Text organization: Xiao Zhi Kuang Tan (i.e., this platform “Niu Ai Er”)
Proofreading and typesetting: Xiao Zhi Kuang Tan (i.e., this platform “Niu Ai Er”)
In memory of the 47th anniversary of Comrade Mao Zedong’s passing (September 9, 1976 – September 9, 2023).
Editor’s note
This article was originally a paper material, based on recordings of two reports made by Fu Naisu from the Beijing Peking Opera Troupe on March 22 and April 13, 1974. The compilation was done in May 1974, recently I extracted the text and proofread it, organizing it into the electronic text version you see now. Thanks to friends who provided assistance. Regarding the quoted standard version script of Dujun Mountain, I used the September 1973 performance version published by People’s Literature Publishing House in January 1975 as the standard for proofreading.
It should be noted that the sentences in this recorded material contain a few minor grammatical errors, but they do not affect expression or reading. Because the full text reaches 51,000 words, exceeding the single-article word limit of the WeChat public account, I divided the article into two parts. This time, I am sharing the first part (including annotations, references, etc., about 33,000 words).
Experience in the Creation of Revolutionary Modern Peking Opera *Dujun Mountain* - Part One
Beijing Peking Opera Troupe
Fu Naisu, March 22, 1974
Comrades, today the leaders of the Art University asked me to talk about the creation experience of Dujun Mountain. I am here to learn from everyone. Many comrades have valuable practical experience in literary and artistic creation, which is a great learning opportunity for me. On the other hand, the experience of how the leaders conduct literary and artistic revolution and create Dujun Mountain is also a valuable lesson.
Currently, the class struggle on the cultural front remains intense. Recently, the big poisonous weed San Shang Tao Feng has been subjected to criticism. Supporters of San Shang Tao Feng shout: “This play is good because it breaks through the framework of revolutionary model operas.” This is a resurgence of the black line in arts and culture, and an attack from our class enemies. Therefore, we feel that whether to continue following the creative experience of revolutionary model operas in literary and artistic revolution is a fundamental issue. Today, I and comrades will again study the instructions from the leadership on literary and artistic revolution, which is both a counterattack against the resurgence of the black line and part of our transformation of world outlook and artistic outlook.
Dujun Mountain has been in production for quite some time, almost four years since 1969 (not including the 1964 Peking Opera performance, which would be nearly ten years if included). There have been fifteen drafts of the script.
Starting in October 1970, Comrade Jiang Qing instructed to restart Dujun Mountain, and the play truly got on the right track. In 1972, the central leaders entrusted Comrade Yu Huiyong to oversee the creation of the play. After more than a year of hard work, with the care of the Party Central Committee, meticulous creative efforts by Comrade Jiang Qing, and under the specific leadership of Comrade Yu Huiyong, the play was performed and published.
Various departments of the troupe, including scriptwriters, directors, stage design, music, and martial arts, conducted preliminary summaries. Comrades summarized many issues, gained valuable experience, and learned many lessons. Overall, the creation process of Dujun was a process of ideological and artistic development, a continuation of the literary and artistic revolution along Mao Zedong’s artistic line, and another creation after the eight revolutionary model operas. During this process, the crew gained excellent training and learning opportunities, so every comrade had many chances.
In summary, the achievement of this play today is inseparable from the care of the Politburo and Comrade Jiang Qing. This is a shared understanding among comrades in the summary and discussions.
From the very beginning, when the play was just a seedling, it received warm care from Comrade Jiang Qing. She has always paid close attention to the creation and rehearsal of this play and issued many important instructions. So far, over two hundred directives have been collected, including recent instructions given during the performance for Algerian guests. These instructions cover the theme, character arrangements, plot development, and artistic handling of music and stage design—detailed to how the azaleas bloom, their colors, layers, how Ke Xiang’s costumes are worn, their colors, hero costumes, scarves, etc. In short, from theme and characters to artistic details, Comrade Jiang Qing provided many guiding and very important directives. In 1972, Comrade Jiang Qing also entrusted Comrade Yu Huiyong to oversee the play’s creation. Yu Huiyong, from the script stage, worked with the scriptwriters to determine the theme, characters, and plot, writing together, meticulously scrutinizing every word and punctuation. For example, in the fifth scene, Du Xiaoshan is to go down the mountain to rescue his grandmother. Ke Xiang three times tries to stop him. The last time, Xiaoshan runs toward the high slope, and Ke Xiang calls out “Xiao—Shan—,” with a prompt “sorrowful” before the name. Such prompts were carefully considered, with repeated deliberation, to be set as “grief-stricken” and “painfully,” after careful consideration by Comrade Yu Huiyong. During rehearsals and in the composition of music, stage design, lighting, sound, and other aspects, Comrade Yu Huiyong personally conceived, participated, and took charge. The crew deeply appreciated this. This ensured the correct understanding and implementation of the directives from the central leaders, allowing the play to advance smoothly along Mao’s artistic line. If the play has achieved some success, it is primarily due to Mao’s revolutionary literary and artistic line and Comrade Jiang Qing’s careful guidance and creative efforts. The entire creative process was a profound ideological education, demonstrating that following Mao’s artistic line and faithfully implementing the leaders’ instructions lead to success. Conversely, deviations from leadership instructions, misunderstanding Mao’s thoughts, and poor implementation inevitably lead to detours. Therefore, the creation process is not only an artistic issue but also a matter of ideological method and worldview, which is fundamental and deeply felt by comrades. Due to our limited political, ideological, and artistic levels, our summaries are not yet systematic or thoroughly reviewed by leaders. They are internal crew summaries mainly discussing lessons and insights, possibly incomplete or even erroneous. Criticism is welcome.
1. Clarify the historical background and define the theme
Mao Zedong taught us: “To make literature and art a good part of the entire revolutionary machinery, as a powerful weapon to unite the people, educate the people, fight enemies, and eliminate enemies, helping the people to fight side by side with the enemy.”
How to educate the people through art depends on the ideological content of the work, that is, the revolutionary ideas expressed by the content, the theme. This is a crucial and fundamental part of artistic creation.
Comrade Jiang Qing once said: “Understanding the historical background of a play can improve its ideological content. Therefore, clarifying the historical background and establishing the theme are the foundation of a good play, and this cannot be vague.”
In many of Jiang Qing’s directives regarding Dujun, she discussed issues related to the theme and ideological content. She criticized that the previous Dujun Mountain lacked clarity and prominence in its theme. Past creation often started with finding stories, collecting stories believed to be dramatic, and then deciding the theme based on these stories. This approach was mistaken because it reversed the order—first determining the theme, then developing characters and plot. It confused life with art, form with content, resulting in unclear themes and weak characters. The previous Dujun also followed this wrong path. Later, the leaders set the theme: “Transforming spontaneous troops,” which must be clear. This directive was very important because it defined the main contradiction: transforming spontaneous troops. Why create this play? What is its significance? Leaders explained clearly: Dujun Mountain’s theme is about transforming spontaneous troops, which is a major contradiction. This explained the play’s purpose and significance. In spring 1969, Chunqiao comrades conveyed Jiang Qing’s instructions to Shu Yuan and other creators involved in the play, emphasizing the importance of the theme and the reasons for creating it. Chunqiao said: “The Politburo discussed it; Jiang Qing’s instructions are clear. We are making Dujun Mountain again because it has great thematic significance, both domestically and internationally. It is an educational material for our entire army and people to learn the Party’s line. The play shows listening to the Party, following Mao, and advancing Mao’s revolutionary line—that’s victory. Leaving the Party or Mao’s line means failure. Internationally, it also has great significance. They suggested reading Che Guevara’s Diary and watching the Che Guevara film to understand the revolutionary ideas of Mao’s line spreading worldwide. Some so-called Marxists and socialists are also engaging in armed struggle, but their methods are different or even opposite to Mao’s line. For example, Castro’s “guerilla centralism” or Che Guevara’s “guerilla centralism” is a route that has spread widely and caused many sacrifices, especially in Latin America. This route is wrong because it advocates armed struggle without Party leadership, without the guidance of Marxist-Leninist parties, and without establishing bases. Che Guevara’s famous saying: “My base is in the backpack,” means his base is in the map in his backpack, relying solely on maps for command, without building bases, and with no supply or support, leading to failure. Chunqiao comrades conveyed Jiang Qing’s view: if we do well with this play, it will be a good critique of this wrong route. The play emphasizes Party leadership—Party commands the gun—and relies on the masses, establishing bases like Dujun Mountain, which is a small base. The play promotes Mao’s line on armed struggle and Party leadership, criticizing Che Guevara’s route.
Foreign guests attending the Canton Fair watched the play and responded strongly. Guests from Japan, Hong Kong, Macau, Europe, and America said: “Dujun Mountain vividly demonstrates the truth that the Party commands the gun. To carry out armed revolution and struggle, we must have Party leadership, armed with Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought.” Some said: “I read Premier Zhou Enlai’s report at the 10th Congress of the CPC in Beijing Weekly, and watching this play, I see it in light of that report, which is very educational.” An American businessman said: “Mao said that the weak can defeat the strong, and the strong can become weak. Dujun Mountain illustrates this truth.”
This shows that the leadership’s theme and instructions for this play are very significant and have already caused reactions among domestic and international audiences. The leadership’s clear theme and instructions have played a major role in promoting the Party’s leadership and Mao’s revolutionary line through art, making it a powerful weapon to unite and educate the people, and to strike and eliminate enemies.
The leaders explained the theme and significance of this play clearly. At that time, Jiang Qing gave instructions: Since we do not yet have a complete systematic history of the Party and the military (because it was 1969, during the Cultural Revolution, and many histories had not been systematically organized), how to proceed? Jiang Qing said: “You need to do investigation and research.” She emphasized: “If we want to write about the Autumn Harvest Uprising through this play, don’t write real people and events directly. Instead, reflect the uprising from a certain angle or aspect.” Based on the leaders’ instructions, the Dujun creators visited Jinggangshan multiple times, doing extensive research, understanding Mao’s revolutionary activities, learning from the old revolutionary base areas, and undergoing re-education by poor and lower-middle peasants to reform their thoughts.
During the investigation, they visited, interviewed, worked, and studied, collecting a wealth of materials. The key was how to extract the theme from these materials, select typical events and characters, and focus on representing the core ideas. This was a crucial step.
How to understand Jiang Qing’s instructions: reflect the Autumn Harvest Uprising from its side and embody the transformation of spontaneous troops, praising Party leadership and Mao’s revolutionary line. From which aspect? During the uprising, including the march to Jinggangshan and the struggles there.
The content of the Autumn Harvest Uprising is rich and broad, with many revolutionary practices by Mao. Which aspect should be emphasized? In 1969, we made a wrong turn by directly writing about the uprising, starting with a prologue and an Autumn Harvest riot, which was a detour.
The main revolutionary activities during the Autumn Harvest Uprising include seven key points:
- Establishing a people’s army—the Chinese Workers’ and Peasants’ Revolutionary Army—and reorganizing it at Sanwan;
- Creating the first red base—Jinggangshan base;
- Conducting a series of people’s wars, including the famous battles of Xincheng, Wudoujiang, Jishi’ao, Longquankou, and the defense of Huangyangjie;
- Launching land revolution, including the first land law of China—the Jinggangshan Land Law;
- Building political power, establishing the Xiang-Gan border workers’ and peasants’ government, and county governments;
- Establishing local Party organizations, such as the Party branches in Yongxin County and Qiuxian County, with Mao personally developing five Party members;
- Self-reliance—building the first Red Army hospital in Xiao Jing, establishing clothing factories in Ninggang and Taoliao, setting up armories in Ciping, developing Ninggang and Daliang markets, and formulating policies for industry and commerce, including Sui Chuan Caolin Market. Among these seven points, the core are the first and second points, which are the most fundamental and important work. Chairman personally established the first worker-peasant armed force under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, created the first Red base area, and opened a path for China to surround the city from the countryside Marxist-Leninist line. This content is also extensive, so where should we break through? Which point best reflects the great historical fact and essence of the Autumn Harvest Uprising from a certain perspective? We believe it should be from the angle of Chairman creating a worker-peasant revolutionary armed force to reflect.
"Without a people’s army, there is nothing for the people." "China’s revolutionary war is a peasant war led by the proletariat."
