New group re-interprets, Lai Shengchuan writes a spy drama for Shanghai
"The preparatory work for "Yaoyaodongba" took several months. I thought about the entire outline very clearly, but it took only three days to actually write. I walked around and 'read' the script to my phone because the script was already very mature in my mind. I finished it in three days." On June 24, the media conference of "Yaoyaodongba" was held at the Shanghai International Hotel. The screenwriter and director Lai Shengchuan talked about the heroism in the play and said, "For me, the definition of a hero is very simple. A person who does selfless things is a hero."
In August, "Yaoyaodongba" will debut at the Shanghai Theater with a new cast, Fan Guangyao will return, and Dou Jin will join. As a poem written by Lai Shengchuan for Shanghai, "Yaoyaodongba" takes place in an old warehouse in Hongkou, Shanghai. The novelist Shu Tong, played by Dou Jin, is led by the mysterious music "One Day, I Will Find You" and connected to the time and space of 1943. He starts a dialogue between the two time and space with the blind sculptor Bai Shi, played by Fan Guangyao, who once worked underground in the anti-Japanese war. In 1943, the shadow of war and death loomed. Bai Shi and his comrades were ready to sacrifice their lives for the country under extremely difficult conditions. Today, in a peaceful era, do we still need heroism? Lai Shengchuan wrote in the play: "Our era is full of various superheroes, but there are no heroes like you who have real special abilities. Courage, selflessness, and dedication."
Fan Guangyao commented on Lai Shengchuan and Yaoyao Dongba, "It has fantasy, romance, and passion, and contains a deep sense of compassion for the world and a sense of humor that is often overlooked. No matter what the living environment is, we still have to deal with it with humor and live happily."
"I often ride my bike around Shanghai, and I know the routes very well. I can imagine who has walked this road before." The inspiration for "Yaoyaodongba" comes from what Lai Shengchuan saw and heard in Shanghai. Looking carefully at Hongkou and the old factories and other buildings, Lai Shengchuan had an association, "Who lived in such old houses, and what stories happened in them. When the past and the present are juxtaposed and overlapped, this dramatic scene is the prototype of the stage of "Yaoyaodongba".
Shanghai is a special city for Lai Shengchuan. Lai Shengchuan's mother was from Ningbo, and later came to Shanghai from Ningbo, bringing with her a Shanghainese accent. Before he set foot in this city, Lai Shengchuan had many imaginations about Shanghai. In 1986, he created "Secret Love in Peach Blossom Spring", in which Jiang Binliu and Yun Zhifan parted ways in their youth on the Bund in Shanghai. "Dream Like a Dream", "Treasure Island Village", "Like a Shadow", "Hidden Treasure", "Women Are Like This" and other works are all deeply connected with Shanghai.
"In the eyes of people all over the world, Shanghai is a special place." Lai Shengchuan said, "Our Shanghai Theatre is based in Metro City and has developed along with Shanghai. I am proud and happy to be a part of Shanghai's growth." Fan Guangyao also likes Shanghai. "Around 2000, I started to travel to Shanghai, study, and communicate with colleagues here. I like this city very much. The International Hotel where the press conference is held today is close to Nanjing Road. I am in Taipei, and I have to pass Nanjing Road in Taipei every day to pick up and drop off my daughter from school. The life atmosphere of the two places is very similar. Shanghai is prosperous, lively, and very humane, and life is very convenient."
Talking about the performance of "Yaoyao Dongba", Fan Guangyao said, "The challenge of playing a blind person is to make the audience believe that you can't see, but you are very sensitive. I set the tone for myself to be an underground worker who is blind in eyes but not in heart, who has ideals and is quite romantic."
Fan Guangyao and Dou Jin had performed together in "A Grain of Sand in That Faraway Place" 8 years ago. In 2024, they played the Earl and Gu Xianglan B in the exclusive version of "Dream Like a Dream". In May, they performed together in "The Last Night of Eileen Chang". "Yaoyao Dongba" is the third time that Fan Guangyao and Dou Jin have co-starred. Dou Jin plays two roles in "Yaoyao Dongba". Her goal is to make the two characters have distinct personalities. "They are each living people with their own characteristics."
Hao Guang, deputy director of Jiangsu Provincial Drama Theater, has been accompanying "Yaoyao Dongba" since its premiere in 2019 and has never missed it in the past five years. He played the roles of Pan Guoxiong in 1943 and the neighbor in 2019. "Teacher Lai told me in a very friendly manner not to be nervous, and the lines of the two roles were not large. But I read the script carefully and changed my clothes several times in the middle. The fastest time I changed clothes was 27 seconds. I was panting while walking and changing, and I went on stage after changing." Hao Guang was happy with it. "I have been acting for so long, and this is the first time I have played such a special spy war drama. As a Nanjing native, I have a lot of historical and psychological resonance. I am fortunate to have encountered such a good play before retirement, met such a team, and of course the very lovely and knowledgeable teacher Lai."
