More and more young people are flocking to the theater to listen to "Xipi Flowing Water" and enjoy "singing, reciting, doing, and fighting". Why do they love Peking Opera so much? Young people exclaim, 'There's nothing else, Peking Opera is so beautiful!' This word 'beauty' embodies the external charm and inner spirit of an art form. It is not by chance that people feel so deeply about the word 'beauty'. In the past two years, the beauty of Peking Opera has been constantly explored, displayed, and spread in classrooms, theaters, and on screens, touching the hearts of young people. The encounter between traditional culture and young people's "breaking through the wall" is joyful. But we still need to discuss: how to make every audience member who may only approach Peking Opera out of curiosity become a true fan? How to continuously unleash the vitality and affinity of Peking Opera in the collision of tradition and modernity? With questions in mind, the reporter visited some Peking Opera troupes to explore the unique artistic charm of the Chinese nation. In young actors and audiences, the future of Peking Opera can be seen in the old town of Tianjin, where there is a Qing Dynasty courtyard with a Lingnan style - the Guangdong Guild Hall. The magnificent theater building in the courtyard, after a hundred years, still echoes with melodious singing. Wan Lin, a young actress from Tianjin Peking Opera Theater, comes here once a week to perform. He couldn't be more familiar with this stage. "You see, the caisson right above the stage is square outside and round inside, the arch of wooden architecture is tenoned, and the spiral is upward. This structure can play the role of closing and amplifying sound. Actors sing on stage, and their voices spread to every corner of the theater. Peking Opera masters Sun Juxian, Mei Lanfang, and Xun Huisheng have all performed here Wanlin introduced. On the same stage, overlapping centuries of time, the ancient inheritance relationship still lives on in this' one table, two chairs'. Since 2012, Guangdong Guild Hall has become a youth talent practice base for Tianjin Peking Opera Theater, where many young actors who aspire to perform well take the stage and hone their skills. Some people believe that there is a natural barrier between traditional Beijing opera and young people. Can the young actors on stage take on the lead? Can the young audience in the audience sit still? Let's take a glimpse from the following set of data. Over the course of 12 years, we have performed more than 400 times and trained over 50 outstanding young actors, with an average age of 27. The curtain opens, actors make their debut, and traditional old plays are revitalized. The attendance rate is 80%, with 70% being young audiences. Not long ago, at the performance of the classic Peking Opera "Phoenix Returns to the Nest" at the Tianjin Peking Opera Theater, there were fans singing softly and young people who were mesmerized by it. After the curtain call, young actress Yan Wenqian interacted warmly with both new and old Beijing opera audiences. The same play was also performed last year, but there weren't so many young faces in the audience, "Yan Wenqian still remembers vividly. Behind the numbers lies the exploration and adherence of Peking Opera artists to the true essence of art. Talent is the foundation, and the team is the key. Our theater relies on unremitting long-term investment in cultivating young actors, in order to maintain a continuously complete talent pool and a constantly emerging situation of 'producing people and acting', "said Wang Zeqi, the director of Tianjin Peking Opera Theater. For the art of Peking Opera, in addition to cultivating young actors, young audiences also need to be trained. It is reported that at least half of the audience at the Guangdong Guild Hall are middle-aged and young people. This is the hope for the future of Peking Opera art, and also the ideal state for the continuous inheritance of Peking Opera art. Performing traditional classics with youthful faces and cultivating a group of young audiences is also actively promoted by the National Peking Opera Theater. In the past two years, the National Peking Opera Theatre has boldly employed young actors to play major roles and hone their skills in key productions. For example, the average age of the actors in the youth version of 'Yang Men Female Generals' is less than 30 years old. This spring, the inexperienced Jiang Meiyi received the performance task to play the lead role of Mu Guiying, which was undoubtedly a challenge for her. The hospital leaders invited several Peking Opera performers to provide guidance and rehearsals for young actors, including hand, eye, body, posture, and every move. Dong Yuanyuan, the successor of the Mei Sect, accompanied Jiang Meiyi in the training room sweating profusely. After three months of rehearsals, on August 15th, the youth version of "Yang Men Female Generals" premiered at the Mei Lanfang Grand Theater. It is pleasing to see that there are many young viewers and elderly people with graying hair in the audience. After the performance, there were still fans who couldn't forget her graceful singing style. Afterwards, the play was staged in Shanghai and Wuhan, and Jiang Meiyi had become accustomed to scenes that were shared by people of all ages. Zhang Yifan, a lecturer in the School of Literature, Renmin University of China, is a real opera fan. He accumulated a thick list of performance programs and packed them into several boxes to commemorate 22 years of watching. As he looked through the performance information records, he recalled: "The first time he entered the theater was in April 2001, when he was entrusted by his grandfather to buy tickets and accompany him to watch the performances of young Peking Opera actors from Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai. He remembered Jiang Yan's" Four Lang Visiting His Mother and Sitting in the Palace "by Zhejiang Peking Opera Troupe, Wang Peiyu's" Changing Children in the Legality "by Shanghai Peking Opera Theater." Since teaching at Renmin University of China in 2009, Zhang Yifan has seen the atmosphere of Peking Opera growing in the campus. He believes that this is related to the pilot work of introducing Peking Opera into primary and secondary school classrooms in 2008. Beijing opera has become an easy subject for primary and secondary school students during their growth stage, and this artistic influence accompanies them into university campuses. In the Internet era, Peking Opera was seen more and loved more at night. Yan Wenqian ended her performance, took off her makeup, and hurried to take the bus back to Beijing. The next day, she had to attend a "youth research class". On the way, she recalled to the reporter: In the past, when performances were held, the big curtain was lifted and the elderly enthusiastically attended, while there were very few young people. She gradually realized that she needed to take on more responsibilities, expand the influence of Peking Opera, and let young people also understand it. In 2020, she registered a short video account to promote