Chairman attaches great importance to armed forces. During the Great Revolution, when Chairman went to Hunan, he proposed one soldier and one spear per person. At that time, Shaoshan farmers had 14,200 spears, and Xiangxiang County had 100,000 spears. Chairman repeatedly emphasized that revolution is an uprising; China’s main revolutionary force is the peasants led by the proletariat; its main content is land revolution; its main form of struggle is war; and its main organizational form is the army. At the “Five Major” meeting held in Wuhan, Chairman proposed establishing rural political power, implementing land revolution, and establishing armed forces, especially peasant armed forces. The “Five Major” was held on April 21 (originally noted as April 27), when Chiang Kai-shek had already openly betrayed the revolution. If Chairman’s suggestions had been adopted, it could have countered the reactionary betrayal and slaughter, saving the revolution. However, Chen Duxiu opposed Chairman, forbade him to speak, and prevented him from voting, so Chairman’s emphasis on armed forces was significant. After the “Five Major,” the “Ma Ri Incident” in Changsha occurred, followed by the Wuhan Massacre. The Great Revolution failed, and many comrades wept bitterly to Chairman. Chairman said: “Those in the lake area should go aboard ships, those in the mountainous area should go up the mountains, pick up weapons, and fight the enemy.” Chen Duxiu wanted to exclude Chairman and transfer him to Sichuan as secretary. Chairman said: “I am not afraid to die in revolution, nor do I need others to fear death for me.” Under the advocacy of Chairman and Comrade Cai Hesen, the Central Committee held an emergency meeting in Wuhan on August 7, 1927. Chairman said at this meeting:
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The reason for the failure of the Great Revolution was, subjectively, due to Chen Duxiu’s right opportunism abandoning the Party’s leadership over the revolution, especially the leadership over armed forces. Chen’s right opportunism, in order to “cater to the CPC-KMT cooperation,” obstructed and suppressed the provincial mass movements, and blindly accommodated the bourgeoisie, committing the mistake of capitulationism. What is the Chen Duxiu line? Mao Zedong said: It’s like building a house—Chen Duxiu tells workers to build the house, then calls capitalists to live in it; or like capitalists riding sedan chairs, asking workers to carry them.
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The Party can no longer have any illusions about the reactionary Kuomintang; neither can it have illusions about Chen Duxiu’s right opportunism. It should independently lead the Chinese revolution, resolutely lead armed struggle with main forces, seize power with guns, and promote land revolution among peasants. The Party should mobilize peasants in areas with good mass bases such as Hunan, Hubei, and Jiangxi for the Autumn Harvest Uprising and confront the reactionary Kuomintang.
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Rapidly strengthen the central organs and reorganize the Party’s structure. This Congress abolished Chen Duxiu’s leadership, but due to other reasons, Mao Zedong’s leadership was not yet established. Qu Qiubai came to the stage, beginning Qu’s leftist opportunism, followed later by right opportunism. The “August 7th Meeting” decided on the Autumn Harvest Uprising. Mao Zedong hurried back to Changsha under the cover of night amid the White Terror, restructured the Hunan Provincial Committee at Shen Jiada Wu. Chairman also said: “Revolution led by the Party must openly raise the Party’s banner, no longer using the Kuomintang ‘Leftist’ banner. That is, we cannot fight under the banner of the Blue Sky with White Sun as in the Northern Expedition. Our banner should be the red flag with sickle and axe, called the Worker-Peasant Revolutionary Army, not the National Revolutionary Army.” This was the first time our Party independently and openly led armed struggle. At this meeting, Mao Zedong conveyed the decision of the “August 7th Meeting” on the Autumn Harvest Uprising and served as Secretary of the Front Committee. From this moment, our Party learned from the lessons of the Great Revolution, understood the importance of armed forces, and China’s revolution entered a new period of establishing the Red Army. This is the historical background of our play.
Afterwards, Chairman personally established the Chinese Worker-Peasant Revolutionary Army and launched the Autumn Harvest Uprising. The content is rich, comrades are familiar with it, so I won’t elaborate further. During the army’s formation, Chairman developed his Marxist-Leninist military route, the proletarian military route, which is directly related to our play. For example, the relationship between the army and the people—Chairman said our army and the common people are not exploiters and the exploited; they are like fish and water—this is very important.
In Sanwan, in October 1927, Chairman announced the marching discipline, and in Jingzhushan, he announced the “Three Main Disciplines”:
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Obey commands in action.
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Do not take anything from workers and peasants.
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When fighting local tyrants, the loot should be shared publicly.
In January 1928, in Suichuan County, the army summarized experience in mass work and announced six points of attention, which later developed into the “Three Main Disciplines and Eight Points of Attention” of the PLA, becoming our army’s glorious tradition. The “Three Main Disciplines and Six Points of Attention” came from practical struggle. When our troops arrived at Sanwan, at the gate of Jinggangshan, many local folks fled to the mountains because the Kuomintang reactionaries spread propaganda claiming the Communist Party was “Communist,” “Marxist,” “killing people and setting fires.” Soldiers had nowhere to sleep, so they asked Chairman: “Commander Mao, how do we sleep? Can we take down the door panels of the locals and sleep on the ground?” Chairman said: “Yes, but after sleeping well, you must put the door panels back.” That was the first of the six points—“putting up the door panels.” But that alone was not enough. The troops had nearly a thousand soldiers, but Sanwan had only about a hundred households, so the door panels were insufficient. Soldiers then asked if they could use the locals’ straw to sleep. Chairman said yes, but the next day, they must tie it up and fix it properly. That was the second point—“bundling straw.” There were also rules about speaking politely, fair trade, returning borrowed items, and compensating for damages. These “Six Points of Attention” fully demonstrated that our troops are the people’s army, unmatched in the world. The “Three Main Disciplines and Six Points of Attention” greatly helped in propaganda. Chairman attached great importance to propaganda among the masses. Wherever the Worker-Peasant Revolutionary Army went, they wrote slogans. The play “Du” even depicts writing slogans. Chairman said: “Every soldier who can write should write slogans at home and where they live, and also promote among the masses. Every soldier should talk to one or two locals every day, explaining what kind of army we are and our policies.” Even now, at Jinggangshan, you can see the slogans written by the soldiers of the Worker-Peasant Revolutionary Army, cherished by the people, even risking bloodshed to protect them. On the wall of Maoping Bajiao Tower, there are slogans like:
“Eliminate the Kuomintang leaders and the reactionary dogs that represent local tyrants!”
“The Communist Party is for the proletariat’s livelihood.”
“Comrades, we used to be soldiers of the three armies, now we have turned against them and joined the Red Army. We have clothes to wear, talk of equality and freedom.”
In Lijingshi, the estate of the landlord Peng Baitang, the Red Army wrote “Strive for Communism,” later changed to “Strive to eliminate capitalism” by the White Army, then back to “Strive for Communism” when the Red Army retook it. The common people sealed it with mud, and you can still see the four characters “Strive for Communism.”
Propaganda and arming the masses are very important parts of Chairman’s military route. Old Zou Wenkai said: In 1928, Chairman sent the Red Army special forces to Dajing, gave all guns to Wang Zu’s troops, and the battalion commander joked: “I’ve been revolutionary so long, but I don’t even have a gun. I leave empty-handed.” So, propaganda, relying on and mobilizing the masses, arming the masses—this is directly opposed to Che Guevara’s approach.
The military route also includes many other aspects, such as the relationship between the army and the people, the military and political relations, officer-soldier relations. For example, the relationship between the military and political affairs—Chairman also set regulations. In November 1927, Chairman personally deployed the attack on Chaling, Hunan. At that time, there was a soldier named Chen Hao who insisted on a purely military viewpoint, did not follow Chairman’s instructions, and did not mobilize the masses. The county government he formed still operated according to the old government procedures. Chairman sternly criticized him, mobilized the masses, and re-established the Chaling County Worker-Peasant Government—the first Red regime. Later, returning to Longshi, Chairman summarized the experience and announced the three major tasks of the Worker-Peasant Revolutionary Army:
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Fight to eliminate the enemy.
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Fight local tyrants to raise funds—solving the army’s economic source, as reflected in the play: “Flower edge bright silver, all to be shared…”
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Propaganda among the masses, organize and arm the masses, help them establish revolutionary governments. Ke Xiang said: “I suggest dividing clothes and grain, mobilizing the masses, expanding armed forces, then training and going to the hills.”
These three major tasks show that the Red Army is not only about fighting but also about political building of the army.
Our army’s relationship with reactionaries and enemies—Chairman also specified—called disintegrating the enemy army. The slogans mentioned earlier show its power. Disintegrate the enemy army, treat prisoners leniently—this is also reflected in the play, which includes releasing prisoners in three scenes! This was a hard-fought issue. At that time, Kuomintang’s slaughter was brutal, called “Three Lights and Three Passes”: Du Xiaoshan said, “Anyone who joins the self-defense army will have their whole family burned, killed, and robbed!” “Three Passes” mean: stones pass through knives, thatch passes through fire, and people are exchanged—literally, people are replaced. Indeed, when the Great Revolution failed, Chiang Kai-shek said: “Better to kill three thousand wrongly than leave one alive.”
Remaining members: 57,000 CCP members, only 8,000 left.
Members of trade unions: 2.8 million, only 3,000 left.
All farmers’ associations disbanded. In Liling County, Hunan, there is a story: an uncle and a nephew—nephew was in the Kuomintang’s “Rural Purge” team, killing people recklessly. The uncle said: “Don’t kill so many.” The nephew said: “You’re also a bandit!” and also killed. Eighty thousand people died in Liling County.
At that time, the enemy’s slaughter was brutal. The population of Jinggangshan was less than 2,000. After the Kuomintang slaughtered over a thousand, even after more than twenty years of founding the country, Jinggangshan’s population has not recovered to the level when Chairman was there. The Kuomintang aimed to wipe out the local population: in the five main villages, nine villages were completely destroyed, 1,054 people killed, 508 houses burned, 567 cattle stolen, 1,904 plows stolen, 27 households wiped out, 46 people killed, 108 houses burned, 41 men conscripted, 22 children sold, 67 laborers, 39 died of cold, 47 froze to death, 136 fled. The people of Jinggangshan contributed greatly to the revolution. The Zou Guanguo family of Dawang was wiped out—13 members killed, only he and his mother survived. His mother said: “If Mao Commissar comes back, you can still make it; if Mao Commissar doesn’t come back, you might as well go out like charcoal—no hope.” So, the people of Jinggangshan have deep feelings for Chairman. Mao Piang’s Su Juying was an old poor peasant, a maid for landlords, who tore her feet. After the Red Army came, they treated her wounds. Later, when Jinggangshan fell, she also experienced the slaughter. She said movingly: “Without Chairman Mao, my bones would have been shattered long ago; without the Communist Party, my skin would have been ground into powder!” This deep emotion! Because of this, the desire for revenge was very strong at that time. Coupled with the influence of leftist routes, Qu Qiubai criticized Chairman for too little killing. He sent Shonan Special Committee representative Zhou Lu to Jinggangshan to criticize Chairman, failing to turn small assets into proletariat, and forced them into revolution. He revoked Chairman’s pre-committee position. This ideological struggle was intense. At that time, prisoners were killed immediately—due to deep hatred, a single shot was too cheap. They would take prisoners behind the house and kill them with sickles (southern sickles are toothed, like small saws). Once, after a victory at Maoping, the Red Army captured many prisoners. The soldiers were happy, eager for revenge, and wanted to follow old rules. But Mao said: “Prisoners of war must not be killed, not beaten, not cursed. They should be organized into groups of ten, tell their stories about how they became Kuomintang soldiers, what their families do—just venting their grievances.” The soldiers didn’t understand at first, and after a few days, many were victims of suffering, taken by the Kuomintang to serve as soldiers. The children of rich peasants did not serve, so some soldiers gained awareness. At that moment, Chairman said: “Those willing to join the Worker-Peasant Revolutionary Army stand aside; those unwilling or wanting to go home stand aside. We will give them two pairs of straw shoes and two silver dollars.” The soldiers still didn’t understand. Some said: “Revolutionaries are still useful!” In the end, they obeyed the order, and many joined the Worker-Peasant Revolutionary Army. Therefore, Chairman wrote in “The Struggles of Jinggangshan”: “Part of the Red Army’s origin is prisoners from the units of Xu Kexiang, Tang Shengzhi, Bai Chongxi, Zhu Peide, Wu Shang, and Xiong Shihui.” One day, a prisoner escaped, and some soldiers complained: “Look, can they really become the Worker-Peasant Revolutionary Army? They’ll run away in a few days!” Unexpectedly, after a few days, he returned with five or six others, with five or six guns, including relatives and laborers, who joined the army together. This made the soldiers realize Chairman’s wisdom. Disintegrate the enemy army, treat prisoners leniently—Kuomintang was very afraid. Yang Zhisheng of the Kuomintang even wrote in his newspaper: “Mao Zedong’s prisoner policy is deadly!”
With so much content and material, Chairman’s military route—relationship between army and people, military and political relations, officer-soldier relations, internal and external relations—was all specified. Which point to break through? The most important is the relationship between the Party and the guns, that is, the relationship between the army and the Party—this is the most critical content.
