harbin Peking Opera Company's "Revolution Has Its Descendants" and the Chinese Peking Opera Troupe's "Red Lantern" were both modern Peking operas with the same content and different titles. Participated in the national modern Peking opera viewing and reporting performance held in Beijing. Two modern Peking operas competed on the same stage. The superb performances of the actors each have their own merits. On July 8, "People's Daily" published a review article signed by "He Man", enthusiastically praising the modern Peking opera dramas "Revolution Has Its Descendants" and "Red Lantern" for being "brave like the waves of the Yangtze River" in the Peking Opera revolution.

During the period of viewing and reporting on modern Peking Opera across the country, Jiang Qing once called all the crews of the two theaters together. She asked everyone to work together to adapt this modern Peking Opera, and arbitrarily decided to unify the title of the play. The titles of the films that have been staged are repeated, and "Red Lantern" is determined to be the unified and unchanged title.On a whim, Jiang Qing also changed the name of the traitor Wang Jincai inspector in the play to "Wang Lianju" for no reason. Stop the country touring performances, stop all the release of records, and stop all foreign guidance.These three "stops" undoubtedly pronounced the death sentence for this modern Peking Opera, which Harbin Peking Opera Theater has painstakingly rehearsed for a year and has successfully performed.Jiang Qing made it clear that Li Tiemei, the heroine in the original play, should be relegated to the second place, making way for Li Yuhe, the heroine in the play.Jiang Qing also said: "There can only be one Peking Opera script, there can only be one "Red Lantern", and the subject matter 'crash' cannot appear." The annotation symbols and signs of "Three Highlights" and "Gaoquan".Yun Yanming, who played Li Tiemei for the first time, of course couldn't figure it out, and she absolutely didn't agree with Jiang Qing's views and opinions. However, in the end, she still couldn't twist her thigh. She was so angry that she could only keep silent.The First Troupe of the Chinese Peking Opera Company completely followed Jiang Qing's intentions and immediately revised and adjusted the plot and the interrelationships between the characters.The Harbin Peking Opera Theater's "Revolution Has Its Descendants" was forced to die down and banned.

At the same time, Lin Mohan, then vice minister of the Central Propaganda Department and vice minister of culture, served as the head of the delegation. He hurriedly formed a special investigation group to go to Shanghai to observe the modern Shanghai opera "The Story of the Red Lantern" that was still being performed there. It draws on many merits of the modern Shanghai opera of the same name, and revises the original modern Peking opera script that has already been performed. At the beginning of 1965, the second issue of the Beijing "Red Flag" magazine published the script of the modern Peking opera "Red Lantern" signed by Weng Ouhong and A Jia based on the Shanghai opera of the same name by the Shanghai Aihua Shanghai Opera Troupe.