and popularize Peking Opera in a way that is more in line with the preferences of young people today. Editing rehearsal behind the scenes, sharing makeup stills, and explaining opera makeup... On the platform, there are more fans following her. Yan Wenqian often browses the comments and messages of her fans, and those praises and encouragement are tangible gains for her, while also strengthening her determination to promote Peking Opera. Currently, under the influence of new media and technologies, traditional culture has gained new opportunities for inheritance and development. In other words, it is timely to promote and popularize traditional Chinese opera through new media Guo Mei, a professor of traditional Chinese opera at the School of Literature and Communication of Hangzhou Normal University, said. The innovation of communication methods aims to attract people to enter the theater, interact with actors face-to-face, deeply understand Beijing Opera culture, and ultimately promote secondary dissemination Zhang Yifan said. Face to face communication adds a more warm connection between actors and audiences. Guo Xiao, a young actor from the National Peking Opera Theatre, shared a heartwarming story with reporters. A girl in her twenties walked into the Mei Lanfang Grand Theater because she liked Guo Xiao. Guo Xiao clearly remembers watching two performances, on September 30th and October 3rd. After the performance, the girl kept waiting for her at the backstage entrance, as if waiting for an old friend. I always hope that everyone can turn their personal love for me into a love for Peking Opera Guo Xiao couldn't help but sigh. How can young audiences watch a play when they actively enter the theater, and what are the tricks involved? Some of the audience nowadays are very new, and when they first come into contact with Peking Opera, they feel confused and confused. When others praise it, they are very confused. I often encounter this situation during performances Yan Wenqian candidly admitted. And according to old ticket enthusiasts, there used to be a group of authentic "old listeners" in old style theaters in Beijing, who didn't come to watch plays, but to listen to them. Close your eyes and listen to the rhythm and melody. Upon hearing the highlights, not only did they applaud, but they also cheered loudly. After listening to a play more than ten times, I can already sing it myself. Although Beijing Opera has a high artistic content and a relatively high threshold for appreciation, as long as you calm down, slowly feel it, and listen carefully to our lyrics, you will feel that it is not so difficult. Especially starting with Beijing opera that is suitable for all ages, such as some familiar New Year's dramas, and gradually appreciating them in a storytelling form, you can start from the basics and enjoy them Yan Wenqian said. In fact, even if one cannot fully understand Peking Opera, it does not affect the appreciation of its beauty Guo Xiao mentioned some plays that he often performs abroad, such as "Nao Tian Gong", "San Cha Kou", "Yandang Mountain", etc., all of which focus on martial arts movements. Even if they don't speak the same language, foreign friends still enjoy watching them with great interest. For example, humorous plays such as' Phoenix Returns to the Nest 'are also suitable for new audiences to enjoy. To truly promote science popularization and make more people fascinated by the collision between traditional and modern Peking Opera, the future direction of Peking Opera is still ongoing, and all those who love Peking Opera are exploring step by step. How can we understand such a profound and extensive art from shallow to deep? For many years, whenever there were opera performances in Hangzhou, Guo Mei always tried to find time to bring some students who were interested in opera to the venue. When she arrived at the theater, she naturally explained while watching. Explain the profession, attire, and appearance one by one; Lying fish, grabbing the back, walking on the circular field, explain one by one; More emphasis should be placed on introducing the actors and plot. Unfortunately, there aren't many opportunities like this, "Guo Mei said. Guo Mei secretly made up her mind to truly promote science popularization. In the early years, she collected URLs of traditional Chinese opera websites, organized classic songs and famous lyrics, downloaded documentaries about the history of opera and burned them into CDs, unconsciously accumulating a lot of content to share with students... In order to give more people the opportunity to experience this ancient art, starting from July 2023, she tried to use new media social platforms to introduce the history and basic knowledge of opera, such as what "reverse string" is, the past and present of "Five Women's Birthday Worship"... So far, she has published more than 200 original videos. Truly 'understanding' Peking Opera is a multidimensional and deep level artistic experience process, covering a comprehensive understanding and perception of performance skills, aesthetic values, philosophical concepts, and even national spirit. In view of this, Guo Mei suggests lowering the threshold for audiences to enter the theater for the first time. Peking Opera troupes can attract young people to enter the theater on the basis of popularizing knowledge. For example, explaining the plot and introducing costumes before a performance, teaching the audience how to appreciate a play. In addition, we will promote the integration of functions of Peking Opera troupes, museums, intangible cultural heritage halls, etc., to help audiences deeply understand the connotation of Peking Opera art. No matter how the form of dissemination evolves, the audience's pursuit of works with ideas, warmth, and depth is eternal. Revisiting history, in November 1949, Mr. Mei Lanfang proposed the direction of Peking Opera reform in an interview with reporters, stating that it should be 'moved' rather than 'changed'. My personal understanding of this is that the development of Peking Opera art should take solid steps forward on the basis of conforming to the laws of artistic development. Since its gradual formation in the mid-1940s, Peking Opera has a development history of more than 180 years. Any era with steady progress, abundant works, and a large number of talents is an era that follows this principle, and vice versa. The stage presentation of Peking Opera works must not forget the laws of artistic development, "said Zhang Yifan. As the defenders, inheritors, and promoters of the traditional Chinese opera art, we are facing unprecedented opportunities for development, as well as unprecedented challenges. Amidst the mountains and rivers, there seems to be no way out, but a new village emerges with a bright future. No matter how difficult the road ahead may be, with firm confidence and the courage to explore, Peking Opera will surely move towards a new realm full of brightness and hope Wang Yong, the director of the National Peking Opera Theater, spoke firmly. Beijing opera is a national treasure and a perennial topic for us. (New Society)