"A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" unfolds in another way, from book to stage
When the novel "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" meets the drama "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains", literary writing and stage performance collide and blend with each other, what kind of ideological sparks will be generated?
"'Poetry' is not entirely a form, it should start from emotion first. Our stories do not rely on plot to win, but are told plainly and eloquently, making you feel the touch of life. This thing is 'poetry'. "A few days ago, Sun Ganlu, the original author of "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains", screenwriter Zhao Wei, drama director Wang Xiaoying, and Huang Ping, a professor of the Chinese Department of East China Normal University, jointly visited the Zero Bay Cultural and Art Center to tell the audience about the other aspects of opening "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains". a method.
"I want this drama to be worthy of a surging word - peerless elegance. The so-called peerless elegance is our feeling when watching the play, rather than being emphasized." During the conversation, Wang Xiaoying mentioned: "There are some tensions, I don’t want to focus on the bold and colorful performance, but I am committed to finding the ‘poetry’ in the heart of a martyr as an ordinary person.”
Screenwriter Zhao Wei also believes: "A good novel is about writing stories, not emotions. When adapting "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains", we faced two choices - either stick to the novel honestly, or stay far away from the novel. The director and I said something, can’t we just read the novel on stage? After saying this, I understood that we need to make a rigorous and simple script.”
As the dean of the China Creative Writing Research Institute at East China Normal University, Sun Ganlu attaches great importance to the discovery and cultivation of creative talents. He said that the China Creative Writing Institute aims to carry forward the long tradition of the "East China Normal University Writers Group" and is committed to cultivating a group of young writing talents with outstanding cultural qualities and outstanding creative abilities for society. At present, the creative writing major of East China Normal University recruits 35-40 people every year, making it the largest subject among similar majors in China. In the five years since its establishment, the institute has trained more than 100 graduate students in creative writing, and many students' works have been published in literary publications such as "Shanghai Literature" and "Sprouting".
The drama version of "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" was staged at the Zero Bay Cultural and Art Center on the same day. It was performed with unique narrative techniques and ingenious stage design, paying attention to the reading experience of the original novel and maintaining the background of the literary work itself. Through the reshaping and reappearance of performing arts, the audience deeply felt the artistic tension of this "red new classic" in Shanghai.
"The author of the original work was very restrained in expressing his emotions, but when I was watching the play, I could feel the surging emotions from the stage design of the director and screenwriter and the performances of the actors. This kind of restraint and surging relationship presented The story is different," said Zhu Yalin, a master's student at the School of Politics and International Relations at East China Normal University.
Before the performance started, Tian Shui, Secretary of the Party Committee of Shanghai Dramatic Art Center, and young actors Zhang Ruihan and Wang Weishuai gave the audience an art party class on "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" with the theme of "The country is the people, and the people are the country". "This play goes from the 'page' to the 'stage', using the unique art form of reading aloud and alternating with the play, to present the ups and downs of the spy war story and the turbulent cultural scene in front of us." After watching the play, East China Normal University Du Yuankai, a teacher at Guanghua Academy, said, “Through the reappearance of the images of determined, fearless, and wise Communist Party members, I deeply feel that it was countless martyrs who came forward one after another and composed a series of secret and great hymns, in exchange for the red country we have today. Stretching for thousands of miles.”
Tian Shui, Secretary of the Party Committee of Shanghai Dramatic Arts Center, gave an art party class on "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" to the audience.
Among the plays performed at the Linghao Bay Cultural and Art Center, there are many other major dramas such as "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains". Since its official opening in October last year, the Zero Bay Cultural and Art Center of East China Normal University has held more than 50 high-level cultural lectures and art performances, benefiting teachers and students of regional universities, builders of the Zero Bay and surrounding areas with elegant culture and art. resident. At the same time, the cultural center takes "National Key Laboratory in the Art Field" as its construction standard, and is committed to building an excellent experimental base for art education and a source of cultural innovation, and continues to educate cultural and artistic talents. It is an important platform for the school to cultivate original artistic masterpieces, introduce high-quality cultural resources, An important platform to promote cooperation and exchange between schools and localities.
"Listen to the dialogue in the afternoon and watch the drama in the evening." Under the influence of the Great Zero Bay Cultural and Art Center, many citizens have also participated in this cultural event on the university campus. Ms. Wang, who lives in Wujing Town, experienced the entire event. "I have read the original work of "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" before, and I never expected to witness the reinterpretation of this classic on the drama stage at my doorstep."
Cao Youyi, deputy secretary of the Party Committee of East China Normal University, said in his speech: "The school always adheres to the purpose of 'art serves the people', integrates cultural and artistic cultivation and professional talent training, and provides aesthetic education practice for college teachers and students, cultural groups and the general public. space, open the 'wall' of universities, and promote the coordinated development of campuses, communities and parks."
In order to actively play the social service function of colleges and universities and allow more high-quality and high-quality campus cultural resources to go out of the school, East China Normal University and Wujing Town, Minhang District launched the "Teacher-Jingma Appointment·National Reading" 2024 Scholarly First Bay "World Reading Day" activity week, Da Zero Bay "Jing" Color Art Season and other activities. The school and the city will jointly hold more than 20 events in 8 public cultural spaces including the Zero Bay Cultural and Art Center, Meihuishu Picture Book Library, Wujing Citizen Library, Mantianxing Community Bookstore, Ye Xin Literature Reading Room, and City Study Room. The bookish reading sharing and exchange activities allow the public to enjoy a high-level, large-scale cultural feast on campus, at their doorsteps, and next to the park, and continue to improve the quality and vitality of life in the area around the school through high-quality cultural supply.
