Author: Chen Sixiang
His father, Chen Moxiang, was a Peking Opera playwright in the 1930s. In his lifetime, he wrote the scripts of more than fifty plays, most of which were performed by Mr. Xun Huisheng. In addition, his father also wrote many articles on Peking Opera historical materials, palm history, evidence, theory, etc., which were scattered in various newspapers and periodicals at that time; the book "History of Pear Garden" printed and published by Tianjin Baicheng Bookstore, the father only wrote two episodes before his death, but unfortunately no one continued to edit it later. As far as I can remember, I will summarize the situation of my father's lifelong engagement in Peking Opera screenwriting activities as follows.
Read hard and learn drama carefully
When his father was a child, he was employed by Gao Taishi Zhongyu in Teng County, Shandong Province, and the foundation of the old school was better. He read a lot of books, such as scriptures, novels, notes, wild histories, anthologies, classical operas, etc., all of which were involved. This was useful for his future screenplays. When his father was sixteen years old, he returned to Beijing after the expiration of his grandfather's observance period, that is, to study behind closed doors. When I remember, it is still common for my father to live alone and study hard. At that time, when he got up every day, he first read buddhist scriptures for about an hour, and then read the history of the scriptures and classical operas, purposefully accumulating materials for the future writing of plays.
At that time, Gao Taishi had returned to his hometown, and the only person he could consult in Beijing was my grandfather Wan Taishi, but soon his grandfather also died, so his father read it behind closed doors. Except for the occasional library to find some screenwriter's materials, he rarely goes out, and the housework is not asked, all by his mother, so he has studied hard for more than ten years.
Chen Moxiang and Nan Tiesheng
My father began to learn to sing Peking Opera around the age of twenty. Until the age of thirty-five, after diligent study and hard training, he could sing whether it was Qingyi, Hua Dan, or Dao Ma Dan. And it will stomp on stilts, and there are oolong churning pillars and other swooping work. He has performed many Peking Operas, such as "Cuiping Mountain", "Zhan Wancheng", "Qingshi Mountain", "Horse Edge", "Baolian Lantern" and so on. He first appeared on stage in "Breaking Hongzhou", and the last time he acted in "Phoenix Stage" and "Baolian Lantern". He also studied red net drama, such as "Flooded Seven Army", "Ancient City Training Brother", "Huarong Road", "Battle Changsha", etc., but he has not performed on stage. For Kunqu opera, his father also had a deep study, and he was very close to Mr. Cao Xinquan and received a lot of help from it. My father took the stage to act at the age of forty. He studied drama not to be an actor, but to study opera, to write plays.
He has been a screenwriter all his life
Before 1924, my father began to write scripts. Initially, I tried to write two plays, one was "Qin Liangyu" and the other was "Crying Qin Ting". The first play was sung by Mr. Shang Xiaoyun, the latter play was sung by Mr. Gao Qingkui, and after Gao's death, it was sung by Li He zeng. The compilation of these two plays was deeply helped by Mr. Pan Jingfu. Later, his father interrupted writing the script for a while due to the writing of "The History of Pear Garden".
In 1924, my father began to officially write screenplays. At that time, Mr. Mei Lanfang, Cheng Yanqiu and Shang Xiaoyun were already famous, while Mr. Xun Huisheng was the first to perform Peking Opera and had not yet become famous.
Shang Xiaoyun's "Qin Liangyu"
At that time, the father had already met Mr. Xun, so the father introduced Mr. Xun to Mr. Wang Yaoqing to perform the worship ceremony. Later, he took on the task of writing a new play for Xun. His father's screenwriter had several favorable conditions: first, he learned to compose poems and fill in words when he was young; second, he had already written two plays; third, he studied Peking Opera when he was young, and he performed many times with famous artists such as Yu Yuqin, Lu Sanbao, Liu Chunxi, and Li Shunting. In order to quickly and well compose a new play, it is necessary to select materials from plays with attractive plots. After consultation between my father and Mr. Xun, the first play was set as the whole "Yutang Spring", and the compilation method of this play was: the past "prostitution", "redemption", "reunion" and other folding plays were added to the end and end of the folding dramas, such as "starting to solve" and "triage", which ran through a big drama. The full play takes about three hours. Before the performance, an advertisement was published in the newspaper, and the large characters indicated that it began with "prostitution" and ended with "reunion". During the performance, due to Mr. Xun's handsome appearance, euphemistic singing voice and delicate style, this new play was unexpectedly greatly praised by the audience. After Mr. Xun performed this play, he was famous all over the city and jumped into the ranks of the four famous Dans. My father also successfully adapted this play and built up his confidence in writing a play.
