Qianjiang Evening News Hourly News Reporter Chen Yuhao Photo / Big Joe
Parents, more or less have told their children bedtime stories, but also somewhat crazy, storybooks turned over one after another, but still not quite sure which story can lead children to their fairy tale world.
But there was a grandfather whose story lasted for 30 years, from telling it to his daughter to telling it to his granddaughter. Best of all, his self-made "bedside story" never ends, and children can always fall asleep in constant imagination and questioning.
In 2016, the bedside story finally came to an end, the story that has been passed down for two generations is called "Blue Horse", and the grandfather who told the story is the famous director and playwright Lai Shengchuan.
"Blue Horse" tells the story of a little girl Qiqi who is extremely talented in piano but faces difficulties, her mother is bent on cultivating her to become a pianist, but in the depths of Qi qi's heart, she is eager to write a song of her own and sing her inner voice...
Many people know Lai Shengchuan because his classic works "Crush on Peach Blossom Garden", "Treasure Island Village", "Dream like a Dream", and "Blue Horse" are his first children's dramas. Lai Shengchuan said that he hopes that through this drama, parents can understand the real will in their children's hearts.
"After all, a good-looking story can live vividly in a child's heart for a lifetime, help children spread the wings of imagination, and build an interesting world of their own."
On August 7th and 8th, "Blue Horse" will be performed at the Hangzhou Grand Theatre.
A few days ago, the reporter conducted an exclusive interview with Lai Shengchuan to listen to the story of his creation of "Blue Horse", which may also allow everyone to re-examine the way they get along with their children.
【1】
Reporter (hereinafter referred to as "Ji"): This is your first children's drama, what is the motivation or trigger of the event that made you have this idea?
Lai Shengchuan (hereinafter referred to as "Lai"): A long time ago in Shanghai, I saw a mother and a child passing in front of me. It was a beautiful day, and the child pointed to the clouds in the air and said, "Mom, look at that 'dog.'" "I thought to myself, this kid is not bad.
What happened next was really cruel. His mother slapped him and she said, "That's called Cloud." ”
I witnessed it with my own eyes and thought, "Another end." "His ideas have been gone ever since. How fragile, how fragile it really is. How hard it is for us to encourage one person to be creative.
Reporter: So creativity is also related to your childhood experience?
LEY: Looking back at my own growing up, I think the most fortunate thing is my family, especially my mother who ignores me, it seems to be a little dereliction of duty, but absolutely not, she really does not give me restrictions. Fortunately, I also have a sense of responsibility, so I don't do anything outrageous.
Reporter: "Blue Horse" is actually a bedside story you tell to your daughters and granddaughters, which sounds very grounded...
Lai: "You were born original, don't be a replica when you die." "But most people are like that.
When my daughters slept as children, I would tell them bedside stories. In retrospect, I was a bit like an improvised jazz musician.
"Tell a story."
"Well, what story?" There is a child named Qiqi. One night, when she was about to fall asleep, she knocked, and there was a voice by the window, and the blue horse came..."
Then it improvised, and then I boldly made it up until she fell asleep. But sometimes the arrangement was too good, and she couldn't sleep, so she talked about "Blue Horse" for several years.
I have two daughters, nine years apart. When my youngest daughter grew up, she also told her "Blue Horse", and now that I have a grandson, I also tell him the story of "Blue Horse". I'm going to try it, will the next generation story be bad? As a result, we still listened to it with relish, so we did the play "Blue Horse".
Reporter: For parents, it is actually not easy to tell bedtime stories.
Lai: I don't like to read stories with books, and if I take a book and say something, I will like to digress, I will think of other topics and possibilities divergently, and I don't like to tell them about standardized things.
When they grow up, what can parents give them? Imagination, creativity, trust in children, understanding the world is very big and wide, there is no thing that has only one solution, so I like to tell them at the bedside, and when I tell stories, I am actually testing myself.
Reporter: In addition to storytelling, how do you get along with your children?
LEY: There is a kind of trust between parents and children, and I hope so, there is a sense of trust between us, and then I have no expectations of you. It seems a bit heartless to say this, but this is a very positive sentence, not that you have no talent, I have no expectations of you. Rather, where is your talent? You go for it yourself, and I'm not going to prescribe what you're going to do. It was a tacit understanding between me and my children, and later my children all went the artistic way.
