Yuhuanfei, the grand master of Kunqu Opera, painting album

Author: Gong Xueping
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-08-01
Features: ★#8205;8th edition, hardcover, published by Shanghai Ci Shu Press.
Yu Zhenfei is a renowned master of Beijing and Kunqu opera in the modern era. Throughout his long artistic career, he accumulated extensive experience and drew upon the strengths of various schools, integrating the delicate and elegant performance style of Kunqu opera into Beijing opera, creating a refined and unique "scholarly aura" performance style. He also served as the (Principal) of Shanghai Conservatory of Drama, the (Director) of Shanghai Kunqu Opera Troupe, and the (Director) of Shanghai Beijing Opera House, where he organized and guided drama education, nurturing a generation of famous actors who became leading figures in various art troupes. During his tenure as the Director of the Kunqu Opera Revitalization Guidance Committee, he united many colleagues in the Kunqu opera world and completed the rescue and (organization) of numerous traditional Kunqu opera plays through various means, making outstanding contributions to the revitalization of Kunqu opera.
At the memorial meeting, many Kunqu opera artists who had received personal mentorship from Master Yu Zhenfei expressed deep gratitude as they recalled his warm teachings and touching life stories. At the symposium, experts engaged in lively discussions on Master Yu's Beijing and Kunqu opera performance art, his ideas on drama education, and how to better inherit, innovate, and develop Kunqu opera.
《Kunqu Opera Giant Yu Zhenfei》 features 950 photographs and over 40 poems, presenting a richly illustrated collection of Master Yu's artistic images from various historical periods, showcasing his unique artistic journey and inner world. Due to the loss of early written and visual materials of Master Yu during the Cultural Revolution, Shanghai Ci Shu Press, with the help of his wife Li Qinhua, vividly reflects his brilliant artistic life from a new perspective.
The entire album is divided into seven parts: "The Origin of Kunqu Opera," "Learning from Many Masters—Beijing and Kunqu Opera," "Staying in Hong Kong—Dedicated Efforts," and "Rejuvenating Art—Reaching the Realm of Perfection," among others. The timeline spans from Master Yu's birth in 1902 to his passing in 1993.