CHONGQING (CQNEWS) -- Chinese traditional opera art needs to be inherited. Five years ago, Chongqing Sichuan Opera Theatre selected the first batch of students for promoting Sichuan Opera, and they are also the first batch of students after Chongqing became a municipality. This June, they graduated and will officially perform on the Sichuan Opera stage. 

Chongqing Sichuan Opera Theatre, stands at the junction of fork-shape Gumufeng Interchange. Outside the white wall, it’s endless traffic stream. Early in the morning, at Jinshan Avenue in Yubei District, dulcet singing can be heard from the yard of the Theatre. A girl was practicing singing Sichuan Opera.

Sichuan Opera is one of the traditional Chinese operas, with origin time unknown.

On May 20th, 2006, with the approval of the State Council, Sichuan Opera was listed in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage.

Chinese Sichuan Opera needs to be inherited. However, the current situation of all traditional operas is the shortage of talent and famous actors.

In September 2014, a selection test was held in a classroom of Chongqing College of Culture and Arts. Boys and girls entered the classroom and a row of teachers tested their physique, voice, hearing... Finally, 28 students were selected. These selected students didn’t even know that they were the first batch of Sichuan Opera performing candidates after Chongqing becomes a municipality.

The students about ten years old are pure and have no idea about their future but realized that a gate has opened for them. They started to have culture class, performance class, dance class, physique class, acrobatics class and singing class.

Zhu Hanqing (left) was born in January, 2007, and her type of role is Hua Dan (vivacious and unmarried women). She doesn’t think overmuch about ideal currently.

She entered the school when she was only seven years old. At that time, she often nodded when teachers were having a lesson, and soon fell asleep. 

In addition, she often cried and shouted that she missed her mom and was hungry. And then, she would take out snacks from her bag and ate them, which could make her stop crying.

Bai Mengdi (right) entered school when she was only eleven years old. She cried every day in dance class. “I wanted to cry before entering the classroom, and I cried for one semester,” Bai said.

Tan Xiaohong (left), the teacher, can understand her student because she had the same experience and made it through finally.

Tan Xiaohong, the national Class-A actor, entered the Chongqing Class of Sichuan Province Sichuan Opera School in 1979, and apprenticed with famous Sichuan Opera artists Zhou Jinzhong, Hu Yuhua, and Che Ying. In 1985, she entered Chongqing Sichuan Opera Theatre, and suffered from hard training, which made her cry for two years.

The training duration for basic exercise is five years. Although it just spends half of the time, students has been accomplished to the deeply pain.

What students fear most is “straddle split”. Students sit on the ground, and do the straddle split with the help of teachers. You can hear sounds of joint rattling and crying at the same time. 

The staircase is also the training ground for students. Stretch legs, stretch ligaments... You can feel the deep pain only after having a try.

No step, no mile. Hard training has become the daily routine. After years’ training, teachers and students are more and more tacit.

“Split kick, turn over, handstand…” These movements are the basic exercise of traditional opera performers.

One minute on the stage and ten years of practice off the stage. 

It’s so hard, but everyone insists in practicing. 

Students learn one play in a semester and practice it again and again. They comfort each other when it is really intolerable. In return, they can shine on the stage.

Sichuan Opera includes into five types of role, namely Xiao Sheng (young male role), Dan (female role), Jing (painted face ) and Chou (clown). Bai Mengdi was born in 2003, and her role types are Xiao Sheng (young), Hua Dan (vivacious and unmarried women), Qing Yi (main female role), Guimen Dan (unmarried young girl). Her goal is to be a good Sichuan Opera performer and keeps it up.

Bai Mengdi (left) and Zhu Hanqing (right) are good partners on the stage.

In August, 2018, 15-year-old Bai Mengdi was shortlisted for the third ”Pear Blossom Cup” National Youth Opera Education & Teaching Achievement Display with “Qiao Zi Kou”; in 2019, Bai won the first prize with classic Sichuan Opera “Prosperous of Family” in the National Vocational Students Skills Competition.

Sichuan Opera performers paint their facial makeup according to their roles, which is very flexible.

The types of the costumes are various. Each role has its corresponding costumes, which is strict.

Young Sichuan opera actors are preparing for performing on the stage.

The instruments of Sichuan Opera include big gong, small gong, small drum, top cymbal, suona horn and others. Actors perform on the stage accompanied on instruments, bringing out the best in each other.

Performers need to obey proper manners when they stand and sit. In Sichuan Opera, every gesture or motion has its “manners” which requires the comprehensive expression with hands, eyes, waist, legs, feet and steps. 

Sichuan Opera makeup includes tightening hairnet, fastening black yarn tape, sticking sideburns, wearing rouge, penciling eyebrow, drawing eye makeup and so on. Tightening hairnet can lift temporal muscle and make eyebrow and eye upturned, aiming for looking more dignified; fastening black yarn tape may lead to nausea and dizziness; sticking sideburns are used for adjusting feature.

When it comes to Sichuan Opera facial makeup, red face represents faithful character, white face represents treacherous character, green and blue faces represents greenwood hero, and gold & silver & gray faces are mostly used to represent the god, immortal, monster and other characters.

At the backstage, the national Class-A actor Tan Xiaohong (left) was giving a lesson: "Pay attention to every detail. Every movement on the stage shall be perfect."

The best time to teach is the interval of rehearsals and performances. One more practice, one more experience.

One scene is followed by another scene. Two performers are listening to dialogue on the stage and waiting behind the curtain.

Off the stage, performers have done hard training with sweat and tears, expecting acclamation and applause from the audience.

After a performance, students were stepping off the stage and returning to the reality. However, the life on the stage has become a part of real life.

Remove makeup, clean greasepaint, and touch temples gently.

Face a mirror, stand alone, bow the head and think quietly for keeping dialogue firmly in mind, and understanding the profound meaning.

After taking a curtain call, the girl had her own time. She was folding her costume carefully. How long will it accompany with her?

They graduated in June 2019. Five years have passed imperceptibly, like petals fluttering into the ground. The traditional art has owned its successors. Hope they can stick to the art for a whole life.