Six friends are hanging out on a Friday evening: The seafood is
plentiful and the conversation is flowing. One girl, wearing
big-hooped earrings, a trendy velvet jacket and a good deal of
carefully applied makeup, describes her recent night at a small
theater with great gusto.
"Let's go tonight," says a young man who wants to buy tickets
immediately, in case the show is sold out.
Drama in Beijing is no longer the preserve of top-billing,
professional artists at the Peking Opera House. Small-theater
dramas have arrived and are attracting young urban Chinese,
normally found drinking at Starbucks, wearing Nike fashion and
blogging obsessively.
During the Christmas, New Year and Spring Festival period, big
cities in China are preparing for another hectic season of theater
performances and there is certainly no shortage of variety.
The Beijing Children's Art Theater is usually a place for puppet
shows and children's plays, but this winter the stalls are packed
with young couples, chattering college students, and rarely seen
celebrities watching one of the hottest shows in town.
Madame Bovary is Me, is innovative Hong Kong director Edward
Lam's adoption of Gustave Flaubert's classic Madame Bovary. Lam set
the stage of Madame Bovary in modern Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the
Chinese mainland, and focuses on social celebrities and upper class
women.
"Everybody could be Madame Bovary," says a 22-year-old girl from
Beijing, surnamed Zhang. "Through the depiction of these familiar
Bovarys, we identify ourselves." She says going to small theaters
has become her, as well as her friends' habit after work.
"Small theater drama will definitely be a part of our Christmas
program," she says.
Just around the block, the Beijing East Pioneer Theater is also
filled to capacity for the return performance of the highly
successful Two Dogs' View on Life, from director Meng Jinghui.
Audiences explore some of the big questions facing Chinese society
from a canine's perspective in this new cutting-edge drama directed
by Meng, an avant-garde Chinese director and playwright.
Two Dog's View of Life still wins applause from audiences. With
a small stage and a chair, this two-hander shows off modern China,
delivered in Beijing dialect.
"The two dogs at the center of play look at all kinds of
everyday issues, from online relationships to weight loss
campaigns, poisonous food to traffic jams, and even sky-high
education fees," says Chi Le, a member of the audience.
Chinese drama has witnessed a revival since 1998 and the trend
continues.
"There is fair weather ahead for Chinese drama," says Fu Weibo,
a sales manager in Beijing People's Art Theater. Most of the people
in the audience are between the age of 20 to 30.
Where regular theaters seat 1,000 or more people, the
mini-theaters typically hold 200 to 300. The advantages offered by
these spaces are obvious: Audiences sit closer to the stage, so
they can more easily form an intimacy with performers and more
easily immerse themselves in the plot. Furthermore, the small
stages allow directors to more easily customize set dcor to
different audiences.
Unlike traditional theater, avant-garde works can explore a
variety of other genres. Directors and scriptwriters, such as Lin
Zhaohua, Meng Jinghui and Guo Shixing, have worked to spice up
their shows by introducing many new elements, such as dance,
popular music, folk ballads and even operatic singing. Most
importantly, they load their productions with real-life topics.
Leading theater director Meng Jinghui's on-stage exploits have
stirred up a storm of Chinese experimental drama in recent
years.
"In my opinion, the most appealing part of Two Dog's View of
Life is the way the two leading actors challenge the traditional
acting style," he says.
"As they integrate Western elements into an Eastern performance
style, they bring out something quite local, quite unique. They
express the feelings of people in contemporary life through their
performance."
But the play pushes the envelope even further. It has no
pre-written script, no set scenes and possibly no plot. The two
actors in the cast, Liu Xiaoye and Chen Minghao, created the
concept seven years ago.
"This drama has no setting or background. We simply integrate
punk and crazy acting," he says.
"Drama is above all for the audience's enjoyment. While it is
easy to wear the mask of obscurity and equivocation, it is tough to
really communicate with the audience.
"We have broken a lot of the existing rules of performance and
created our own unique style to speak people's minds."
The play has a lot of modern elements, which arouse young
people's responses, such as the punk rock theme song, I Wanna Be
Your Dog.
Without a big budget and major stars, small-theater dramas are
winning not only applause from critics and audiences but are also
making money.
"I don't think small-scale productions are inferior to
traditional dramas," Meng says.
"It depends on your perspective. Nowadays a lot of people are
under enormous pressure and thus are prone to be moody. This is not
something to be ashamed of.
"On the contrary, this trend shows a demand that provides
considerable space for nourishing our spirit. We make our own
choices."
Ranging from 50 to 200 yuan (US$7-US$27), the low ticket price is
another reason why small theater drama is getting more popular
among young people.
Many drama production companies are also targeting the holiday
season market, bringing new or re-played dramas.
Taiwan theater director Stan Lai offers his new play, Total
Woman, featuring Taiwan's top comedian Fang Fang, popular talk-show
host Ah-Ya, and Yang Ting from the Chinese mainland.
Although Total Woman debuted in Taipei as early as 2005, Lai is
tailoring it for the mainland audience particularly during the
Christmas season.
Stan Lai is considered as the most influential voice in
Chinese-language theater. His last stage drama, Secret Love in
Peach Blossom Land, was a great success.
(China Daily December 25, 2007)