Then Mr. Xun played two new screenwriters in "The Lantern Mystery" and "Danqing Introduction", which were well received. These two plays are the first drafts written by Mr. Zhang Difei and Yang Di, and they were all processed by their fathers. These two plays cemented Mr. Xun's position on the stage.
In addition to the five plays written by my father in my father's life, which mr. Liu Naichong listed in the first series of "Drama Series", what I know is "Daughter Country" (added head and tail, sung by Du Liyun. Mr. Liu has written a few sentences in the book, but it is not listed in the fifty), "Xiangzu Lou" (new screenwriter), all "Lady Sun" (performed by Wang Yurong), "Weeping Qinting" (sung by Gao Qingkui), "Nostalgia Dream" (sung by critic Xi Cailian) and other five books.
Du Liyun's "Daughter Country"
"Peacock Southeast Flying" was originally written for Mr. Cheng Yanqiu, after the play was compiled, Mr. Cheng transferred the script to the Chinese Opera School (Mr. Cheng is the school's trustee) and sang it by Zhao Jinrong. And Wang Helin played Jiao Zhongqing, meeting the audience for the first time.
When my father wrote the script, there were roughly several processes: First, I selected the right theme and set the outline. The second is to study the personality of the people in the play, the singing and reading before and after the characters appear (age and appearance are secondary), and the description of key scenes. These are all after repeated consideration, roughly stereotyped before starting to write, considering immature, never move the pen. The third is to use your brain in the drama. The jokes written by my father are neither completely copied from the old clichés nor dedicated to the text, but try to form their own style. He often incorporated the ready-made poems and songs of the ancients into his own plays, and used them both elegantly and vulgarly. Fourth, when a play is compiled into the first performance, observe the performance of the actors, the audience's reflection and attendance, and then study and improve. Once the script is finally completed, it is all handed over to the performers, and I do not save the manuscript.
In his later years, his father roughly divided the plays he had written all his life into three categories: the first type was self-written, such as "Liu Ru is", "ChaoTou Phoenix", "Peacock Southeast Flying", etc.; the second type was the first draft written by a friend, and finally revised by him, such as "DanQing Introduction", "Lantern Mystery", "Red Lady", etc.; the third type was to add the head and tail to the old folding zi drama and make it a whole play, such as "Yutang Spring", "Deyi Yuan", "Thirteen Sisters" and so on. The father said: "The above three categories, from their own point of view, the third category is easier to write, because the folding play has a model, as long as you go to the rough extraction, add the head and tail, you can use less time." But I think that the self-screenwriter is suitable for his own personality, because it is not limited, starting from the plot and the personality of the people in the play, as long as there is no big problem, the lyrics and the number of scenes are not constrained. "My father was more satisfied with the dramas he had written in his life, "The Phoenix" and "Peacock Flying Southeast". He said the audience was also recognized as such.
Sincerely treat friends and bring them forward
My father wrote Peking Opera for many years, and he had many friends in the Peking Opera circle. Everyone unanimously called him Teacher Chen or Elder Mo, and even some old predecessors such as Tan Xiaopei and Jiang Miaoxiang also called him teachers or old masters. Some young people who loved Peking Opera respectfully called him a teacher.
He was often consulted, always enthusiastic to help solve problems, and was often praised as a "living dictionary" and a "complete talent". Some people said: "The screenwriter of imaging, when the first push ink incense." ”
This is true not only in Beijing and at home, but also in the theater circles of overseas, Japan, Europe and the United States.
His father made sincere friends throughout his life, and the elders who often came and went were Fu Zhixiang, Wang Fengchun, Shen Mei, Li Ajia, Jin Qilu, Sha Dafeng, Bao Danting, and Wang Yaoqing. In the study of opera and the writing of plays, they have received a lot of help.
He and his most confidant, Mr. Wang Yaoqing, are almost a daily necessity, rain or shine, for forty years. Mr. Wang Yaoqing and his father spent a lot of effort on the reform of Peking Opera. They have always been unconceptive, frankly proposing different opinions, and accepting them sincerely as long as they are beneficial to reform. In the days they spend together, always maintain a harmonious atmosphere. They cooperated in the screenwriting, and naturally formed such a division of labor: the arrangement and writing of the scenes, characters, words, etc., were responsible for the father, while the singing voice, expressions, actions, etc., were planned and advised by Mr. YaoQing, and even demonstration performances. The two old men cooperated very tacitly. After the first draft is written, it is necessary to study and discuss with the actors and Mr. Xun and revise it. This collaborative screenwriting method can not only play the talent of the playwright, but also suit the actor's strengths. Most of the new screenplay books played by Mr. Xun Huisheng in his life are written in this way. Mr. Xun is listed as one of the four famous dans, which is not unrelated to this trinity method of studying and writing scripts.
