"In January 2018, I was appointed vice president of the National Peking Opera House, and in March I began to lead the youth team to create the modern Peking Opera "The Story of the Red Army", and had the honor of performing one of the folds - "Half a Quilt"." At the group discussion of the CPPCC National Committee's Civil Construction Sector, Yuan Huiqin, member of the CPPCC National Committee, member of the Standing Committee of the Central Committee of the China Democratic National Construction Association, and vice president of the National Peking Opera House, told the story of her deepest impression in the process of performing her duties last year.
The story of "Half a Quilt" was told by General Secretary Xi Jinping in an important speech on October 21, 2016, at the conference commemorating the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Red Army's Long March. General Secretary Xi Jinping said, "A history of the Long March of the Red Army is a history that reflects the deep water conditions of the military and the people."
In Shazhou Village, Rucheng County, Hunan Province, three female Red Army soldiers stayed at the home of Xu Xiexiu's elderly. Before leaving, the Red Army cut off half of the quilt they had left for the old man. The old man said, what is the Communist Party? The Communist Party is the one who has a quilt of its own and has to cut off half of it for the common people.
The story takes place in 1934, and the digger of the story is Luo Kaifu, the "first person to re-walk the Long March" and the former executive deputy editor-in-chief of the Economic Daily. On November 7, 1984, 22 days after his departure, Luo Kaifu came to Shazhou Village in Rucheng County, Hunan Province, and listened to the old man Xu Xiexiu tell this story. That night, he tearfully wrote a report entitled "Where Are the Three Red Army Girls," which was subsequently published in the Economic Daily.
"As soon as I saw the script, I was deeply moved." As the protagonist Xu Xiexiu, the old man, member Yuan Huiqin said affectionately in an interview with the Economic Daily reporter that this half quilt carries the old man's thoughts for half a century, reflecting the deep love between the Red Army and the common people. For 50 years, the old man has been looking forward to the reunion with the owner of the quilt and the reunion with his loved ones.
On the afternoon of March 4, General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed when visiting members of the literary and artistic circles and social science circles attending the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference that literary and artistic creation should be based on taking root in the local area and deeply rooted in the times, and improve the spiritual height, cultural connotation and artistic value of the works. General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed that cultural and artistic workers should go into the depths of practice, observe the people's lives, express the people's voices, and write about the people, depict the people, and sing the people with heart and soul.
This is also the goal that MEMBER Yuan Huiqin has always strived to achieve in her work.
"In recent years, the National Peking Opera House has taken Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as the guide, adhered to the people-centered creative orientation, and actively promoted the theme practice activity of 'going deep into life and taking root in the people'." Cppcc member Yuan Huiqin told this reporter that the modern Peking Opera "The Story of the Red Army" is composed of three touching and profound short stories on the Road of the Red Army's Long March, "Half a Belt," "Half a Quilt," and "Quartermaster General." This shows the lofty spirit of the Red Army in going through all kinds of difficulties and dangers, adhering to revolutionary beliefs, and dedicating everything to the victory of the revolution and the liberation of the people, and showing the deep affection of communists and the masses of the people in sharing honor and disgrace and sharing weal and woe in the same boat.
In the process of creation, the main creative staff processed and polished the repertoire with a serious and refined attitude, and strived to make the Peking Opera "The Story of the Red Army" into a masterpiece that embodies the national integrity and shows the spirit of the times with the heart of passing on the world.
"Why has Peking Opera been active on the art stage for more than 200 years? It is because there are a number of excellent artists in each period, creating a large number of works of art that are lofty and suitable for the aesthetic tastes of the current audience. Member Yuan Huiqin said that in the future, the National Peking Opera House will continue to adhere to the people-centered creative orientation, persist in going deep into life, take root in the people, and make continuous efforts to launch excellent works with bones, morality, temperature, grounding, spread, and retention, and cultivate outstanding artistic talents who "have faith, feelings, and responsibilities." (Economic Daily reporter Xiong Li)