After the Autumn Harvest Uprising, the army advanced from Lijingshi to Jinggangshan. At Sanwan, the army carried out the Sanwan Reorganization. Chairman analyzed the situation:
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Due to the influence of Chen Duxiu’s and Qu Qiubai’s leftist opportunism, which believed that city uprisings could quickly succeed, a few people lacked understanding of the strategic significance of shifting the revolution’s focus from cities to rural areas;
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The composition of the participants in the uprising was complex, and some could not withstand severe struggles;
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Some officers still retained warlord residual styles, and there was a lack of democracy within the army;
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Most importantly, there was a lack of absolute Party leadership over the army. Chairman believed that only by establishing a new type of people’s army under the absolute leadership of the Chinese Communist Party could they march towards Jinggangshan and undertake the historic mission of liberating all of China. The Sanwan Reorganization took place from September 29 to October 3, 1927.
Main contents of the Sanwan Reorganization:
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Establish the Party’s absolute leadership over the army, build Party branches at the company level;
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Implement democratic systems under centralized guidance within the army, establish soldiers’ committees;
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Reorganize the troops—First Division was reorganized into the First Army, First Division, First Regiment;
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Establish a new type of military-civil relationship.
“Party branches built at the company level” means building the Party within the company, that is, the guns must listen to the Party rather than the Party listening to the guns. Party leadership over the economy, establishing Party delegate systems—companies have branches, squads and platoons have small groups, battalions and above have committees. All major decisions cannot be made solely by military officers; they must be discussed and decided through Party branches. Previously, the Commander-in-Chief made decisions externally, the division commander made decisions, and the company commander made decisions—without Party leadership. From then on, our Worker-Peasant Revolutionary Army had Party leadership. The Party’s strong leadership guarantees that our Red Army, despite harsh conditions, does not collapse, keeps winning battles, and continues to grow and strengthen. It is a new type of people’s army, different from all previous armies; it serves the people and is under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. The Party commands the guns, not the guns commanding the Party—that is the core of Chairman’s military route.
Considering how to write “Du Juan Shan” (Dujian Mountain) and how to reflect the Autumn Harvest Uprising, the breakthrough point was determined through investigation, study, and learning: the Autumn Harvest Uprising—an important aspect is the creation of the people’s army—military route—Party commands the guns, the relationship between the Party and the army—this is the perspective from which to reflect the uprising and implement the instructions of the leaders. In 1972, Comrade Yu Huiyong grasped this play, and the theme became clearer and more specific. The theme of this play is:
Only under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, following Chairman Mao’s revolutionary line, can spontaneous peasant armed struggle achieve victory.【The bolded text was added by the editor—editor’s note】
This is the first point: how to clarify the historical background and define the main theme—this must not be sloppy or vague.
In the past, our creative process was to first find the story and characters, not to determine the theme first. Instead, after writing the story, we would find the theme and attach it afterward. Therefore, the characters were not based on the theme but chosen according to the story, with the theme added later. As a result, the theme was often unclear, and the strengthening of the theme was impossible. Many problems would then be exposed: heroic characters would not stand out, the story would be complex, and characters numerous but not prominent. Therefore, clarifying the main theme is actually a reflection of our worldview in creation. If we do not first determine the theme but first find the story and then add the theme, it reverses life and art, form and content.
The first point must be clear: events, structure, and plot are arranged for characters, and character arrangements are for reflecting the theme—this is the central task—clarifying the main theme is the core task. Starting from this point, through investigation and deep life, and through life’s sources, selecting themes, typical events, typical characters, and artistic language and materials to embody the theme—this is the way to grasp the theme.
To establish the theme, one must go down to the ground, conduct detailed and thorough investigation and research, study diligently, and transform the worldview—this is the foundation, which is life and thought. Only then can one summarize accurately, grasp the essence precisely, and make a clear summary.
Once the theme is determined, we will not be confused by a large amount of material. On the contrary, it provides a focus, a thread, and vitality. Grasping the theme, other elements will have support, will be connected according to the theme’s requirements, and will deepen continuously.
II. How to properly shape the character Ke Xiang
The original “Du Juan Shan” (also called “Du Quan Shan”), the second character Lei Gang, took the spotlight away from Ke Xiang. Comrade Yu Huiyong criticized this play: “As the heroic image of Party representative Ke Xiang is not prominent enough, according to the theme and ideological requirements, Ke Xiang should be the number one character, but from the stage effect, he is far inferior to the second character Lei Gang, which inevitably results in: 1. Inability to strongly reflect the theme; 2. Failure to use the heroic typicality of the proletariat’s advanced representatives as a model for the masses.” Therefore, Comrade Huiyong emphasized: “We should wholeheartedly and passionately mobilize all artistic means, use the principle of three highlights of revolutionary model plays to properly shape Ke Xiang, with Ke Xiang as the main thread to drive the overall creation.” Comrade Huiyong said at that time: “It seems that highlighting Ke Xiang will be the most challenging but also the most victorious task.” This raised the issue to the main line. If the image of Ke Xiang is well shaped—more lofty and full—the theme of the play can be reflected, and it will basically stand firm. If all other work is done well but Ke Xiang is not established, it will be a failure. Therefore, Comrade Yu Huiyong said: “If Ke Xiang is not established, it will never pass the test, because…”
The main idea is reflected through the character image, and the plot structure is arranged around the character. Ke Xiang represents Chairman Mao’s revolutionary line, embodies the Party’s leadership, and reflects Chairman’s military route. Only by properly shaping Ke Xiang can the Chairman’s military route be vividly embodied.【The bolded text was added by the editor—editor’s note】
Starting from Comrade Jiang Qing’s instructions, Jiang Qing once criticized this play as flat and lacking strong dramatic conflicts. She also said: “It’s very difficult for He Xiang to lead this unit onto the right path.”【original editor’s note: The early version of the heroine was called “He Xiang”】In order to resolve many contradictions, and these contradictions are intense, it is said: now Wu Dou and He Xiang have no more plays (【original】editor’s note: the male protagonist in early versions was called “Wu Dou”), Wu Dou cannot be so obedient, becoming a good boy, many of his character traits have been removed, the self-defense army drinks alcohol, “women can also lead us,” all of which cannot be deleted, now they are all gone, so Comrade Jiang Qing said: the play has been smoothed out. The smoothness lies in the contradictions in the play being worn down, without strong contradictions, Wu Dou has become a good boy, smoothly led onto the right path, no difficulties in front of He Xiang, and the transformation is very easy, Wen Qijiang’s provocation is also ineffective.
Learning from Comrade Jiang Qing’s instructions, this draft, with the personal participation of Comrade Huiyong, mainly focuses on how to shape Ke Xiang well amidst intense theatrical contradictions in the script. Chairman said “Without contradictions, there is no world”. This play must accurately and actively reflect the contradictions of life, that is, should we adopt the theory of no conflict? Or should we take class struggle and line struggle as the main line, and in sharp theatrical contradictions, shape proletarian hero figures? This is essentially a struggle between two lines. Therefore, contradictions must be written into this play. Next, I will discuss how we, taking class struggle and line struggle as the main line, passionately and by all means shape the heroic image of Ke Xiang in the theatrical contradictions. Our approach has three small points:
（一）We believe that Ke Xiang should be the center, organizing contradictions from multiple aspects, and depicting Ke Xiang’s heroic character from multiple facets. In this issue, there are actually three questions: one is the central issue, which is to focus on Ke Xiang. The second is the issue of multiple aspects, organizing contradictions from multiple angles. The third is the issue of multiple facets. The central issue is who becomes the main controller. In “Du Quanshan,” Ke Xiang is not the center; many parts focus on Lei Gang. As a result, many plays are just to pave the way for Lei Gang through Ke Xiang, for example, the first draft’s three scenes with the beating board serve as a prelude to Lei Gang, which is reversed. Comrade Huiyong said that highlighting Ke Xiang is not simply adding a few lines of singing, giving someone a few lines, adding a few lines of recitation, or staging more scenes with Ke Xiang in the center stage, which can solve the problem. Of course, this is also important, but more important is the depth of theatrical arrangement—who paves the way for whom. Distant paving, close paving, positive contrast, and negative contrast need to be rearranged. Without this, adding or cutting a few lines is useless. The emphasis on highlighting is not just formal; it’s not just about who sings more or who stands more in the center of the stage. Of course, this is very important, but not the only factor. The main thing is the depth of theatrical arrangement—who paves the way for whom, and who becomes the main controller. This raises the question of who is the center. The original play was centered on Lei Gang; Ke Xiang was not at the core of the contradiction. She had fewer contradictions with Lei Gang, and apart from some conflicts with Lei Gang, her contradictions with Wen Qijiang only appeared during exposure, and she had no contact with them throughout the play. Lei Gang’s contradictions are more diverse; he has conflicts with Poisonous Snake, with Ke Xiang, Wen Qijiang, and Mother Du. He is at the center of contradictions. Ke Xiang, because she is not at the center, has a faint image. Lei Gang, with more contradictions, shows more of his side conditions, making the character more profound. Ke Xiang’s character has less opportunity to be depicted and expressed. The original scene with the beating board, Lei Gang singing a large section: “Lifted the sedan for fourteen years, in the dog days, a basin of charcoal on the head, by winter stepping on frost and snow, blood dripping,” Ke Xiang had nothing to do. After Lei Gang’s remorse, he also helped loosen Tian Dajiang, sent him clothes, and in the end, Tian Dajiang said to Lei Gang: “Captain Lei, give me a gun,” asking to join the army. Major scenes and plots were given to Lei Gang, and Ke Xiang became just a foil for Lei Gang, standing outside the contradiction, listening to the play. The original eight scenes are even more obvious: after Lei Gang was injured and returned to the mountain, when he met Ke Xiang, at the critical moment of confronting the contradiction and reflecting the theme, Ke Xiang was made to leave the scene to arrange a solo scene for Lei Gang singing “See Iron Shackles,” then Ke Xiang slipped back on stage. This made Ke Xiang just a foil. These situations are caused by the incorrect focus of the theatrical contradiction—around whom the contradiction revolves. This time, the revision must make Ke Xiang the center, with Lei Gang paving the way for Ke Xiang, organizing four sets of contradictions around Ke Xiang:
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The contradiction between Poisonous Snake and Ke Xiang, which is an enemy–comrade contradiction. Poisonous Snake represents the new warlord and local tyrants and landlords. The development and resolution of this contradiction depict Ke Xiang’s noble and heroic character—brave, unyielding, heroic, vigorous, and upright in fighting the enemy.
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The contradiction between Ke Xiang and Wen Qijiang, which is a transforming contradiction. The essence of this contradiction is the struggle between proletarian and bourgeois personal ambitions for leadership. It transforms from an internal contradiction among the people into an enemy–comrade contradiction. This power struggle is whether the army follows Chairman Mao’s military line or reverts to counter-revolutionary restoration according to Wen Qijiang’s ideas. It is a question of which path to take. This contradiction is very important. In the past, it was not given enough attention; it was not well developed, showing only faint signs, with no direct confrontation. Therefore, the power struggle could not be fully reflected. Through this contradiction, Ke Xiang’s sharp political intuition, high awareness of line struggle, diligent thinking, ability to recognize trends, and skillful fighting were demonstrated. Wen Qijiang’s improper intentions were early detected by her. She raised vigilance and guarded against spies.
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The contradiction between Ke Xiang and Lei Gang, which is an internal contradiction among the people. It is the contradiction between the proletarian ideology represented by Ke Xiang and the non-proletarian ideology represented by Lei Gang. This is the main contradiction of the entire play. Chairman Mao once said at the Gutian Conference: “Within the Fourth Red Army, there are various non-proletarian ideas, which greatly hinder the implementation of the correct party line.” Mao also pointed out: “The source of all incorrect ideas within the Fourth Army’s party is naturally due to the fact that the majority of the party’s organizational foundation is composed of peasants and other petty bourgeois elements.” In the “Struggle at Jinggang Mountain,” the Chairman again pointed out: “The party in border counties is almost entirely composed of peasants. Without the leadership of proletarian ideas, it will tend to go astray.” These directives from the Chairman provide a guiding and programmatic significance for our characters’ relationships in this play. This contradiction must not be taken lightly; it is very intense. The development and resolution of this contradiction demonstrate Ke Xiang’s high Party spirit—her main aspect. She resolutely implements the Party’s policies. Her Party spirit is very strong: she cannot kill prisoners, cannot arrest merchants, and cannot beat Tian Dajiang. She is unwavering; when higher authorities order transfer, she does not hesitate. She insists on the Party’s leadership, which is a very important aspect of her. On the other hand, she is good at political work and ideological work, guiding and persuading with patience, using her enthusiasm to show her outstanding political talent as a proletarian revolutionary.