Chen Moxiang and Wang Yaoqing
Mr. Wang Yaoqing likes to make friends, and there are many apprentices, and the home is always full of guests every night. In addition to the fact that my father would arrive every afternoon and there were several disciples who were often present, Jin Zhongren, Yang Baozhong, Baosen Kunzhong, Zhang Xiaoshan, and so on. One day Jiang Miaoxiang was also present, and after greeting his father, Jiang said: Tan Fuying planned to act in "Battle Taiping", about his supporting role of Xiaosheng Zhu Wenxun, in a parade of streets, he planned to sing eight sentences of the original board, but he only came up with the last sentence: "It is as if Lü Fengxian died under the White Gate." Because the day after tomorrow will be staged, it is too late to ask others, come here today, please ask Elder Mo for help. After listening to it, the father nodded his head and agreed, and it took only more than ten minutes to make it up, and Jiang even thanked him after reading it. Afterwards, whenever Mr. Jiang talked to people about this matter, he said: "Chen Mo is a quick thinker, and he is a teacher of everyone in the pear garden world, which can be said to be well-deserved." I admire it to the point. ”
Mr. Lee Aga was a friend of his father's acquaintance in the early 1930s. Li Nengshi is good at writing and has a good friendship with Mr. Mei Lanfang, a master of Peking Opera. His father helped him write Peking Opera. In order to study Peking Opera, he often exchanged views with his father, and the two sides treated each other sincerely and got along very well, and whenever they encountered research problems, they often forgot to eat time. Li Zeng personally wrote a couplet to give to his father, the upper link was "late to meet with Junzhen hate", and the lower link was "entering the world but aware of the sound is rare".
When his father was about four years old, he lived in two on Tsubaki Hutong, xun Huisheng lived in three, and the two families were very close. Once, Mr. Xun was going to perform "Cuiping Mountain", and it happened that the Xun family lived with a new Uncle Liu from Shanghai. Liu is an old student, willing to play Shi Xiu in "Cuiping Mountain", but has not studied this play, and intends to teach art. His father, Mr. Wen Xun, talked about this matter and immediately introduced Mr. Bao Danting to Teach Art to Liu. Bao was a famous ticket friend in Beijing at that time, and he had been a teacher of the old artist Wang Hongshou since he was a child, specializing in martial arts, solid martial arts, superb acting skills, and Shi Xiu in "Cuiping Mountain" was his masterpiece. Due to the introduction of his father, Mr. Bao borrowed my home to teach Liu Yi the next day. From "quarreling" to "killing mountains", Shi Xiu's singing, reading, doing, and playing are all-inclusive. After a period of intense study, Liu Shuyi accompanied Mr. Xun to successfully stage "Cuiping Mountain". Bao and Liu are not acquainted, and if they formally learn from a teacher, they are not allowed in terms of performance time. Father and Mr. Bao really spared no effort to help the latter.
The father always received the young people who came to visit the family with enthusiasm, such as Wu Suqiu, Mao Shilai and several other famous actors who came to ask for advice, and the father, in addition to trying to meet their requirements, also introduced them to Xun Huisheng as a teacher.
Liu Yanyun was a secondary school graduate in the early 1930s, who loved Peking Opera when he was studying at school, and once acted as a lady in the play "Rainbow Pass" at the school celebration event, and everyone thought that he acted well and encouraged him to study Peking Opera. Soon he did worship Tian Guifeng, a famous Huadan actor at the end of the Qing Dynasty, as his teacher and changed his name to Liu Fengyuan. At that time, Tian was often unable to teach art due to his high age and illness, and he only said a few words every day. Liu Yanyun learned to play with his heart, and was introduced to his father through the transfer. The father thought that Liu was a layman after all, afraid that he would delay his future, and explained that he would not worship the teacher, invite guests, and not hold ceremonies, but only teach one or two plays to end, and then he could introduce and worship an internal practitioner. Since then, Liu has come to study every day, first learning "Mu Kezhai" and "Mu Tianwang", and later learning "Horse Edge" and "Rainbow Pass". At that time, my family lived in a rambling alley, the yard was large, and I could hear the sound of knives and guns bumping every day. Sometimes it's too late, and Liu is staying at my accommodation. His father was very protective of him like his own juniors, and all his moves were strict and never relaxed. After Liu learned "Rainbow Pass", his father introduced him to Mr. Xun Huisheng as a teacher. At that time, Mr. Xun's family lived in the southern half of the hutong, very close to my home, and there was a small door in the courtyard next to my house that led directly to Mr. Xun's backyard garden. At that time, Mr. Xun's eldest son, Ling Xiang, was still young and was often led by Liu Yanyun to my house to play. Later, for some reason, Liu reprised Xiaosheng. He has not been to my house often since he got married, and later heard that he was unfortunate.
