The French musical "Rock 'n' Roll Red and Black" is being performed in Shanghai's Cultural Square, but few people know that it is a musical that has been reborn because of the Chinese market.
This drama debuted at the Palace Theater in Paris, France in 2016, and has been performed for 46 consecutive performances, whether it is actors, music or choreography, the evaluation is good, but for some reasons, the crew disbanded after the premiere, so that many people who want to take it to the tour regret.
Yu Xinyue, deputy general manager of Ju Orange Musical, is one of them. When "Rock 'n' Roll Red and Black" premiered in Paris in 2016, she was one of the first audience members, "The biggest feeling of the first time I saw it was burning, although it was adapted from Stendhal's classic literature, but its 3D multimedia choreography was eye-catching, and the rock-and-roll music arrangement was also very creative, and we wanted to introduce it to China." ”
With the greatest sincerity, I went to find many people, but Ju Orange has never been able to introduce this drama into China, so it simply takes a step forward - making it yourself, talking about copyright, finding original actors, splicing the original creative team, communicating one by one and signing them back one by one.
Because it needs to get the consent of all the producers, just to solve the complex copyright problem, Ju Orange has spent a lot of time and effort, "Originally thought that this play was dead, suddenly a Chinese company wanted to do it, everyone was very excited, very surprised." We poured out our love and determination, and got a lot of help, so that this play could really land. Yu Xinyue recalled.
Three years later, on August 19, "Rock and Roll Red and Black" was re-established in Paris, and the original actors and new actors met for the first time. On September 6, three trucks loaded with performance equipment arrived at the Shijiazhuang Grand Theater in Hebei Province. After 38 days of rehearsals and 21 days of stage synthesis, on September 27, "Rock red and black" was rehearsed for 2 times in Shijiazhuang, and word of mouth was heard.
On October 3, "Rock and Roll Red and Black" came to Shanghai, kicking off the Curtain on the Chinese premiere.
"Rock Red and Black" Shanghai performance scene
From director to songwriter, the main creative team of "Rock Red and Black" overlaps with the "blockbuster" musical "Rock Mozart", and even the musical style is similar, taking the French rock style, so it also continues the high popularity.
As a producer, Ju Orange found that once they entered the production, they could communicate with the creators in a timely manner according to the feedback of the Chinese market and Chinese audiences at any time, and quickly repair and optimize the show.
Therefore, when it premiered in Shanghai, the crew added some grounded Chinese elements. For example, when the mayor received a report letter from the mayor's wife and Yu Lian, a portrait of the mayor appeared on the LED screen behind him, and then his hat was painted green one by one, because this Chinese the "green hat" that could only be understood, and the audience instantly burst into laughter.
"When we were looking at the synthesis in Shijiazhuang, we felt that this scene could appear 'green hat', and the designer immediately responded that it could be done, and the Shanghai station had this stem." Yu Xinyue said.
Having been in contact with so many French crews, Yu Xinyue feels that this crew is the most worry-free, the atmosphere is like home, "from the main creator to the actor, everyone is not here to make quick money, not to catch up, but to do something very sincerely." ”
In the process of solving various complex problems such as copyright, trade unions, taxes, insurance, etc., the Chinese production team is also groping and understanding the production logic of other countries, although they all come from the West, but the production structure of French musicals and British musicals and American musicals is actually different, and they have to find production methods that both China and France can adapt.
From "Rock Mozart" to "Rock and Roll Red and Black", "Rock" seems to be one of the most classic ways of expression of French musicals, and it is more inclined to express the form of "concert", so French musicals can always quickly mobilize the emotions and resonance of young people.
Yu Xinyue observed that it is not the same as British and American musicals: many of the main creators of French musicals are tv people, it will be easier to do musicals from the perspective of television, "Rock red and black" has the main creators involved in the production of "The Voice of France"; many actors in French musicals are singers, "Rock Red and Black" in "Julian" and "Mayor's Wife" are from "The Voice of France"; French musicals emphasize the incendiary power of the song itself, accustomed to conquering the audience from the song first, and will first be on radio and television before producing musicals." Playing songs"; French musicals often choose to perform in the stadium rather than the theater.
"The genes of French musicals are different from the structure of Anglo-American dramas, which determines that it will put music and songs in front of the drama, and its demagogic and infectious power also comes from here, which is consistent with the aesthetics of modern young people." Yu Xinyue said.
Four starring roles
Just as the actors of "Rock Mozart" are sought after by Chinese audiences, the actors of "Rock and Roll Red and Black" are also melted by the enthusiasm of Chinese audiences, which is also the deepest impression of como (as Yu Lian), Elaine (as the mayor's wife), Juliet Beal (as Mathilde), Laurent Ban (as Valerno) and other 4 starring actors in China.
From "The Little Prince" and "Rock Mozart" to "Notre Dame de Paris" and "Rock and Roll Red and Black", in the past 15 years, Laurent Ban has performed many plays in Shanghai and is a regular guest in China.
"At first, I thought that the Chinese audience was shy and shy, but after coming to China, I found that the Chinese audience was very sincere and very simple, which I had never felt anywhere in the past 15 years, especially every night when the curtain was closed, the applause and cheers of the audience, and the audience's love for each character, all of which made people feel moved from the heart."
Laurent Ban laughed and said that during the performance, he received a small video of his son learning to ride a bicycle for the first time, and not witnessing his son's growth made him a little depressed, but the enthusiasm of the Chinese audience quickly healed him and comforted him.
The 25-year-old Cuomo, who still has baby fat on his face, is coming to China for the first time, and he didn't expect that they would come from so far away in France, but it seems that many people are already very familiar with the play, and they have begun to laugh before shaking their bags.
"People are paying more attention to this show than I could have imagined." Cuomo said that many viewers will also give him some heart-warming small gifts, such as throat tablets, let him pay attention to the throat, feel such a huge care in China far from the motherland, Cuomo sighed, the Chinese audience is too kind, "I hope to have the opportunity to hold concerts in China in the future." ”