There is also the matter of reading, now that there is the Internet and mobile phones, reading may not be a meaningless thing for young people. But I think that first of all, we should put more books in the house, there are bookcases and shelves, and all the books are good books.
Because they are all classics, children may be afraid or uninterested, but put it there, respect it, children will slowly feel that this is important, human knowledge will eventually be conveyed through books, everything is in ourselves. As parents, have we ourselves been reading, respecting, and placing ourselves in a respectful position.
If we don't have it, why ask our children to read books?
Reporter: If you bring your children to watch "Blue Horse", do you need to prepare in advance?
DS: My habit is not to make any settings, believe us, and go into the theater.
Reporter: In addition to "Blue Horse", do you have other children's drama plans?
RAI: Now we have a second bedside story, in fact, there are many, I am a father who often changes stories, one of which is "Whale Library", which only my youngest daughter has heard. There was a whale, there was a little girl by the sea, very poor, unable to read, came a whale, the belly is a library, from here began to compile. The jazz musician of my heart appeared.
This story has also been told for many years, and we have compiled this story into a play "Whale Library".
【2】
Reporter: Before you participated in "Drama New Life", from behind the scenes to the camera, did you hesitate at that time? What ultimately led to your decision?
DS: This is a great opportunity for more people to learn about our industry. It's not so much that "New Life of Drama" pushed me from behind the scenes to the front of the curtain, but rather that the artists who engage in niche theater activities on this show can be pushed to a wider public perception.
It does take some courage from behind the scenes to the front of the curtain, and there are many reasons to participate, the most important of which is that my old friend Huang Lei guarantees that I can "be a real person in this reality show, and I don't need any hypocrisy" in this reality show. So I was relieved and comfortable to participate, hoping that everyone could see the other side of me.
Another reason to participate is that last year, because of the epidemic, the Wuzhen Drama Festival was suspended, and based on the reason of nostalgia for Wuzhen, I heard that this reality show should be filmed in the water town and ancient town, and I was able to start planning this year's drama festival.
This reality show, using real drama people, is a group of friends who focus on working on the drama stage. I can make people in my industry shine, and even make the industry itself shine, which is a very important reason, it should be said that this is a very important thing.
Reporter: In your opinion, is the current situation of the kind of dramatists shown in the show real? Will there be some changes through the broadcast of the show?
Lai: I think that in a rich and healthy society, there should be a theater ecology with a high degree of originality and a high degree of professionalism in all aspects. In this ecosystem, every professional, whether it is a screenwriter, director, actor, design or backstage worker, in this society, should be able to live on his profession.
Then, continue to work hard to experience life and find reasons for life, to find softer gestures for life, while enriching your own toolbox and understanding more art forms.
Finally, keep honing your skills. Without precise craftsmanship, no matter how much creative inspiration is, you can't make anything.
Reporter: Two years ago, you collected 9 original plays and published the "Lai Shengchuan Drama Collection", do you want to reorganize your own drama works, or do you want to convey a message to the audience?
Rai: In fact, the script is the basis of a play, and I think this time the collection of plays can encourage many young people who want to engage in theater creation. For myself, everyone's impression of my image can also be slowly transferred, from a pure director to a theatrical creator, in short, more attention can be paid to the screenwriting part.
Reporter: Do you think there is a core "connection line" between the two identities of director and playwright? Or do you have such a "button" in mind that allows you to switch between these two working modes freely?
Lai: Both of these identities are on me, and even I am the stage designer of "One Cave", and the theme songs of "Book of Water" and "Blue Horse" are written by me. My job is to set no limits, so I am free to switch between these so-called "identities."
Reporter: From this year to now, you have a rough life and work status, can you tell us about it? Including is there a new inspiration, or which new play is being written?
Lai: Because of the epidemic, I can spend more time in the mainland and deal with a lot of paperwork. Recently in busy about the upcoming publication of my 12 English screenplays at the University of Michigan. There should be more people in the world in the future who can get my own translated scripts and start rehearsals.
Reporter: From the second half of the year to next year, what other works will come to Hangzhou to perform, can you reveal it to the audience?
Lai: Last year we came over to "Millennium Night, We Say Crosstalk" and "One Cave", and this year's "Blue Horse" is also worth looking forward to. In the second half of the year, there will be a big drama, which will be released soon (laughs).
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Source: Qianjiang Evening News