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Preface
In what way can a person realize his ideals?
Do you go with the flow and settle for the status quo, or do you swim against the tide and pursue it unremittingly? When the national culture is facing a dilemma, how should individuals choose?
Talented, Liyuan bright new star
Qi Shufang was born in 1944 in a drama family in Hebei.
She has been fond of the art of opera since she was a child.
The elders in the family are all famous characters in Liyuan, and under the influence of family history, Qi Shufang seems destined to form an indissoluble bond with opera.
In her childhood, she often traveled with her family to major theater troupes, and the basic skills of Peking Opera singing, chanting, and playing quietly took root.
With her outstanding talent, Qi Shufang was admitted to the Shanghai Theater Academy, where she studied under a famous teacher and practiced Peking Opera hard.
Under the careful guidance of the teacher, her basic skills have become more and more solid, her singing voice is bright and full, and her performance is delicate and expressive.
At that time, when the opera industry of New China was booming, the art of Peking Opera was in full bloom, and batches of outstanding talents emerged.
With her superb acting skills and beautiful appearance, Qi Shufang soon emerged in this fertile soil and became a rising star in the pear orchard.
The classic roles she created, such as Chang Bao in "Outwitting Tiger Mountain", made the audience addicted and intoxicated.
Going to the United States to perform, a difficult choice
In 1988, by chance, Qi Shufang was invited to lead 30 Peking Opera performers to perform in the United States.
In that year, the cultural exchanges between China and the United States were in the ascendant, and the art of Peking Opera began to go abroad and bloom with its unique charm in a foreign country.
The grand occasion of the performance in the United States made Qi Shufang feel very excited.
In the theater, the audience was full of seats and thunderous applause; Outside the theater, the audience rushed to take photos and praised them.
Qi Shufang was deeply encouraged by the great enthusiasm of foreign audiences for the art of Peking Opera, and also made her full of confidence in the future of the art of Peking Opera.
After the performance, faced with the choice of returning to China or staying in the United States, Qi Shufang was in a dilemma.
Returning home means returning to a familiar environment and continuing to shine on the domestic stage; Studying in the United States means embarking on a road with an uncertain future, and it means letting go of comfort and taking risks.
After much deliberation, Qi Shufang finally made up her mind and chose to spread the art of Peking Opera overseas with her own strength.
She understands that although this decision is difficult, it stems from her infinite love for Peking Opera and her sense of mission for national culture.
At this moment, in Qi Shufang's heart, only the dream of Peking Opera art is shining.
Wandering in a foreign country, the road of entrepreneurship is tortuous
The road ahead is long, and at the beginning of her stay in the United States, Qi Shufang faced many difficulties.
Language is the first hurdle.
In the United States, without a native language environment, Qi Shufang's English ability seems to be stretched.
On stage, she can still use the singing and chanting of Peking Opera to conquer the audience, but in life, she is often at a loss due to language barriers.
Cultural differences are another challenge.
The differences between Eastern and Western cultures are not only reflected in language, but also in ways of thinking and values.
Qi Shufang must learn to empathize and understand different cultures with a more open and inclusive mind.
The most difficult issue at the moment is the issue of livelihoods.
In the United States, the market for opera performances is still immature, and the income cannot sustain a normal life.
In order to make ends meet, Qi Shufang had to accept the reality of a part-time job.
This former Peking Opera singer shuttled through various restaurants in Chinatown in the United States, serving dishes, washing dishes, and enduring humiliation.
But hardships and hardships did not defeat Qi Shufang, but inspired her fighting spirit.
After work, she still finds time to practice, ponder singing, and study scripts.
She is convinced that as long as she perseveres, she will eventually usher in her own stage.
The hard work paid off, and Qi Shufang's persistence finally paid off.
The appearance of pianist Huang Bowen brought a turning point in her career.
Huang Bowen is a Chinese-American, loves the art of opera, and has a sincere Chinese heart.
After learning of Qi Shufang's plight, he generously donated money, not only to support her financially, but also to exert her social influence to hold several performances for Qi Shufang.
With his help, Qi Shufang returned to the stage and made the art of Peking Opera shine in the United States.
And Huang Bowen also became a noble person on the road of Qi Shufang's career, and the two cherished each other and established a deep friendship.
In addition to the difficulties in her career, Qi Shufang's love life has also experienced twists and turns.
In order to pursue her artistic dream, she and her husband in China get together less and leave more, and the marriage relationship will inevitably crack.
In the end, the two divorced by agreement, ending this long-distance marriage.
The emotional trauma, coupled with the pressure of her career, made Qi Shufang physically and mentally exhausted.
But she was not knocked down by the difficulties, but threw herself into her career with more high morale.
Later, she remarried Peking Opera actor Ding Meikui, who was also in the United States.
Ding Meikui is not only Qi Shufang's peer, but also her bosom friend.
The two went hand in hand to create a new situation in the spread of Peking Opera art overseas.
Promote the essence of the continent and never regret it
With unremitting efforts, Qi Shufang has gained a firm foothold in the United States and her career is gradually improving.