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The contradiction between Ke Xiang and Xiaoshan and other self-defense army soldiers. This was not in the original draft; it is a fundamental change. In the original play, Xiaoshan and Lei Gang still had some contradictions—Lei Gang wanted to go down the mountain, and Xiaoshan still advised him. Now, this has been removed, strengthening the contradiction between Ke Xiang and Xiaoshan, and the self-defense army soldiers, demonstrating Ke Xiang’s character trait of being good at mass work and reflecting her deep proletarian feelings.
The development of these four contradictions provides the premise for highlighting all aspects of Ke Xiang’s character. Her dominant character trait is her high Party spirit and anti-current spirit, which is a principle of Marxism-Leninism. On the first day she arrived at Dujian Mountain, she encountered the fundamental principle issue of whom the revolution relies on and whom to fight against. She does not give in; she withstands the opposition. This is her personality trait. The title of the fifth scene is “Pillar in the Current,” and she remains unwavering.
Having contradictions from multiple aspects, with Ke Xiang as the center, and multiple facets—are these enough? Not yet. Merely covering all aspects is not enough. Whether characters can be vividly, distinctly, deeply, and convincingly shaped is another issue. Each set of contradictions exists, but there must also be strong theatrical conflicts. This is the second point, which is to answer whether we dare to write intense contradictions.
（二）According to Comrade Huiyong’s instructions, taking class struggle and line struggle as the main line, dare to strengthen theatrical contradictions, and reinforce contradictions around the main hero’s action line.
For example, in the second scene, the contradiction between Ke Xiang and Poisonous Snake. Originally, in one draft, Ke Xiang was the sole focus, with enemies on the side. The intention was good—to show her indomitable revolutionary spirit— but she was alone, with no opposition, so the contradiction was weakened. Comrade Huiyong criticized this approach; nominally, the scene was a solo, which seemed prominent, but in reality, it was not. It needed to be strengthened. To create a deep impression from the start, the method of distant and close paving was adopted. Distant paving is the prelude before the hero’s appearance; close paving is the setup during the hero’s scene. Additionally, there are positive and negative contrasts. Comrade Jiang Qing attached great importance to the hero’s appearance. When she appears, she must be dazzling. She personally designed Ke Xiang’s first appearance with a white top, with two bloodstains like lightning in a dark sky—aiming to push the hero onto the stage at the critical moment, with a tight schedule.
To strengthen and intensify contradictions, and to highlight the hero’s appearance, four sets of distant paving and four sets of close paving were arranged.
First scene’s four paving (distant paving):
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Lei Gang escapes from prison, comes on stage to break shackles, hoping the Party representatives come quickly; if not, they will perish. The peasants’ spontaneous armed resistance without Party leadership will fall apart.
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Xiaoshan says: Poisonous Snake is burning, killing, and looting at the mountain’s foot; Du Mountain’s heads are hanging on the flagpole; anyone who dares to be a self-defense soldier will be killed along with their whole family. This is another layer—hoping the Party comes soon, as the people are in deep water and fire.
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Li Shijian brings good news, creating a lively atmosphere. Seizing a Communist, Lei Gang hopes for the Party. Now, there is hope.
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Lei Gang’s last line sings: “Seize a Communist to lead us forward,” “Heaven blesses us,” creating dramatic suspense, making the audience eager to see the next scene, while also planting a foreshadowing: Lei Gang still harbors feudal ideas and non-proletarian thoughts, hinting at future struggles.
The first scene, from a partial perspective, is one of Lei Gang’s key scenes; from the overall play, it is a prelude for the hero. Comrade Huiyong said: “This is not a scene to explain or a transitional scene, but a distant paving for the main hero.” The sixth scene is similar.
After four layers of paving in the first scene, the second scene has another four layers of close paving:
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The class oppression of the Kuomintang, the market is deserted, the atmosphere is oppressive; the militia come on stage fiercely, driving away the crowd, blinding an old man, kicking a bamboo basket, creating a tense atmosphere. The people are longing for liberation.
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Lei Gang appears, asking about the situation, then asks: “Where is the Communist?” Luo Chenghu says: “I heard it’s a woman.” “Will she fight or not?” Lei says: “As long as she’s a Communist, fight!”
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The militia’s three shouts: “Bring—the—Party—!” intensify the atmosphere.
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Ke Xiang prepares herself, with passionate music, singing inside: “Proletarians casually watch the surging waves,” revealing her identity—proletarian—and her character trait—casually observing the turbulent waves, spirit of anti-current. This introduces her.
The gate opens, the militia’s two dragons come out of the water, bayonets pointed at the gate. Ke Xiang, with her chest out and head high, enters with shackles. The stage lighting is set with frontal and side lights outlining her silhouette. Inside the gate, green bamboo, the hero appears radiant. With these many paving, she is very prominent. Ke Xiang does not just sing alone; she faces enemies with knives and guns, amidst chaos, moving among the bayonets. Stage choreography uses dynamic and static, high and low, large and sweeping movements, with militia surrounding Ke Xiang, who sings amid the bayonets. The contradiction is reinforced; she sings and dances simultaneously, using features of Peking Opera dan roles but with dance elements—crossing legs, stepping, shaking hair, large sweeping movements—showing her noble and righteous side. Finally, Ke Xiang proclaims the revolution, demonstrating her unwavering, heroic qualities of life, fighting spirit, and upright character in the fierce class struggle at the life-and-death juncture.
Strengthening contradictions is not artificially fabricated but based on class struggle and line struggle. For example, intensifying the contradiction between Ke and Wen is achieved through multiple waves of advancement—one wave after another, higher than the last—pushing the hero to the peak of the wave, depicting the hero’s true nature amid turbulent seas.
There are four waves in the fifth scene:
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Wen Qijiang stirs trouble, pretending to be anxious, shouting: “Party representative, Mother Du is arrested, Brother Lei has come down the mountain.” Inciting soldiers to quickly bring people down the mountain, kill all the White Bandits. While Ke Xiang observes, he incites the crowd: “Let’s go!” The soldiers rush down the mountain. Ke Xiang says “Slow,” stopping them.
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Wen spreads the theory of human nature, saying: “Brother Lei has shared weal and woe with us, with brotherly bonds; shared joys and sorrows, kinship. Now, to save the white-haired, he risks falling into the enemy’s trap alone. If we stay still, afraid of death, greedy for life, stand by and do nothing, how can we bear it?” Under his incitement, the soldiers rush again. At this moment, some party backbone comrades form a human wall to block them. This wave is even higher than the first.
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Wen targets Xiaoshan, breaking through from him, taking advantage of the opportunity. He viciously incites Xiaoshan: “Others can ignore it, but you are a descendant of Dujian Mountain,” repeatedly stopping Xiaoshan. Comrade Jiang Qing instructed that Ke’s scenes are not moving enough; after the crowd is arrested, she should feel distressed, revealing it as a conspiracy. Otherwise, it would seem cold and unfeeling. She must show her deep class feelings. How to do this? Not by directly speaking or self-affirmation. If Ke Xiang always remains rational and objective—“Don’t go down! Don’t go down!”—it would be dull, severe, and cold, damaging her image. Now, with this scene added, Ke Xiang calls out: “Xiao—Shan—,” then sings: “At this moment, my mood is as urgent as yours, as angry as yours. If going down can save my relatives, I am willing to risk my life and die happily! But no, no, I cannot act rashly!” This way, Ke Xiang not only reasons but also moves emotionally. She is deep, far-sighted, sincere. She is anxious about Mother Du’s situation, her heart burning like fire. But at this critical point, she has many words to say, some cannot be spoken. She suppresses herself strongly. Her deep class feelings are evident. She is very committed to the overall situation, prioritizing the big picture. She is excited but not impulsive. This shows her profound class feelings. Under the storm, suffering some grievances is nothing. She is a heroic figure standing tall. The audience will understand and sympathize with her.
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Wen Qijiang sees Ke Xiang stopping Xiaoshan and directly points the contradiction at her, exposing himself openly, saying: “She is an outsider, with no roots in Dujian Mountain’s elders and villagers!” inciting discord between the Party and the masses, trying to isolate Ke Xiang. This also exposes himself, prompting Ke Xiang to become more alert and to think further.
These four waves, each higher than the last, once organized, initially caused concern: would this make the antagonist very arrogant, making Ke Xiang passive? Would the antagonist steal the spotlight from the protagonist? Comrade Jiang Qing said: Wen Qijiang’s incitement must take effect, and the minds of soldiers must be stirred, causing turbulence. The contradictions must become sharp; otherwise, the play would calm down, and the struggle in front of Ke Xiang would weaken. Ke Xiang’s image would lack the conditions for shaping. Therefore, it is necessary to write about people’s fluctuating thoughts and let them go wild. The director’s handling must also be strengthened. Key scenes and major waves should be emphasized, with increased rhythm, effort to create atmosphere, organize staging, and create turbulence—some gather, some disperse. Ke Xiang’s staging contrasts sharply with Wen’s. Wen is frantic, like a dog jumping over a wall, very unstable; Ke Xiang is relatively stable, standing on a high slope, unmoving, controlling the initiative. Lei Gang is eager to go down the mountain, so Lei is like an eagle soaring in the sky; Wen is like a fish swimming near the bottom; Ke is the pillar in the current, with the initiative in her hands. In the end, Ke Xiang relies on the cadres and masses to formulate a combat plan, rescuing Lei Gang and Mother Du.
At the top of the fourth wave, a very dramatic suspense scene is arranged with Ke Xiang’s core singing segment. Comrade Huiyong requested that the core singing should be at the peak of the theatrical contradiction and conflict. He said: “Any singing without a contradiction foundation, without distant and close paving, is meaningless and will leave no impression—just singing for the sake of singing!”
This core singing segment also depicts Ke Xiang’s remembrance of Mother Du, Lei Gang, her judgment and analysis of the enemy Wen Qijiang, and most importantly, her thoughts of Wujing and Chairman Mao, which gave her great strength. Ke Xiang grew up amid the storm of class struggle and line struggle. She followed Chairman Mao to Jinggangshan, participated in the Autumn Harvest Uprising, and after the Sanwan Reorganization, she loved Chairman Mao, loved the revolutionary line of the Chairman, believed in this line, and resolutely implemented it. This is in line with dialectical materialism, not a priori. She follows Mao’s leadership to carry out the revolution.
The contradiction between Ke and Wen is intensified through multiple waves of advancement.
Is fierce conflict enough? Not yet. It is also very important to depict the transformation of contradictions. The purpose of writing contradictions and conflicts is to prepare for their transformation. The transformation is the goal. Chairman said “The task of Communist Party members is to expose reactionary and metaphysical errors, promote the true dialectics of things, facilitate their transformation, and achieve the revolutionary purpose.” If we do not carefully depict heroic acts that promote the transformation and resolution of contradictions, deviating from this fundamental purpose, then the more intense the contradictions, the less favorable it is for the hero. Heroes become passive, which is a mistake of the antagonist and the transformer on stage. In real life, class struggle and line struggle are very fierce and complex. We rely on proletarian heroes to guide contradictions toward a direction beneficial to the revolution.
During the Jinggangshan period, class struggle was very fierce; the Great Revolution failed, and hundreds of thousands of people fell.
Line struggle is also very complex. Chen Duxiu’s rightist capitulation, Qu Qiubai’s “Continuing Revolution” theory, urban uprisings, attacking Chairman Mao as a Marxist in remote mountain villages, conservatism, localism, and the removal of Chairman Mao from the Central Political Bureau candidate list.
