The audience saw a different kind of talent in “The Stingy Man” – Entertainment – China Industry Network

Original title: Three-hour performance with constant laughter (quote)

The audience saw a different kind of human art (theme) in “The Stingy Man”

Beijing Daily reporter Wang Run

A retro caravan full of “baggage”, a patchwork wandering troupe, a miser who loves money as much as his life, a comedy that is both classical and contemporary, the three-hour performance kept laughing. On April 19, Molière’s classic comedy “The Miser” directed by Lin Cong and Yang Jiayin was performed at the Beijing People’s Art Cao Yu Theater. Although the performance tells the story of a “stingy man”, the actors did not hesitate to give wonderful performances, and the audience did not hesitate to laugh and applaud. There was a joyful atmosphere on and off the stage.

The Human Art Stage reproduces the classic comedy of the 17th century

“Relatives, friends, and lovers, welcome to a beautiful place in the south of France to enjoy the drama “The Stingy Man”!” I saw that the stage of Beijing People’s Art Cao Yu Theater turned into a European-style stage with a strong retro color. , a caravan of wandering theater troupes also appeared. Actor Fu Jia is not only the troupe leader, but also plays the leading role “Abagong” in the “play within a play” “The Stingy Man”. He is a typical “stingy man” both in and out of the play. ghost”.

The stage design of the entire performance is cleverly integrated with the “play-within-a-play” performance. The actors walk into the audience and interact, breaking the traditional viewing relationship and giving the audience a sense of participation. There are endless jokes and baggage in the play, combined with various current popular “memes” and historical works of Beijing People’s Art Theatre, allowing the audience to complete this comedy journey with the creators and actors in knowing laughter. trip. During the curtain call, all the actors sang and danced, which was a rare sight on the Beijing People’s Art Stage. The audience clapped and swayed along.

Stills from “The Stingy Man”.Photo by Beijing Daily reporter Fang Fei

“The Stingy Man” was born in the 17th century. In 1959, it was staged on the people’s art stage as one of the plays dedicated to the tenth anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. It was staged again in the 1980s. This year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France, and Beijing People’s Art Theater is determined to rehearse the play in a new style. In terms of creation, this version of “The Stingy Man” is very innovative. It uses a “play within a play” to break up the complex text, and uses a unique and creative narrative to lead the audience to understand the stage image and explore the connotation of the characters. Close the distance between the character and the audience.

Both directors are comedy masters

Although everyone loves to watch comedies, comedies are actually very difficult to watch and perform. Even the world’s classic comedies that have been around for hundreds of years may not resonate with contemporary audiences because of their age. Therefore, creators need to explore the core of comedy while incorporating new expressions, so that classics can transcend time, space, and regions and still make contemporary audiences laugh. The success of Beijing People’s Art Theater’s version of “The Stingy Man” is inseparable from the show’s two directors, Lin Cong and Yang Jiayin.

As a director of Beijing People’s Art Theatre, Lin Cong has been influenced by two famous dramatists, his father Lin Zhaohua and his mother He Bingzhu, since he was a child. She is also one of the directors of the sitcom “My Family” and the director of “Family with Children”. This time she directed “The Stingy Man” to give full play to her comedy skills.

Yang Jiayin, who is also capable of directing and acting, can leave a deep impression even in a small role in various stage plays and film and television works. Especially playing the role of “Tang Tiezui” in Renyi’s “Tea House” has set an example for the younger generation of artists who can shoulder the “heavy responsibility of taking over”. Yang Jiayin is very happy about her first collaboration with Lin Cong. The two directors have a very consistent understanding of comedy. He said that he and Lin Cong wanted to apply a “play within a play” model to create a magical feeling in the theater, jumping in and out so quickly that sometimes people can’t tell the difference between the inside and outside of the play. Yang Jiayin is not worried that the audience will not understand it at all. “Today’s audiences have too many ways to receive information and have seen too many dramas. They know very well what is going on, and they feel that it is more effective than traditional methods. interesting.”

Across time and space without any sense of violation

“The Stingy Man” received laughter and applause from the audience and won a lot of praise. Some viewers commented: “A comedy that was written hundreds of years ago has been transformed into something that is both appropriate and not blunt. The laughter continued for three hours, and I saw the vitality and ability of the new generation of Beijing People’s Performing Arts actors. This play spans time and space, but it makes people feel It’s not inconsistent at all, and it shows that good themes have the vitality to bloom in any era and cultural background.” Some old theater fans were surprised: “I didn’t expect to see the style of absurd comedy in Renyi. It’s the first time. Although it is an old script, Renyi’s version is very cheerful, without translation accents, and uses new plots to dilute the rigidity of the stereotyped characters. “Many viewers also said: “This drama is suitable for family fun. ‘Abnormal Comedy’ allows us to see a different kind of human art.”

Feng Yuanzheng, director of the Beijing People’s Art Museum, was very satisfied after watching it and expressed his joy with a series of “good-looking” words. Yingda was full of praise after watching the performance. He believed that this kind of comedy with a funny “farce” style is exactly the style of French comedy. “The most important thing is the atmosphere of joyful gathering of young people on and off the stage, which is great!”