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Updated: 2005-05-19 11:03

1930s Shanghai diva Zhou Xuan reborn

“燕子的啾啾,原来是五月的风……”随着这首《花泪》委婉、悠扬的乐曲响起,由林依轮和伊能静主演的大型多媒体音乐舞台剧《周璇》5月10日率先在上海揭开了神秘的面纱。由于该剧将周璇的悲惨命运体现得淋漓尽致,不少观众纷纷落泪。 5月17日《周璇》将移师保利剧院,北京观众将拭目以待。

1930s Shanghai diva Zhou Xuan reborn
Yi Nenghjing co-stars mainland pop singer Lin Yilun in the paly "Zhou Xuan." (sohu)

"Zhi zi hua, bai lan hua," cries a little girl in the Shanghai dialect, as she peddles cape jasmine and magnolia from a basket on her arm.

A man passes by in a rickshaw , a graceful young woman dressed in qipao by his side. They pull up in front of a nightclub, lit by a shining neon lamp .

So typical a scene of Shanghai in the 1930s and 1940s, at once the audience is transported back to the old days and into the life of one of the most popular singers and film stars of the time, Zhou Xuan.

Following on from its well-received premiere in Shanghai last week, the play "Zhou Xuan" opens tonight in Beijing for two shows at the Poly Theatre.

Considered the first pop diva in modern China, Zhou rose to fame at the age of 14, and in a career which spanned little more than a dozen years, starred in some 40 films and recorded 200 songs, some have remained popular until today.

She died aged 37 and her brief life was a tale of fame coupled with personal tragedies.

Over the years, there have been novels, movies, television series and musicals that have sought to depict the rise and fall of this star.

The current production, directed by Wang Jiana and Bai Yongcheng, focuses on Zhou's career as well as her personal life behind the scenes and camera. The time frame covers her life from the age of 14 - when she won a singing contest which propelled her into entertainment circles - to 27 when her career peaked.

In particular it tells of the two great romances in Zhou's life - that between Zhou and her husband Yan Hua and her adopted brother Zhou Lu'an.

Yi Nengjing, the popular singer and television actress from Taiwan plays the title role.

Yi herself is a versatile artist and her manner and temperament are quite close to Zhou, says Bai Yongcheng, who co-directs the play.

Yi sings about 20 of Zhou's trademark songs, including her most popular "Songs of the Four Seasons" (Siji Ge) and "Singing Girl" (Tianya Genu). In some scenes, old cine film of Zhou forms a backdrop on the stage, and Yi sings an evocative duet with her character.

"The play is rich in the nostalgic flavour of 1930s Shanghai. The music, the movie skits, the setting of the nightclub and neon lights transport the audience back to that extraordinary time. Yi devoted herself to the role and gives a convincing portrayal," comments Lun Bing, the Beijing Youth Daily's theatre reporter who attended the premiere in Shanghai.

The co-director Wang Jiana also rates Yi's performance highly, likening her to Vivien Leigh.

At the press conference ahead of the play's Beijing's run, Yi revealed how she had tried to immerse herself in Zhou's character.

"I lived in Shanghai alone to prepare for the play. I watched the videos of her movies and listened to her songs. The wall of my bedroom in Shanghai was full of Zhou's pictures and posters," she said.

Lin Yilun who plays Zhou's husband Yan Hua recounted a story of how deeply Yi became absorbed in Zhou's tragic life.

One day after rehearsals they went to a bar in Shanghai with composer Tan Dun and some other friends to unwind . While they were all enjoying themselves chatting and drinking, Yi, who was a little tipsy , started sobbing.

Tan asked, "What makes you unhappy? You have a happy family, a loving husband, two lovely boys and successful career in both Taiwan and mainland."

The actress answered, "If I were happy, I wouldn't have been Zhou Xuan."

Looking a little uneasy, Yi explained, "I just tried to feel her soul with my soul, to get close to her and to feel her."

She also said she felt both excited and nervous when she played in Shanghai, because "it is the place where Zhou performed."

But Yi's portrayal is not simply that of a pretty singer and sad woman caught in an unhappy marriage and under enormous social pressure at the height of her fame.

"Before I started rehearsing, I supposed Zhou was a fragile and simple woman. However, the more I entered her inner world, the more I felt she was a brave, open-minded, sophisticated and unyielding woman and that is what I want to portray on stage," said Yi.

"When their marriage is in trouble and the husband, Yan, beats her up, she refuses to submit and bursts out, 'you should not humiliate me in this way.' I could feel her rebellion and forthrightness," explained Yi.

Another example of her strength of character was how she divorced her husband, by issuing a public notice in a newspaper, and waiving all claim to any property or compensation.

"How bold she was at a time when most people felt divorce was something very shameful and women still lived on men," Yi said.

Zhou Xuan was born to a family named Su in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province. Adopted at the age of 3 by one family, she finally ended up in another named Zhou in Shanghai.

They sent her to a local song and dance ensemble when she was around 7 and when she was 12, Zhou joined "The Bright Moon," a then famous song and dance troupe in Shanghai, where she gradually rose in fame with her enchanting voice.

In 1934, the 14-year-old Zhou took part in a singing contest held in Shanghai, winning the second prize and the title "golden voice" by the press.

Before long she was singing professionally and playing some supporting roles in films. Her talent marked her out, and soon she was playing lead roles and recording some of the most popular songs of the day. In 1938, she married Yan Hua, a singer and actor. But their marriage did not last long and they divorced in 1941 - Zhou's star was rising as her husband's fell.

Later Zhou moved to Hong Kong where she had an affair with a businessman, which floundered. A failed marriage, a broken love affair and an obsession with getting back to the top in movies unbalanced her. Her psychiatric problems worsened after she returned to Shanghai in the early 1950s, and in 1957 she contracted and died from encephalitis.

(China Daily)

 

Vocabulary:
 

cape jasmine : (栀子花)

magnolia: (木兰)

rickshaw: a small two-wheeled cart for passengers pulled by one person(黄包车)

neon lamp : (霓虹灯)

time frame : (时间范围某事发生或预期发生的期间)

versatile: having many skills(多才多艺的)

cine film : (电影胶片)

unwind: become less tense, rest, or take one's ease(放松)

tipsy : very drunk(喝醉的)

unyielding: refusing to give way or compromise(坚强的,不屈的)

 

 
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