，调兵南进。而主席正是在这种形势面前，顶住潮流，力挽狂澜，井岗山三月失败，八月失败，都是这样，当时主席带一个营的兵力到郴州迂迥，黄洋界保卫战保卫根据地，把矛盾转化为有利于革命方面。\n\n 现实生活如此，就要求我们在舞台上反映这种激烈的斗争，反映无产阶级革命者促使矛盾向有利于革命方面转化的英雄行为，主席讲：\u003cstrong\u003e“革命的文艺，则是人民生活在革命作家头脑中的反映的产物”\u003c/strong\u003e，如果在我们的戏里矛盾斗争平平淡淡，这就歪曲了生活，歪曲了英雄人物，就会走向无冲突论的泥坑中去，这是一方面。不以英雄人物为中心去组织矛盾，英雄人物就会被淹没，那就要走入唯戏剧冲突论的错误道路上去。如果只有强烈的戏剧冲突，但不能解决矛盾，不能写好转化，英雄人物就会苍白无力，被动挨打，无所作为，这就是走向另一个倾向，暴露黑暗面，这也是歪曲了生活、歪曲了英雄，所以写转化是着眼点。\n\n 《杜》剧是怎样做的呢？比如第三场打板子，江青同志讲：这场戏，一个叙家史这段戏很重要，柯湘是安源出身很重要。两个很重要，第一稿也有，但是必要性不大，这次改变了，把柯湘和自卫军自由散漫的矛盾冲突量加大，过去是打胜仗后欢天喜地，战士喝庆功酒，这种情况下叙家史的。这次是分浮财，党代表下了新章程，矛盾就来了，几个战士一盖箱子盖，“外地人”，“读书人”，“女人不能带兵”，等等，在邱的煽动下要去讲理，这时柯上场，在这种情况下给柯湘很大的压力，矛盾很强烈，这段体现了自卫军内部非无产阶级思想和柯湘的无产阶级思想的矛盾，这是以路线斗争为纲的，第一稿没有接触，却描写柯湘是在欢天喜地的情况下叙家史，她看到别人在饮酒，柯湘讲：“来！我代表杜鹃山父老乡亲敬咱子弟兵一碗酒”，郑：“你看得起我们并和我们这些老粗一块喝酒”，柯湘：“大老粗，我和你们一样。”这稿矛盾冲突强烈了，战士找她讲理，有了压力，柯湘上场以后，观众就要看柯湘面对这种形势怎么办，柯湘有两个主要的行动：一个是下枪，一个是下扁担，她下扁担，战士一看党代表能挑担子，受过压迫，是行家里手，邱长庚挑衅：“这是什么？不是绣花儿针！”柯湘很镇定，她有丰富的斗争经验，一下子把邱的枪下掉了，矛盾就转化了，邱失败了，战士们对这下很钦佩，说不是个读书人，还有两下子，能带兵，罗说“你也是穷苦出身？”在这种情况下开始叙家史。再一个是，叙家史它不是单纯的自我介绍、自我表白，柯湘很会接近群众，做群众工作。她用自己的身世把矛盾转化了，战士们对她有了了解，原来也是受苦人，很早入了党，参了军，这样战士们就了解了她。第一天柯湘就做了群众工作，把矛盾向着有利于开展工作、有利于完成上级交给她改造部队任务方面转化，这样柯湘这个人物就很生动很感人。\n\n 雷刚也是很激烈的，端凳子拍刀，战士们挺枪举刀怒视柯湘，过去不敢这么写，这么搞，有顾虑。过去打长工，还有同志贴大字报说是给贫下中农脸上抹黑，现在不但打长工，还要打柯湘，这样会不会歪曲雷刚？会泳同志讲，要写，不敢写无产阶级思想和非无产阶级思想的矛盾，必然不深刻，只要定好了基调，矛盾性质把握准，把矛盾激化了，强烈了，对表现柯湘有好处。雷刚不要出格，他是不了解党的政策，他不理解柯湘，不理解主席的路线，你不打土豪就不是共产党，他不是反党，也不会损害这个人物，所以会泳同志讲：人物基调定好了以后就不要再混乱了。在基调范围内搞得再强烈也不会出去，这样再渲染对主要英雄人物有利。\n\n 问题是下面的文章怎么做，重点是写好柯湘怎么解决这个矛盾，看柯湘怎么办，她怎样转化这个矛盾，柯几个动作，分开李石坚，她说：“谁给土豪做过事，把手举起来。”战士们都举了手，温、邱就举不起来，自动地退出舞台，溜下去了，这样柯就对这支部队的成份做了调查，主流是什么。下面柯湘以毛委员教导为纲，因势利导讲明党的政策，然后为大江松绑，送衣服，大江很感动，要求参军，雷刚和战士们也觉悟了。柯湘又抓住这一点，把思想提到更高的境界“阶级情”，最后分衣分粮，她转化了矛盾，矛盾强烈了，这场戏柯不但没有淹没，反而更高大了。在这个问题上我们有些同志还有反复，舍不得雷刚原来那段唱：“我怎能在他身上旧伤痕上又加新伤痕”，做[作]为雷刚的悔悟是最感人的，会泳同志指出，被教育者搞好了，对教育者有好处，但是有个主次的问题，如果被教育者觉悟最感人，解决了问题，那么教育者就不必上了。所以不能这样看，别人从侧面树立一号人物是必要的，第二者的述说也是必要的，但都是次要的，烘托是可以的，但也是次要的，而主要英雄人物的行动是主要的，要把主要英雄放在矛盾斗争的中心。实际上我们理解会泳同志这个很重要的意见就是要写主要英雄人物转化矛盾的英雄行为。如果不写这个转化，那么就没有深度，结果又要走回头路。现在这样改，贫下中农看了以后讲“我们很受教育，柯做工作真是做到家了，眼泪在我们眼框里打转转，我们自己做工作就不是这样，说一次说二次不能解决问题就要扣工分了，柯就不是这样，雷刚就是铁石心肠也要动心了。”\n\n 所以写转化很重要，如果没有矛盾，没有举手，没有语录，没有松绑，没有送衣服，分衣分粮，那么是个什么局面，还是雷刚占据中心，柯湘软弱无力。\n\n 刚才讲不是有四组矛盾吗，以柯湘为中心的四组矛盾都是通过柯湘的英雄行为，一个矛盾一个矛盾地转化了。\n\n 柯和毒的矛盾是怎么转化的呢，柯湘身在刑场，毒蛇胆很嚣张，要斩尽杀绝，他们很注意，而柯湘很有斗争策略，出其不意的一句话“请问，现在是哪一年？”出其不意，毒：“民国十七年，”柯：“可是你们的田赋钱粮，苛捐杂税，已经收到民国三十七年啦！”一句话变被动为主动，就转化了矛盾。的确是这样，在井岗山地区土豪劣绅苛捐杂税多如牛毛，种他的地要收两次四六开，收成六成给地主，剩下四成再分四六开，因为地主说：“地是我的，一次四六开，种子、工具、肥料是我的，还要四六开。”这样农民还得到多少？他们讲“禾镰子挂上壁，锅里没米煮”。税就更多了，脑壳捐，灶头捐，搭个小草棚也要门户捐，种地要交保仓捐、乡仓税、县仓税[？]、壮丁税，还要交收税人的草鞋税，还有什么笋干捐、茶叶捐……不下二十几种，所以柯湘这一句就很有分量，不只是经济斗争，也有政治上的揭露：你是什么政府，是代表谁的？你们是反革命，是反动派！毒一下子哑口无言，柯就变被动为主动，接着上高台宣传，“乡亲们……”形成高潮，柯湘以刑场作战场，以刑场作讲台。\n\n 以后这一组矛盾继续转化，这次修改加了一场风雨行军，就是《飞渡云堑》这场戏，飞渡鹰愁涧是正面表现英雄人物的英雄行为，这是转化，这是很重要的一场戏，过去一稿没有，这一场主要靠舞蹈表现，表现柯湘身先士卒，深入虎穴，正面救雷刚。\n\n 江青同志讲：“要正面写乌豆的失败，要正面救乌豆”，现在雷刚又一次被捕，彻底失败了，不听党的话就中了计，正面救就不能虚表，要有舞台形象，让观众看清是怎么救的，毒也是很狡猾的，他也知道利害关系，所以要守住镇口，要移到一线天以备柯湘假转移真劫狱，但是柯依靠群众，又是一个出其不意，挫败了毒，救出了雷刚，转化了矛盾。\n\n 另外一组矛盾，柯和温的矛盾也是转化了，柯湘临走让李石坚任党内职务，临时党代表，而且要防暗箭，这就控制了部队，控制了局势，掌握了主动，回山以后人证物证俱在，先是引蛇出洞，层层剥皮，最后揭露温其久的叛徒咀[嘴]脸，温落得一个粉身碎骨的结局。柯湘在转化这个矛盾当中她的英雄行为，高度的政治嗅觉、路线觉悟、斗争策略都得到了很好的体现。\n\n 柯和雷的矛盾也是通过柯一系列行为转化了。怎么转化了，就是雷刚由一个非无产阶级战士成长为一个有觉悟的无产阶级战士。\n\n 这些矛盾的转化是通过主要英雄人物的英雄行为，这些矛盾转化就构成了全剧在总体上的总的转化，那就是以雷刚为代表的自卫军，最后转化成为一支由共产党领导下的用无产阶级思想武装起来的沿着毛主席革命路线前进的工农革命军，最后上井岗山见毛主席。毒被消灭了，叛徒被清除了，军队也成长了，雷刚成长了，这样这个戏的主题就得到了很好的体现，而柯湘的英雄行为，性格特征，也就很好地展现在观众面前了。\n\n 所以我们觉得很重要的一条，就是要以阶级斗争、路线斗争为纲，在矛盾冲突当中树立无产阶级英雄人物，在这个大题目里有三个小点：\n\n1. 以主要英雄人物柯为中心，多方面组织戏剧冲突，多侧面地表现她的英",“target_locale”:“en”}Masculine character.
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Must intensify and strengthen all kinds of contradictions.
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Also need to write well the transformation of contradictions, reflecting the heroic actions of the hero characters.
This is the second problem, how to shape the character No. 1, Ke Xiang.
III. About the issues of Three Prominences and Three Accompaniments
Because of the issues of Three Prominences and Three Accompaniments, Comrade Huiyong raised this question in the creation of “Du”.
Three Prominences, comrades, are very clear:
Highlight the positive character between the negative and positive characters;
Highlight the hero among the positive and heroic characters;
Highlight the main hero among the hero and the main heroic character.
This is an important experience for Jiang Qing comrades in creating model operas, an important experience of the literary and artistic revolution, and the crystallization of Jiang Qing’s painstaking efforts. It has long-term guiding significance and important guiding role for our literary and artistic creation.
What is meant by Three Accompaniments? Huiyong comrades explain that when writing plays:
The negative and positive characters should be used to set off each other;
The positive and heroic characters should be used to set off each other;
The hero and the main heroic character should be used to set off each other.
Huiyong comrades say, summarizing in simple terms, it is called “Water rises with the boat.” How to set off—“Water rises with the boat.”
The issues of Three Prominences and Three Accompaniments are two aspects of one problem. Without prominence, there is no accompaniment; without accompaniment, there is no prominence. Prominence is the main, and accompaniment aims to serve prominence.
“Water rises with the boat” means that in the play “Duzhuan Mountain,” the relationship between Ke and Lei should be well balanced, preventing two tendencies:
One is that the scenes of the main heroic character and the non-main heroic character are of equal weight, which is not acceptable, and must not overshadow the No. 1 character—that is, to prevent the scene from being overpowered, which violates the principle of Three Prominences.
Another is to avoid using the “Water Falls and Reveals the Stones” method, which forcibly compresses and reduces Lei Gang’s scenes to highlight Ke Xiang, lowering quality and quantity, which actually dilutes the contradiction. The result is that the stones are revealed, but not high; originally two inches, now just water level lowered, the stones see it but are not tall—the stones themselves are not high.
To “water rise with the boat” means that the accompaniment characters can increase, Lei Gang cannot be suppressed, but must also rise; Wen Qijiu can also rise, Tian Dajiang must rise. Now the scenes involving Tian have been upgraded, becoming the fifth character.
“Water rises with the boat” must clarify that water rising is a means, and the boat rising is the purpose. If not handled well, the relationship can backfire.
Our earliest draft made this mistake—an instructive failure. First, “Water floods the boat,” Lei Gang’s scenes were both reluctant and overdone, constantly “rising,” resulting in Ke Xiang not being established properly, and in some places the boat was flooded—an example is the scene of the beating with the board, which stranded the boat. The eighth scene of “Duquanshan” is also like this: after Lei Gang returns to the mountain, Ke Xiang also returns, and this is the moment to reflect the theme. Lei Gang, after discovering Tian Dajiang’s sacrifice, is very sorrowful. At this moment, Ke Xiang says, “Let’s go see the wounded,” then leaves. Mother Du brings a bowl of bitter vegetable soup to Lei and says, “Drink this bitter vegetable soup, you’ll still have to fight in the future. Now there’s no sweet potato.” She puts the bitter vegetable soup on a stone and leaves. The scene is left with Lei Gang alone, who accidentally spills the bitter vegetable soup, picks up the bowl, and sees his iron shackles, which are rusty. He picks up the shackles and sings a segment of “Seeing Iron Shackles,” which clears the scene, allowing Ke Xiang to slip away and say, “I’ll go see the wounded.” She leaves, Lei Gang sings eight lines, and when he is about to be educated, Ke Xiang slips back in. This back-and-forth becomes Ke Xiang’s preparation for Lei Gang, serving Lei Gang, and the relationship of Three Prominences is reversed. Later, the cultural team leaders reviewed and criticized this, and under Huiyong’s leadership, they gradually understood the concept of Three Accompaniments. To highlight Ke Xiang without diminishing Lei Gang’s scenes, the main goal is to set the right position. Now, in the first scene, Lei Gang is much stronger than before. Huiyong comrades put great effort into this: he said, “The first line of a play, the first appearance, and the first song are very important. It should not be too naturalistic; there must be dance-standard movements. It should draw the audience into a deep poetic realm. Lei Gang’s entrance should be extraordinary—first see his hand emerge from the mountain cliff, brush away grass to reveal himself, a series of dance movements. Lei Gang’s first appearance must show that he is a ‘failed hero,’ first as a hero, but he is ‘a hero of the grass roots,’ so he must still be heroic at first. He insists on fighting, with ups and downs, with strong fighting spirit, very lovable, not to be pathetic—tattered clothes, spiky hair. But he also has a failing side, hungry and thirsty, wearing iron shackles, with bloodstains on his face. He begins with a dance segment, much more intense than before. To depict his urgent desire to fight for the Party, he also writes a segment of ups and downs singing to emphasize this, and finally seizes the Communist Party’s garden stage to show his spirit. This character has grown, but he is laid as a foil for Ke, so the boat is higher—that is an example.
