Chang Xiangyu's famous play segments

Author: Guo Guangyu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-05-01
Features: Celebrity Actors at Your Doorstep, Always by Your Side, Hum a Few Tunes When You're Free, Happiness Surpasses Immortality. Chang Xiangyu was born on September 15, 1923, in Donggou, Gongxian County (now Gongyi City), Henan Province. Her original name was Zhang Miaoling. At the age of nine, she studied acting under her father, Zhang Fuxian, and later became a disciple of Zhai Yanshen and Zhou Haishui, learning various roles including huadan (flower), xiaosheng (young male), and wusheng (martial male). She made her stage debut at the age of ten, ultimately specializing in dan roles. With the help of Mr. Wang Zhennan, she starred in the six-part West Chamber at the age of thirteen, gaining fame in Kaifeng. Originally trained in Xuyi tunes, she gradually blended Xudong and Xiangfu tunes during her performances, widely absorbing the strengths of various schools and styles, boldly innovating, and pioneering the reform of Yu Opera's vocal techniques. Later, due to illness, she could no longer perform martial roles and devoted herself more deeply to the performance arts of qingyi (female) and huadan (flower). During the Japanese invasion of China, she made her debut in the anti-war costume drama Beating the Landlord, demonstrating the national spirit of a patriotic artist. In 1938, she headed west to Chang'an, performing in Shaanxi and Gansu, where her reputation soared, earning her the title of "Queen of Yu Opera." In 1948, she founded the Xiangyu Drama School in Xi'an, dedicated to training young actors, which later became the Xiangyu Drama Troupe. In 1951, to support the "War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea," she led the troupe on a six-month tour of northwest and central China, performing for free. The income from these performances was used to donate a fighter jet named "Xiangyu Troupe Number," which was awarded by the China People's Anti-U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea General Assembly and the Cultural Department of the Northwest Military and Political Commission and other departments. In 1952, she participated in the National Opera Observation and Performance Competition, winning an honor award for her performance in The Ballad of Mulan. That same year, she traveled to Vienna to attend the World Peace Conference and visited countries such as the Soviet Union and Hungary. In 1953, she led her troupe to North Korea for a six-month performance to comfort the Chinese People's Volunteers and the Korean People's Army; in 1954, she spent four months performing for border guards and ethnic minorities in Xinjiang. Especially in 1979, during the Self-Defense War Against Vietnam, Chang Xiangyu's voice echoed across the Guangxi border. In December 1987, she funded the "Xiangyu Cup Art Award" with 220,000 yuan to reward outstanding talents in Henan's local opera. Over her 70 years in the arts, Chang Xiangyu has always demonstrated an ardent pursuit of artistry. Her singing style is expansive, unrestrained, and effortlessly versatile, reaching a high level of aesthetic refinement and artistic mastery. Her performances are vigorous, fresh, delicate, and unrestrained, forming the widely recognized "Chang School" style. Her masterpiece The Ballad of Mulan was filmed as an opera film as early as 1956. Other notable works include The Red Detachment of Women, The Red-Handed Maiden, The Broken Bridge, The Great Sacrifice, The Five Generations Requesting the Banner, and the modern drama The Red Lantern. In 1956, she served as the president of the Henan Yu Opera Theater. In the early 1980s of the 20th century, she also served as the president of the Henan Provincial Drama School, vice president of the China Theatre Association, president of the Henan Provincial Theatre Association, and advisor to the Henan Provincial Department of Culture. She is widely recognized as a master of Yu Opera in the opera world.