She established the "Peking Opera Art Troupe" and held important positions, devoting more efforts to the dissemination of Peking Opera art.
Under her leadership, the Peking Opera Troupe has become the backbone of Peking Opera performances in the United States, and has been active on major stages all year round, attracting countless Chinese and foreign audiences.
Qi Shufang not only performed freely in the performance, but also paid attention to cultivating young actors, so that the art of Peking Opera could flourish and rejuvenate in a foreign country.
Qi Shufang's hard work in the United States has been recognized by the mainstream society.
In 2000, she received the "Lifetime Achievement Award" from the U.S. government.
This honor not only affirms Qi Shufang's artistic achievements, but also recognizes her contribution to Sino-US cultural exchanges.
Standing on the podium, Qi Shufang burst into tears.
She knows that this honor is the best praise for her lifelong pursuit, and it is also the highest tribute to the art of Peking Opera.
In the process of spreading the art of Peking Opera in the United States, Qi Shufang also encountered many doubts.
Some people believe that Peking Opera is the quintessence of China and should be based on the local area and carried forward in China; There are also doubts about whether the art of Peking Opera can gain a foothold in Western society and be accepted by foreign audiences.
In the face of these doubts, Qi Shufang never wavered.
She firmly believes that culture has no borders and that excellent art is the common wealth of mankind.
The reason why Peking Opera is great is precisely because it has the power to transcend time and space and move people's hearts.
Through unremitting efforts, Qi Shufang has proved that the art of Peking Opera can take root and bloom in a foreign country.
Controversial, sincere
Qi Shufang's stay in the United States caused huge controversy in China.
Some people see her as synonymous with "treason" and "ingratitude", believing that she has turned her back on her homeland and abandoned her national culture.
The gossip followed Qi Shufang very aggrieved.
However, those who really know Qi Shufang know that her original intention was to promote the art of Peking Opera and make the quintessence of the country shine on the world stage.
Peking Opera carries her endless love for national art and her pure heart for the motherland.
In 2008, after 20 years of absence, Qi Shufang returned to the motherland.
Time flies, time flies, and the high-spirited Peking Opera singer of the year is already an old man with frosted temples.
Many old friends in the industry are no longer there, and the aura on the stage has faded, leaving behind a full of opera feelings and the original intention of persistent exploration of art.
Returning to the pear orchard, Qi Shufang's mood was mixed.
Scenes from the past emerge in front of me:
The long nights of learning with teachers and friends when I was young, the moments of being free on stage, the hard years of studying in the United States, and the bits and pieces of spreading the art of Peking Opera.
Despite the passage of time, Qi Shufang's love for art has never diminished.
She is still active on the stage, inheriting the essence of Peking Opera art in her own way.
At the same time, she will also devote more energy to the cause of Peking Opera education, hoping to cultivate more successors for the art of Peking Opera.
Qi Shufang often lamented that Peking Opera is like a towering tree, which needs to be carefully cultivated by generations of artists in order to flourish and flourish.
As a senior, she is willing to do her best to contribute to the passing on of the torch of Peking Opera art.
Looking back in his later years, he has the same end
As the years passed, Qi Shufang gradually separated from her homeland.
At the beginning of her trip, she thought about returning to China in two or three years to revive her Peking Opera career.
However, there is always an insurmountable gap between ideals and reality.
In a foreign country, Qi Shufang stayed for 20 years.
In the past 20 years, the homeland has undergone earth-shaking changes, relatives and friends have gone their separate ways, and many past events have become memories.
Everything seems to be wrong.
Reuniting with her relatives after many years of separation, Qi Shufang has mixed feelings.
The former kind mother is already a gray-haired old woman, with frost on her temples and old tears.
Sister Qi Shuyun couldn't cry even more, complaining that her sister was determined back then, and after 20 years, there was no news.
Faced with the joys and sorrows of her loved ones, Qi Shufang's heart fluctuated, and remorse and gratitude were intertwined.
She regretted that she was so self-conscious when she was young that she didn't take into account the feelings of her parents and loved ones. But I am also grateful for the consistent support and understanding of my family, and I have fulfilled my artistic dream.
Looking back on the past, Qi Shufang's heart has mixed feelings.
On the road to her dream, she has worked hard and suffered a lot of criticism.
However, she never regretted her choice.
Inheriting national art with a lifetime of painstaking efforts and making Peking Opera shine on the world stage is Qi Shufang's lifelong pursuit and her original intention.
Perhaps, life is like a play, with its own ups and downs, joys and sorrows.
And art is the belief that is integrated into the bloodline, leading Qi Shufang to keep moving forward and pursue the light in her heart.
epilogue
The years have changed, and Qi Shufang's life is approaching its twilight years.
Looking back on the past, although her experience has been tortuous and bumpy, it is full of her ardent pursuit of art and the firm inheritance of culture.
Perhaps, this is the fate of artists: to have dreams and go through vicissitudes, just to leave their own place in the sea of art, and to contribute their meager strength to the inheritance of national culture.