When Xun Lingxiang was young, he was most loved by his father, and he was introduced by his father to Mr. Cheng Yanqiu as a teacher. At that time, my father considered that there was no end to learning art, so it would not be better if Xiangru could combine the strengths of the two factions. In addition to Mr. Cheng, Xun's father and son, and Father Yuan, there were also Mr. Cao Xinquan, an old kunqu ancestor who is more than ancient, as well as well-known people from all walks of life such as Jin Xielu, Xu Lingxiao, Liu Xiaosang, and Zhang Tidao.
Cheng Yan autumn harvest disciple Xun Lingxiang group photo
My college classmate Hou Jiren, due to his frailty and illness, could not insist on working for eight hours after graduation, and in order to earn a living and wanted to learn to write drama books, Mu Xian's father came to ask for advice. After talking to him, his father realized that he was an outsider to drama and advised him to think of other ways. His father taught him to focus on historical allusions, enrich their contents, write small articles and publish them in newspapers and periodicals, and obtain some fees to make a living. Hou Jiren did this, and often brought the written articles to his father for advice, and then sent them to newspapers and periodicals for publication. In this way, he had an income from the manuscript fee, was in good spirits, and his condition improved (later, due to poor health, his condition suddenly deteriorated and he died prematurely).
A life of frugality and diligence ended in diligence
Throughout his life, his father maintained a family of five or six with a meager pen and ink income, so he was always frugal and never wasted a penny. He began smoking paper cigarettes when he was forty years old when a friend gave him a cigarette butt. There is no other hobby than smoking. In the autumn of 1933, coinciding with the fiftieth birthday of his father, friends proposed to give him a warm birthday, especially Mr. Wang Yaoqing advocated the most powerful, he proposed that all acquaintances, disciples and drama school students, who could sing on stage, should appear on the same day, and everyone would be lively for a day. Mr. Wang also volunteered to serve as the chief counselor, set up several groups, and had special personnel responsible for all kinds of things, and mobilized well-known celebrities from all walks of life to write poems and congratulations. When the father heard about this, he immediately stopped it and proposed that everyone should be lively and wasteful! And said: "I and my brother (Yao Qing Zi Zhi Ting) are in love with each other day and night, and everyone has no income, no savings, and the cost is too large, and I can't bear it." As for the old friend willing to send some poems, it is a shame to learn. So everyone agreed to follow the advice of the father. On the day of the birthday, Mr. Wang Yaoqing, the public of the Peking Opera circle, and his daughter Yuqian came to congratulate him, in addition to Fu Yuefen, Wang Fengchun, shen Tangmei, three old seniors also came. People kept talking about leaving late at night. There are many people who send helian calligraphy and paintings, among which two taishi of the late Qing Dynasty are my family's family's family friends and fellow villagers. Afterwards, people were heard talking about this matter and said: "This arrangement does not lose the true character of the literati, and Mo Lao's move has set a model for future generations." On that day, Mr. Wang Yaoqing also gave his father a painted painting drawn by himself. The painting is a tumbler, and Mr. Shao Mingsheng inscribed a seven-law poem on it: "May you be an immortal man in the world, crane tree Yayi Shou Mi Gong." Akagi Lefu 裒盈尺, Huangmu Psalm Old Basket. The song pipe Pingzhang traces the past, and the moon is round and long in the autumn. Huan Chang thirty thousand just over half, long drink Fei Ying drunken cheeks red. "This painting is now in my hand, but the eldest sister of the family, Kuan Xia, told me to preserve it when she was dying, and I regard it as a treasure.
His father devoted his whole body and mind to the cause of Peking Opera art. One day, he asked his sister Kuan Yun to find "Three Heroes and Five Righteousness" on the bookshelf, and after reading it, he wrote what he wanted to write, and did not talk to his sister about it. Only to see that he did not write much, that is, to put down the pen and rest. Not wanting to be bedridden the next day, he passed away on May 6, 1942 (March of the old calendar). He was fifty-nine years old.
Shortly after the liberation of Beijing in 1949, Comrade Tian Han went to Beijing to inquire about where his father lived and intended to visit. Tian Lao Zengyun: "Mr. Chen Moxiang has studied Peking Opera all his life, and his talent is quick, and he writes scripts for his specialty, it is said that Xun Huisheng's plays are more than his hands, and the audience has a high evaluation of him." If we literary and art workers can meet this person and ask him to write a few more new plays for revolutionary work, I think it will not be a problem. "When Elder Tian saw Elder Wang Zhi talk about this matter, he learned that he had died in 1942 due to overwork. Tian Laozhi was greatly sorry. This incident was reported to me by the elderly in 1950 when I went on a business trip to Beijing, and I never met with him since. Remembering the past is like yesterday, I don't want the two old people to be ancient.
October 1984
(Selected Literature and History Materials, Vol. 31)