The scene of “Big Fire Burning” in Act Five, with Lei Gang’s solo, is very important. In the past, this scene was about Mother Du being captured for several days without direct confrontation with the enemy. Lei Gang was very anxious. At this moment, Wen Qijiu comes in to sow discord, saying Ke Xiang is an outsider and indifferent: “You’re drinking water from Duzhuan Mountain, forgetting your roots.” Lei’s heart becomes very anxious. This scene is very important. Originally, it was a segment of anti-two-sound singing; Lei’s mood was complicated—wanting to go down the mountain but lacking the Party’s order, unable to go. He sits beside a big stone, and Xiao Shan comes up, asking, “Xiao Shan, do you miss home?” Xiao Shan asks, “Uncle Lei, do you miss home?” He replies, “I have no home now. My family of six was burned by poisonous snakes.” Xiao Shan asks, “And the children?” He replies, “They were also burned to death.” Very low, he says, “Xiao Shan, let’s go down the mountain to fight poisonous snakes.” Xiao Shan says, “No! The Party’s representative has no order.” Then he says, “Sweet potatoes are almost gone.” He looks at the sweet potatoes and sings a long segment of anti-two-sound: “Holding sweet potatoes, my heart warms, recalling many past events in my mind…” It describes his memories of family history, very low. This segment does not serve Ke, not an accompaniment, not linked to Ke Xiang. Now it’s different: it shows Lei Gang’s love and trust in Ke, and he thinks: No, on the execution ground, she speaks passionately and righteously; she is a good Party member. Doing revolution is so difficult. This segment of singing is linked to Ke. Lei’s water level rises, the boat rises, and Ke’s rises even higher.
Newly added in Scene Seven, “Great Fire,” Lei Gang’s solo, is very important. Huiyong comrades say: this scene must be well written and performed. It’s “Anger burns, tears flow.” Many foreign guests in Guangdong have shed tears here—they understand completely, feeling that a soldier has sacrificed, causing great loss, and they are very sad. The previous “Seeing Iron Shackles” was about water rising and the scene going downstage; now Ke does not go down. Lei Gang’s singing not only depicts the character but also lays the groundwork for Ke’s “blood lesson.” He asks: Why do I, Lei Gang, keep making mistakes and suffer setbacks? Why do I, Lei Gang, sacrifice myself to seize the Communist Party, love the Party so much, and be so sincere, but at critical moments, I do not listen to the Party’s words, listen to bad people’s instigation, and cause big mistakes? Why is revolution so difficult? This question is also posed to the audience. Then Ke’s singing becomes necessary: she is here to answer this question and complete the theme. Why do I make mistakes? Because Lei Gang’s narrow revenge thoughts limit his vision. Our people’s army can only follow the Party; the Party commands the gun, and only then can the gentle stream flow into the Yangtze River. The peasant armed forces can only achieve victory by following the Communist Party. Only by following Chairman Mao’s revolutionary line can we win. This points to the theme. The audience must listen, Lei Gang must listen, everyone must listen. This “blood lesson” is fully laid out, and singing is unavoidable—this is “water rises with the boat.”
Here I also want to talk about Lei Gang’s character. Huiyong comrades say: You must understand Jiang Qing’s instructions well. Jiang Qing said: “Lei Gang’s character traits cannot be removed.” Didn’t I just say? Lei Gang has become a “good boy,” and his character is gone. Jiang Qing said: He has character traits that cannot be taken away.
For example, “Heaven Blesses,” initially this phrase was not dared to be written. During the Cultural Revolution, the Red Guards were destroying the Four Olds, and on stage, “Heaven Blesses” was thought to be “dangerous.” The leaders said this lacked historical materialism. To have a typical artistic character, Lei Gang is the number two figure and must be portrayed as an artistic archetype, not casually. He must conform to his character. He has non-proletarian thoughts and consciousness, and because of this, he conflicts with the proletarian ideology represented by Ke Xiang. He needs to be transformed. If not, he becomes a “good boy,” and there is no contradiction. So, he must be portrayed from multiple angles:
(1) Daring to rebel, daring to revolution, with several failed struggles but unyielding, three ups and downs, still fighting, with strong revolutionary spirit—much higher than revisionist surrendering. Many poor and lower-middle peasants after watching the play hold discussions: “Not only does Ke Xiang educate us, but we also want to learn from Lei Gang. When we encounter difficulties repeatedly, we often give up. Lei Gang has three ups and downs, risking his life, still insisting on fighting. There are only a few of us, but he doesn’t give up, still seeks the Party, with a very firm revolutionary will. We should learn from him.” This is his first aspect.
(2) Hates the landlord class to the bone, hates poisonous snakes’ gall to the point of wanting to cut it into eight pieces, but feels kinship with fellow villagers—class hatred is very clear and strong. But he has a short-sighted view, a spontaneous peasant revolutionary. His goal is only to let the villagers of Duzhuan Mountain breathe a sigh of relief, and then his revolution is considered successful. He doesn’t realize that only by liberating all humanity can true liberation be achieved. This inevitably conflicts sharply with the Party’s policies, the Party’s line, Chairman Mao’s revolutionary line, and proletarian ideology—this is a worldview struggle, another aspect.
(3) The dominant, core aspect of his character, his love and attitude toward the Party. Starting from simple class feelings, influenced greatly by the lessons of three ups and downs, he deeply respects Mao and hopes the Party will lead. He is willing to sacrifice himself to find the Party, risking death. Huiyong comrades say: At the beginning of the script, when setting the character’s tone, they asked us a question: Why is Lei Gang so eager to find the Party? To find a military strategist, to get ideas, or to join the fight? This is the character’s tone issue. We say Lei Gang is looking for a “leader,” Huiyong comrades say: “A leader can be understood as someone who leads the way or someone who leads the effort. Our understanding of Party leadership is inconsistent, and confusion on this point is unacceptable.” Indeed, if the screenwriter is unclear, the character will waver, which involves the nature of the contradiction. In the original “Duzhuan Mountain,” the play “Duzhuan Mountain,” and the original “Duquanshan,” the contradiction between Lei Gang and Ke Xiang subtly involved a question of authority. In the original play, Ke Xiang said: “Yours, yours, but what is the Party? Have you thought about it?” When Wen Qijiu stirs discord, he also says: “Whatever the Party’s representative says, why do you need Captain Lei?” So, there is a subtle question of authority, and the nature of the contradiction is different, making it difficult to set the tone.
Lei Gang seeks the Party to lead and accept the Party’s leadership, but he does not understand or comprehend the Party’s policies and the Chairman’s line. He believes he should have his own ideas, thinking the Party and he are naturally aligned, with no contradictions. The Communist Party fights against the local tyrants; he also fights them. What’s different? So, in policies and legal issues, the first round begins. But in the end, he grows under the Party’s education into a conscious proletarian fighter. Jiang Qing said: “Wu Dou (Black Bean) is a grassroots hero,” which is very accurate and scientific. First, he is a hero; second, he is a grassroots hero with a strong spontaneous character.
After Ke Xiang came, Lei Gang had a question: why is the Party’s thinking different from mine? Why is revolution so difficult? This question is faced with reality. The difficulty lies in Lei Gang’s ignorance of the Party’s policies and line, and his failure to thoroughly break with his non-proletarian thoughts. Without this, he cannot follow the Party and Chairman Mao’s line well. Therefore, portraying Lei Gang well is directly related to highlighting the theme. This play was reviewed five times. During the third review, Huiyong came and added four lines of Ke Xiang’s words: “Slaves seek liberation generation after generation, / War drums sound across the land. / Only because the journey is vague and directionless, / How many heroic rebels, with angry eyes and lofty ambitions, drink bitter tears in vain!” Why add these four lines? Because Lei’s image not only represents the Chinese farmers of the 1920s but also summarizes the image of Chinese peasant uprisings. After the founding of the Party during the democratic revolution, Lei’s strengths are that he embodies the peasantry as the main force of revolution; his limitations are that he needs to accept the Party’s leadership. This also has important historical significance. Chinese peasant uprisings, as Chairman Mao said, are like the wind rising and clouds gathering—throughout history, hundreds of times, big and small. Their scope and scale are rare in world history. But these uprisings, from Chen Sheng and Wu Guang to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, all ended in failure—either brutally suppressed by landlords or used as tools for landlords to overthrow dynasties. Many heroic rebels died with unfulfilled ambitions. Historically, peasant uprisings all failed. Why did Lei Gang succeed? Because of the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party and Chairman Mao’s revolutionary line. So these four lines summarize the lessons and experiences of Chinese peasant uprisings. This is the fourth scene, completing the theme through “blood lessons”: spontaneous peasant uprisings can only achieve victory under the leadership of the Communist Party and along Mao’s revolutionary line.
Additionally, in the fourth scene, Lei Gang’s joining the Party was only approved after the third review by the leaders. Previously, Lei Gang was not a Party member, and the play script did not include his joining. Lei not joining the Party was a mistake—this is a critique of us. Our ideological hesitation. Lei joined the Party, and in Scene Five, he made many mistakes. Does this mean lowering the standards for Party members? The leaders said: This does not lower the standards. Communist Party members grow through repeated struggles in revolution, and making mistakes is not forbidden. Many representatives at the Ninth and Tenth Congresses also made mistakes; what matters is to correct them. The key is what kind of mistakes. So, Lei Gang joined the Party in Scene Four. He is a good comrade, committed to revolution. His mistakes are not double-dealing but misunderstandings, and he has received education and grown better.
We understand that Huiyong’s point about “water rises with the boat” is very important. It teaches us to firmly and wholeheartedly write well the main heroic characters, but also to carefully portray other heroes. We cannot be careless. It’s not just about Lei Gang’s “water rises with the boat,” but also about other characters—“water rises with the boat.”
In the initial stage of this creation, Huiyong personally took charge of this play and proposed: The most important task now is to shape Ke Xiang well and complete this most difficult and essential task. Ke Xiang’s character is basically established. Huiyong then raised a new task: to further develop the characters of others, to write each character well, and to highlight Ke Xiang. At that time, the whole crew was mobilized, and all comrades discussed how to improve Tian Dajiang, Luo Chenghu, and Zheng Laowan. In the past, these characters were somewhat similar, only differing in appearance, without distinct personalities. A particularly good example is Tian Dajiang, who has greatly developed compared to before. He is a soldier who was personally educated and inspired by Ke Xiang to enlist. He joined the army under the influence of Party policies and lines. Writing this character well helps highlight Ke Xiang, but he should not have too much space. He is the fifth character. Huiyong comrades said: Use a prominent side to write him. At that time, the discussion was very lively, and many ideas emerged. The key trait of this character is loyalty—to the Party and the revolution. This person speaks little but diligently works for the Party, can come up with ideas at critical moments, and makes contributions to the revolution. The suggestions from the masses and the creative team matched perfectly, adding several heroic actions for this character. Not many words are needed, but they must leave an impression. He has four heroic actions:
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Scene Three’s enlistment: “Give me a gun, and I’ll fight with you!” This is very important. Mastering the gun and fighting for the Party’s revolution is a heroic act.
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Scene Four, gathering herbs in the deep ravine, with a blue and purple mark on his body, working hard without telling others. Lei beats him with a board, but he bears no grudges and is very open-minded—this character is very lovable.
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Scene Five, when the troops face their greatest difficulty, he makes a contribution by rescuing Mother Du and his comrades. Because he conducts investigations and proposes climbing vines and crossing ravines—this is a key heroic act.
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Scene Seven, marching in wind and rain. Ke Xiang is the commander, Tian Dajiang is the vanguard, clearing obstacles, leading the way, fighting bravely and skillfully. His fighting power is quite strong—quick, fierce, agile—and he sacrifices heroically at the end, with heroic grandeur, shining over mountains and rivers.
This character is complete.
