"I love my Peking Opera career. As long as I still have a breath, I will not give up the pursuit of Peking Opera, and I always have to do something for her. In the "Oral Records of Du Jinfang" published in 2019, Du Jinfang said so. Regrettably, at 22:26 on April 17, Du Jinfang died in Beijing at the age of 89, leaving only a series of classic works to benefit future generations. Octogenarian skin yellow still regrets, the next life will continue to dream!
Orphans became the lucky ones on the stage
After hearing the news of Du Jinfang's death, Ye Shaolan, a famous peking opera student, was very sad, saying that this was a loss to the Peking opera circle and even the entire literary and art circle, "Teacher Du Jinfang is outstanding, she has made great contributions to the overall cause of Peking Opera, the inheritance and development of Peking Opera, and the cultivation of Peking Opera talents." ”
This outstanding artist has not been easy along the way. Orphaned at birth, she was first sent to the family of Chen Xiguang, who sang opera, and began to learn drama at the age of 3. Later, the Chen family declined, in order to reduce the burden on the family, but also in order to be able to continue to learn drama and acting, she voluntarily let Du Juchu raise herself. Du Juchu, who specializes in adopting children to learn drama, in order to make profits after completing his studies, proposed that in the future, Du Jinfang's operating income of singing opera was divided into two accounts, but until the end, Du Juchu did not give Du Jinfang and her father a penny. After the founding of New China, Du Juchu also wanted to take Du Jinfang to Hong Kong, and under the care of Premier Zhou and with the help of Wang Yaoqing, Mei Lanfang and others, he handed over the deed of sale, and Du Jinfang gained real liberation. Subsequently, she entered the Experimental Peking Opera Troupe of the China Academy of Opera, the predecessor of the National Peking Opera Theatre, and became an artist in New China, cooperating with Li Shaochun, Yuan Shihai, Ye Shenglan and others, and was called the "four top cards".
Even so, in his autobiography, Du Jinfang said that he was "lucky". Her luck lies in the fact that she has the innate conditions of being a Peking Opera actress, and her rounded and transparent voice is the standard Danjiao voice. In the face of such an excellent seedling, all the masters are willing to help her.
At the beginning of 1945, Du Jinfang worshiped Wang Yaoqing as a teacher, and every morning he first mopped the floor, brushed the tea bowl, and brushed the toilet in the Du family, and went to the teacher to learn drama after finishing his work. Soon, she emerged on the stage, and in 1949, she cooperated with famous artists such as Li Shaochun, Yuan Shihai, and Jiang Miaoxiang, and achieved "curtain red" at the age of 16.
Taking advantage of this successful opportunity, Wang Yaoqing recommended her to learn from Mei Lanfang. Master Mei also made special arrangements for her to pass on the art wholeheartedly and comprehensively and meticulously, and what drama to learn and how to learn. Even, she took the name "Jinfang" which also meant Master Mei.
"Drill into the play all day long" is a joker
In his artistic career of more than 70 years, Du Jinfang has not only organized and staged many traditional plays, but also created and performed dozens of newly edited historical Peking operas and modern dramas such as "The Legend of the White Snake", "Liu Yin", "Xie Yaohuan", "Peach Blossom Fan", "West Chamber", "White Haired Girl", "Red Lady Scout Army" and so on.
In Ye Shaolan's view, Du Jinfang's success is not accidental, "her experience in art is very deep, she has learned more, seen more, practiced more, and there are big artists who teach her to act hand in hand, or perform on the same stage with her." The unique style and just right image of the red bride created by Du Jinfang in "The Tale of the West Chamber" made Ye Shaolan deeply impressed.
Du Jinfang and his disciple Ding Xiaojun
The master's teaching is on the one hand, and her own efforts are also very important aspects. In July 2020, when the China Peking Opera Art Foundation recorded the interview feature film "Old Artists Talk About Drama and Art", Hong Ye, deputy secretary general of the foundation, had the honor of having close contact with Du Jinfang. Seeing Mr. Du's living conditions with her own eyes made her finally understand that Mr. Du often said that "I drilled into the play all day long" was not a lie, but the norm of her life. The old man lives in an old and small house, an old-fashioned TV set is mainly to watch opera programs, diet is mainly to save time and nutrition, in order to put more time into opera, "Now the country is very good to our Peking opera actors, I am very satisfied, I have to spare time to teach students opera, but also to read more books, read more materials, study new Peking opera scripts." ”
Du Jinfang's obsession with the cause of Peking Opera is obvious to all. She was most worried about wasting time and influencing the study of art. It is said that every holiday, in order to avoid unnecessary socializing, she will paste a note on the door of the house, and insert two red envelopes, writing: "There is no one in the house, people leave a message, if there is a red and white happy event, please take it yourself." Someone asked Du Jinfang: "Are you lonely at home alone?" She replied, "I'm busy!" When creating the Peking opera "Xie Yaohuan", in order to analyze the script in depth, she locked herself in her room, took apart the script page by page, pasted eight circles around the wall, and did not leave the room for 7 days.
Her skill and warmth will be passed on
When Ye Shaolan was a teenager, he saw his father Ye Shenglan teaching Du Jinfang's "Mulan From the Army" hand in hand at home, "My father had many performance tasks at that time, and he was very busy, but he still started teaching Du Jinfang little by little from the basic skills. What Ye Shaolan did not expect was that more than twenty years later, Du Jinfang passed on the warmth he felt from Ye Shenglan to him and restarted his stage career.
In 1979, "Xie Yaohuan" was rearranged, and Du Jinfang let Ye Shaolan play Yuan Xingjian. At that time, Ye Shaolan had been away from the stage for many years, and many people felt unsure of his role as such an important role. But Du Jinfang knew that Ye Shaolan had never given up working hard for the cause of Peking Opera Xiaosheng, and firmly believed that he could play this role well. When rehearsing, she always gave Ye Shaolan encouragement and guidance, whether it was tuning or performing, to adapt to his conditions. After the success of "Xie Yaohuan", they collaborated on "The Legend of the White Snake", and Ye Shaolan's artistic life bloomed again on the stage.
Although he knew rationally that the day of separation from his master would eventually come, Ding Xiaojun still felt that he could not face the facts and shed tears as soon as he opened his mouth. After more than ten years of studying with Master, Ding Xiaojun heard and saw the selflessness, persistence and meticulousness of this Peking Opera master on the art of Peking Opera, "That is the greatest spiritual wealth and the most precious life guide in my life." In the process of studying with Teacher Du, she more truly felt the true meaning of peking opera art, and better understood what is called drama than the sky," On April 2, when I talked to my teacher on the phone, she was still talking to me about drama..."
Du Jinfang and his disciple Dou Xiaoxuan
In the memory of his disciple Dou Xiaoxuan, the teacher often said, "In my life, I have not sung enough drama, and in the next life, even if I sing ugly, I will sing opera." Because of this, she did not hesitate to teach her students. Once, when teaching Dou Xiaoxuan the sword dance of "Farewell to the Overlord", she felt that she was not good at her feet, so she simply took off her shoes and demonstrated it over and over again with her bare feet.
Du Jinfang often said to Dou Xiaoxuan: "Don't always sing my plays, you must have your own plays." "In the days to come, I will perform Master's plays well, and I will rehearse more of my own plays as Master expects." Dou Xiaoxuan said that this is the best memorial to Master.
Source: Beijing Daily Client | Reporter Niu Chunmei
Process Edit: U016
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