Huiyong comrades point out: This scene must depict the rescue of Lei Gang positively. Ke is the commander, Tian is the vanguard, opening the way. This character’s lines are few but leave a deep impression. Tian’s sacrifice, as a foil, underscores the theme: not listening to the Party or not following Chairman Mao’s line leads to failure, bloodshed, and sacrifice. From the positive side, it highlights Ke Xiang. Tian Dajiang’s growth is the result of Ke’s work, and Ke’s implementation of Party policies is the crystallization of her efforts.
Li Shijian’s character is similar. When the Party’s representative is absent, he actively seeks the Party. When the Party’s representative arrives, he assists; when the Party’s representative is not on the mountain, he acts as the acting Party representative. He listens to the Party’s words most quickly and implements policies most resolutely. For example, in Scene Three, Ke Xiang asks: “Who has worked for the local tyrant? Raise your hand.” The soldier doesn’t understand: “Why raise your hand?” He breaks the silence first: “I have.” He is very clever and firm. When the Party’s representative is not on the mountain, he completes the tasks assigned by the Party and controls the troops. His growth also reflects Ke Xiang’s political work effectiveness and highlights her.
Luo Chenghu is very simple—like a young Lei Gang—but somewhat impatient. He initially didn’t understand Ke Xiang, got angry, threw his box, and broke a wine glass. But once he knew Ke Xiang was also suffering, he immediately changed his view. He also joined the Party, gradually matured, became a reconnaissance soldier, and a capable assistant to Ke Xiang.
Other characters all serve to set off and highlight Ke Xiang from different aspects.
The negative character Wen Qijiu also changed significantly this time. In Scene Four, Wen Qijiu becomes a traitor, colluding with poisonous snake’s gall, becoming a traitor. His role is more prominent. Jiang Qing comrades said: This character must be insidious. We focus on the word “insidious”—a double-faced person, pretender, outwardly polite but secretly doing evil. The tone of this character is “seeming to be a gentleman.” No longer should he be a clown or a strange effect; he must be inwardly sinister. This character’s tone is the six characters “Seemingly a gentleman.” It must not be superficial or gimmicky; it must be internal insidiousness, not superficial.It is difficult to perform. But playing this character well is to highlight Ke Xiang, with his insidiousness, disguise, and deception, in order to emphasize Ke Xiang’s keen intuition and high awareness of class struggle and line struggle, discerning every detail and identifying trends. If Wen is too weak to be attacked or incited, then Ke can easily win, and the character will be diminished, making it impossible to show many aspects of Ke Xiang, and the qualities of wisdom and bravery cannot be fully demonstrated.
Therefore, the three supporting roles are developed on the basis of the three突出 (prominent) elements, which is also a very important issue. That is to say, when we devote all efforts to portraying the main heroic characters, we cannot “water fall and reveal the stones” (i.e., reveal everything), neglecting the shaping of other characters. The shaping of other characters is all aimed at highlighting the main hero.
Four, The rehearsal method of "Dujian Mountain"
This play’s rehearsal this time is the first time using a new rehearsal method under the personal leadership of Comrade Hui Huiyang, which is also a new method for us and a very good process for learning artistic practice. This method is called “a leading comprehensive whole, unified in stages”【bold type added by the editor — editor’s note】. In the past, we did not understand this method and had not used it. Under Comrade Hui Huiyang’s leadership, this was the first time rehearsing according to this method. We realize that fundamentally there are two points: first, there must be a leading role. What is the leading role? It means that the scriptwriter, director, music, dance, stage design, and performance, each specific link and department, must be unified by one person (namely Hui Huiyang). There must be a central director, who is responsible for conceptualizing, unifying ideas, and guiding the overall artistic conception. This central director must be strategic, have an overview of the entire situation, not only organize work but also participate in creation and conceptualization himself, using his ideas to unify the entire play’s conception. This central director needs to plan carefully and see the big picture, not only organizing but also personally involved in the creative process, using his ideas to unify the entire play’s conception.
This is the overall view, but from each department’s perspective, it is also a small comprehensive whole, which must be like this. For example, music also needs a small comprehensive body, a central director, and a leading role. The so-called leading role emphasizes the party’s democratic centralism, which is more conducive to implementing the “Mass Speech” (Qun Yan Tang). The central director we mention is completely different from the “director-centered theory”; there must be a center, and under the guidance of the central director, artistic conception is unified early on. Each link and department must be unified in their creative ideas, and they must understand each other thoroughly. For example, during the scriptwriting stage, the scriptwriter is the foundation of the play, very important. It is not like in the past, where the scriptwriter finishes the script, hands it to the director, who then does preliminary work and conceptualization, then hands it to actors, who read the script and rehearse. Now, during the scriptwriting stage, the scriptwriter, director, music, and stage design work together to conceptualize the script and decide on it collectively. During this process, the director has already begun to conceive stage directions, not only after receiving the script.
For example, in the second scene, where Ke Xiang sings a large section with song and dance, this is not done after receiving the script; in fact, if this new creative method is not adopted, such a conception would be impossible. Because during the scriptwriting, the director begins to conceive, and the scriptwriters understand the director’s ideas, providing mutual supplement. This makes it possible to decide what kind of lyrics and stage arrangements to use, with unified creative thinking, to best express the revolutionary content in an artistic form. For example, in the seventh scene “Guanghua Illuminates the Rivers and Mountains,” similar early-stage conceptualization is done. During the script creation, including stage design, there are ideas like having a sculpture on a high platform, backlighting, and top-backlighting. The music, stage design, sound effects, thunder, etc., all begin to be conceived and unified early on.
The same applies to music: it is not conceived after the script is finalized, but during the writing of the lyrics, considering what kind of rhythm and tonality to use, and early on, artistic conception is formed. The same applies to scoring: it is not considered only after the singing style is finalized, but during the lyric writing process. Early artistic conception is very important.
Of course, all artistic ideas in various aspects must be unified under the guidance of the central director, with a leading role. This way, the performance, scriptwriting, directing, music, and stage design work together on the script, enabling a more accurate grasp of the theme, and other departments can understand the scriptwriter’s intentions thoroughly. Conversely, the scriptwriter can also be inspired by other artistic departments, providing broader premises for their artistic treatment. Therefore, having a leading role is very important. Without it, how can it work? “Everyone blows their own horn, plays their own tune” (each works independently), so having a leading role is crucial.
The above ensures that the artistic creation ideas are unified and not chaotic, allowing steady and solid progress — this is the first key point. Another is staged progress. The comprehensive whole with a leading role (since drama art is integrated art) is rehearsed in stages with unified progress. Another key point is staged progress: within this Beijing opera — which is an art form combining singing, reciting, acting, fighting, dancing, stage design, music, scoring, effects, and lighting — one cannot grasp everything at once or mix everything together (“one pot cooking”). It must be staged in phases, ensuring each period’s key work.
The specific arrangement of this rehearsal method is: the first stage is scriptwriting; after completing this, the second stage shifts to stage directing. The first task of the stage director is to preliminarily determine the characters’ shapes, movements, performances, and staging based on the theme, characters, and plot, with the main focus on recitative, to find character relationships and explore character shapes. The first stage’s stage director task is quite long. After this stage, the next focus is on singing styles. After completing the singing styles, the stage returns to the second stage’s stage director tasks, returning to the stage.
The second stage’s main task is deepening — strengthening characters, highlighting main heroes and key dramatic climaxes, and handling rhythm. After this stage, the third stage is scoring. Since the stage has a basic outline, after scoring, the third stage’s stage director tasks follow. Overall, the stage director’s role accounts for about sixty percent of the time. “Drama” — the script is very important: it is the “root of a play,” not just taking the script out but also reflecting it on stage. Therefore, the three stages’ stage director tasks are very important in the entire rehearsal process, requiring about sixty percent of effort and time. The third stage’s stage director task is to further deepen and strengthen the characters, using music, rhythm changes, and dynamics to highlight and reinforce them. After this, stage design is carried out, completing the entire rehearsal process. Chairman Mao taught us: “If there are many contradictions in any process, one must be the main one that leads and decides, and others are secondary and subordinate.” “Contradictions between the main and non-main aspects are constantly transforming.” Therefore, in our creation, especially in Peking Opera, which is an art form of synthesis, we must focus on one key task at each stage — the task that takes the dominant position and must be fully addressed. During this period, other departments should not interfere but actively and proactively carry out their work, preparing for the time when their work becomes the key task. Why adopt this working method? Because it is a comprehensive art — singing, acting, reciting, fighting, dancing, stage art, and all aspects and links. These links are not isolated but influence and depend on each other, forming a dialectical relationship. In the past, our playmaking was actually chaotic or like a relay race: scripts came to the director, who then handed them to actors. When actors rehearsed, stage design was done, in a relay style or chaotic manner, like “one pot cooking” or “combination style,” with each department doing its own thing, finally assembling into a play. It seemed quick, but the work was chaotic, creative ideas were confused, and there was mutual resistance, which also hindered good artistic intentions and ideas. This led to chaos in creative thinking, wasting manpower and material resources, reducing effectiveness, and causing failure. Therefore, a scientific creative method is necessary. This method involves a leading comprehensive whole, unified in stages. The staged unified rehearsal method aligns with Chairman’s “Contradiction Theory” and “Practice Theory,” and we have already experienced the benefits in rehearsal. So this is our practical experience: in future rehearsals and creations, we should follow this approach.
Moreover, this method is not just a technique but relates to artistic outlook and worldview. Applying this method requires us to strengthen three qualities: scientificity, organization, and discipline. This overcomes many old ideas: conservatism, working independently, and fame and profit viewpoints. These ideas can only be overcome under new creative relations, allowing the new creative method to be implemented. We have tasted success in rehearsing “Dujian Mountain” with this approach. Comrade Hui Huiyang instructed us: this kind of creative method should be followed in future productions.
Five, On the issue of rhyme and prose system
No time now; I will briefly talk about the previous section first. The detailed issues will be discussed next time. The play “Dujian Mountain” adopts a new system of long and short rhymed lines, like poetry — this is an innovation. Comrade Hui Huiyang, following Jiang Qing’s instructions, once practiced this during the editing of “Dujian Mountain.” After review, the leadership basically approved it. Currently, two new plays are being created following this system of rhyme and prose. The new thing, proletarian literature and art, must dare to innovate, to mark socialism’s new, to establish proletarian differences. This new rhyme and prose system is not just about form; form serves content. As Chairman pointed out in his speech: “Our requirement is the unity of politics and art, the unity of content and form, the unity of revolutionary political content and as perfect as possible artistic form.” And the phrase “as perfect as possible” is very important — it means we should strive for it. The artistic appeal and the content’s expressive power are dialectically related and unified. The revolutionary theme must be reflected through appropriate artistic conditions to produce strong artistic influence. Therefore, using this rhyme and prose system aims to achieve the unity of revolutionary political content and as perfect as possible artistic form.
Conversely, this system is more conducive to embodying the theme and highlighting proletarian heroes. This rhyme and prose system has many advantages and strengths. Overall, there are three main points:
First, it helps to more profoundly reveal the theme and express the heroes’ thoughts and feelings. Such recitative is highly conceptual and can strongly reflect the theme, for example, in the third scene “Deep as the Sea,” Ke Xiang educates Lei Gang with a long recitative. This recitative is structured and rhythmic, using long and short lines with rhyme. Ke Xiang, guided by Mao’s teachings, explains principles, propagates party policies, step by step, thoroughly and patiently, explaining policies, pointing out Lei Gang’s mistakes, and finally persuading him to break with wrong ideas with a series of intricate, rhymed lines. Such long recitative concentrates the theme, illustrating who the revolution depends on and whom it fights against, addressing fundamental principles. It also relates to the theme “People’s armed forces can only develop and grow continuously by following Chairman Mao’s revolutionary line, and achieve victory.” This connects to the theme.
And in the first scene, Mother Du has four lines of recitative:
“Vine climbs along the cliff, sheep look at the leader when they walk. Need to find a guide to lead the way, no more reckless wandering!”
This short four-line recitative “finding a guide” highlights the theme, emphasizing that the people’s armed forces must be under party leadership. Such recitative uses many aphorisms and maxims, which are very beneficial and powerful for shaping heroes. For example, in the second scene, after a long singing section, Ke Xiang has four lines of recitative:
“Where there is oppression, there is struggle. Brave to shed blood, awakening millions!”
These four lines encapsulate Ke Xiang’s heroic character, emphasizing the heroism of Communist Party members, and reflect his unwavering loyalty to the revolution, his optimism in the victory of Mao Zedong Thought and Marxism-Leninism, and his firm belief that the revolution must succeed. These words are powerful and highlight Ke Xiang’s important aspects.
In the fifth scene, Ke Xiang recites: “Strong wind knows tough grass, fierce fire reveals pure gold,” “In critical moments, don’t let sand and mud blind your eyes; in urgent times, right and wrong must be distinguished.” Such recitative should resemble “maxims.” Many such maxims are used, expressing the high thinking and spirit of the hero, vividly reflecting their typical character and scope. These recitative techniques—changing rhythm, rhyme, and pace—are very helpful in emphasizing main heroes. For example, in the first scene, Li Shijian brings news of the Communist Party, and his recitative uses changing rhyme and rhythm. It begins with “Yan Qian” rhyme (with vowels an, ian, uan, üan):
“Listen: rumors spread in the city and town, Dujian Mountain has two Communists. Encountering enemies, fighting bravely. One is shot, sacrificing; the other wounded, captured. Tomorrow morning, in front of the ancestral hall, the local people will be shown, and beheaded!”
He shifts to the “Gusu” rhyme (with vowel u), with a metaphor: “Hard to find a pearl in the ocean,” reflecting the Party’s hope and the self-defense army’s loyalty. The rhythm also changes from four-character lines to five-character lines, making the recitative more vivid and expressive. This technique highlights the urgency and importance of the Party’s cause.
Similarly, in the handling of the upper and lower lines, the upper line is usually unstable, like posing a question, and the lower line is more stable, like answering or concluding, creating ups and downs, conflicts, and rhythm development. Usually, the concluding, stable, and calm line is given to the hero. For example, in the scene where Lei Gang wants to go down the mountain, and Ke Xiang stops him, her lines are stable and conclusive, while Lei Gang’s are unstable and emotional:
Lei Gang: “Relatives are in danger at the foot of the mountain, I can’t just sit idly by!” (upper line)
Ke Xiang: “First, transfer out of the mountain,” (lower line)
Lei Gang: “I have made up my mind,” (upper line)
Ke Xiang: “Think twice,” (lower line)
Lei Gang: “You’re too subjective!” (upper line)
Ke Xiang: “This is reckless!” (lower line)
One unstable, one stable, with the stable always on the main hero.
The second advantage is that this system, this rhyme and prose, language is very concise, highly expressive, using few words to contain broad meanings, deep implications, and evoke imagination. It is powerful, emotionally intense, vivid, and lively. For example, using many metaphors, contrasts, and vivid language, replacing broad concepts with specific images, and making the language poetic and pictorial, which can evoke the audience’s imagination. For instance, in the third scene, when the crowd asks, “Are you also from a poor and humble background?” Ke Xiang recites:
“Coming through wind and rain, working tirelessly all year round, what is there to show for it? Only a sturdy shoulder and strong hands left…”
“Coming through wind and rain” is very vivid, and Ke Xiang’s memory scene is poetic and easy to lead the audience into the poetic mood. It also vividly shapes the hero’s image in a three-dimensional way. Sometimes, the rhyme and recitative are poetically indirect, using imagery and metaphors to answer questions, making the meaning deeper and more thought-provoking. For example, in the fourth scene, Li Shijian cares about Mother Du and says:
“Oh, the venomous snake’s courage will come back, you must be extra cautious!”
Mother Du responds cheerfully, not directly, but indirectly:
“Look at these mountain tea trees all over the slope, they don’t shed leaves even in severe cold, let alone now, it’s early spring!”
This is more poetic, with broader implications, vividly depicting Mother Du’s revolutionary spirit and optimistic attitude, with stronger artistic appeal. There are many such examples.
Editor's note
Yesterday, I shared the previous part of the material; now I continue with the next part (this part, including annotations, references, etc., totals about 19,000 words).
Creative experience of the revolutionary modern Peking Opera "Dujian Mountain"
Beijing Peking Opera Troupe
Funi Ssu April 13, 1974
（1974年4月13日下午富乃甦同志继续讲《杜鹃山》的创作经验——关于《杜鹃山》的念白体制）
同志们，上次讲到念白问题，今天把念白问题继续向同志们汇报。关于这一部分我自己在排演中体会得不深，领导的指示体会得不深，也没有讲过；今天讲的当中，不免有片面的地方、错误的地方，还请同志们提出来。恐怕听起来不能使同志们满意，我一定争取讲好。有的问题体会得不深的地方，请同志们提出来。
上次我们讲《杜鹃山》的念白是用长短句式的诗一样的韵白体制，这样体制的优点和特点我已经讲了，用这样的体制来为革命现代戏服务，来塑造无产阶级英雄人物。那末，对念白的基本功，要提出更高的要求，这个基本功就是两个基本功了，一个是生活思想的基本功，这是根本的。因为这样的念白，很精炼很生动，得要深刻地理解它；理解念白的内容，甚至要超出这样的字面的含意。这样就要改造自己的思想。记得首长讲过么，你们演革命现代戏，要向戏的英雄人物学习，时刻带着英雄人物的思想感情来改造自己的思想，才能把革命现代戏演活，这就是改造世界观的问题。也只有把思想感情来一个转变，加速对世界观的改造，才能够理解英雄人物的思想感情，才能够比较深厚地洞察理解英雄人物的思想感情。这样才能表现好这样的念白，这是最主要的，生活思想的基本功。
另一个基本功是专业的基本功。这样的念白，对于念白的基本功提出要求得最高了，得下苦功夫，掌握一定的技巧，才能够体现这样的念白。也就是要使念白体现“四性”：动作性、节奏性、起伏性和韵律性这四性。那末，要体现这样的四性，就得要有基本功，要加强专业基本功，苦练基本功，才能够体现这样的念白，才能够体现这样的念白的艺术感染力，加强内容的说服力。这样的念白，江青同志非常重视，几次强调“三分唱七分念”。也就如常言所说的“千斤道白四两唱”，这是强调念白。
念白，直接体现英雄人物的思想感情，是非常重要的手段。在处理这样的念白的时候，于会泳同志要求导演、演员要象处理一段唱腔那样去精心处理每一段的念白，处理每一段每一句的念白，象处理唱腔那样。并不是说拿过剧本以后，随随便便地一看，就可以念出来了。就是要过细，过细分析研究它。在排练第一阶段，组织了念白小组，在戏还没有下地排练之前来研究这段念白，过细地，一段一句地来分析。一方面体会英雄人物的思想感情，尽量掌握住思想感情；一方面运用技巧把这个体会表现出来。
怎么样处理这样的念白呢？概括起来说，首先要精确地理解英雄人物的思想感情，这是根本的。要是英雄人物思想感情把握得不准，甚至理解错误，那就不能正确地体现英雄人物的英雄形象。或者是内心很少、很空虚，那就形成“赤字”（象财政上，里边收得少，外边支得多的“赤字”现象），形成肤浅。所以说首先要根据人物在规定情节里边的思想感情、性格气质、情绪变化、生活气息来处理。除了做到这几方面之外，还要保持人物的生活气息、人物的性格特点。也就是要根据人物的思想感情、性格气质、情绪变化和生活气息这几方面来进行处理。例如第三场：战士们因为对分浮财不满意，对柯湘发生抵触的情绪。这时柯湘把邱长庚的枪下下来以后，群众开始有一个转变。这时罗成虎就问柯湘：“你也是穷苦人出身？”这是个非常关要的地方，往往会被疏忽了。这时候柯湘到底是什么样的思想情感？需要过细地进行研究，细致地去研究。这时候柯湘是怎么样呢？要去分析，演员、导演在一起做分析。柯湘是单纯地回答问题？还是在这种情况下是不是自我表白？人家说了，读书人、外乡人、女人，哪能带兵。这时是表白还是单纯地回答问题？这样的话，这些东西直接关系到念白的处理。我们经过研究，大家认为这样：这时候柯湘不是单纯地回答问题，也不是自我表白，不是急于来解释自己，她应该把党交给她的任务——改造这支农民武装，把这个任务联系起来。那末，就是说她要接近群众，开展党交给她的工作。把这一任务联系起来，这时候她应该是“心绪万千，百感交集”。接着下面念白就是“风里来，雨里走”。这“风里来，雨里走”应该怎么念？柯也是被党拯救，柯也是穷苦人出身，念得很硬了，就变成是单纯的回答问题了，人物就肤浅了。这时她应该是“百感交集，心绪万千”，她的潜台词是“怎么说呢……”；她看见每一个战士，看见每一个在场战士的形象，都使她很激动，想到自己，心绪万千。这样，才念得出这“雨里走”。要是就这末一念很强，这哪是柯湘念白的处理？绝不要念起来很强、很硬、很直。所以说内心很多，出来的较少。于会泳同志要求说：内心要多，从外面出来的要控制，只反映出百分之三十、四十，人物才有深度。如果念得要强就进不了意境了，也就成了单纯的回答问题了，也就浅了。
在第五场里有这样一个场面，柯湘有这样一段念白“叫小山”。分析“叫小山”这段重要念白，在叫住小山以后，小山走到柯湘身边这一段。这是一段非常重要的念白，因为江青同志过去曾经提出来说柯湘这段戏不感人。（是对过去剧本提出来的）。柯湘知道群众被捕以后应该难受，以后她才识破这里边的诡计；要不然的话，就不感人了，缺少情绪。要表现柯湘的阶级感情，不能够让她自己表白，自己来讲，只能这么样讲。只要体现英雄人物在风浪冲击面前受到委曲，没有什么，还是顶天立地的英雄。于是就加了这场戏，就是现在“叫小山”这段戏。这段戏的念白需要真功夫，它是直接体现柯湘的思想感情。我们对当时的英雄人物的思想感情，也要做过细的分析，到底是个什么思想感情？基本精神是什么？这时候，我们认为柯湘不是因为受了点委曲就急于表白自己。虽是温其久当众挑拨大家说她心里根本没有杜鹃山的父老乡亲，“同别人不一样，她是个外乡人”来攻击柯湘，孤立柯湘，这时柯湘是受了一点委曲，她不是急于来表白自己，这是一方面。另一方面，温其久他又用“人性论”那套东西来进行煽动，柯湘她的内心世界这时候是很激动的，也是很焦急的。从两方面来讲，一方面她对杜妈妈，对杜妈妈的处境，雷刚的处境，她非常焦急，就是说满怀深厚的无产阶级感情。她要表现出这种深厚的无产阶级感情来，这是一个方面，积极要体现的。如果柯湘没有阶级感情，那就很严峻、干巴巴的，这么望着、那么望着，能下去不能下去？这个人物形象就不感人了。另一方面，这样情况，也和“满怀着无产阶级感情”一样尽量掌握她的党性原则，在这个时候，什么是第一位的，什么是第二位的，心里非常清楚；原则问题毫不退让，“原则分明”么。这两方面基本都是一样的。剧本以前柯湘成了一点阶级感情也没有了，人成了干巴巴的一个人了，也不行。另一方面，硬叫她以感情代替原则、代替政策，那也就歪曲了英雄人物了。所以两方面：既要理解人物思想，又要把握得对。就两方面说“少则不行，多则有损”。因为这两方面有一方面疏忽了，人物就要受到损害，就歪曲了人物的形象了。倘使以你自己的思想感情去理解英雄人物，代替英雄人物的思想感情，那就歪曲了英雄人物的形象了。如果你要以感情代替一切“苦辣辣的”，完全陷入感情里头去了，那英雄人物的党性原则跑到哪里去了？
这一段英雄人物的思想感情非常丰富，她在念这一段台词的时候，她应该想得很远，看得很远。
柯湘叫住小山以后，“叫小山”，三次“叫小山”。这一次叫“小——山——！”小山回来了，同时有音乐，战士们有的蹲下、有的背身、有的流泪，大家都很悲愤……然后才开始柯湘念白。这时念，因为刚才分析了英雄人物的思想感情了，一方面强调了无产阶级的情感，另一方面她又有高度党性原则。所以她在叫“小山”的时候，开始念的时候动律性很强。要是很（过于）强烈了，就变成了表白自己了，所以要抑制。要轻一些、静一些，深沉的。因为这时侯，观众的注意力也很集中，舞台上旁边的战士们也不能干扰她，也不能够随便动，在自己的地位上沉默着，不能动。观众的注意力都集中在柯湘的身上；这时柯湘的手抚摸着小山身上，感觉非常深沉。这时念白可以轻一点，只要台下能够听到就可以了。眼神也不能动，因为她想得很远，想的很多，心里感情也很焦急，眼神也不能乱动，低念：“此刻我的心情，和你一样的急切，一样的悲——愤。”过去我们上次讲过的念白要注意上下句，“一样的急切”要提一点，“一样的悲愤”的“悲愤”要憋一口气。往往还要憋一口气来表示她的感情延续。倘使演员没有这样的思想感情，肯定这一口气她憋不了。这时候她很激动，很难过，也很压抑！“一样的悲愤”憋一口气，然后收一口气：“如果这样下山，能够解救亲人，我就是赴汤蹈火，死也甘心！”她激动起来了。在这时候为什么她要激动起来呢？因为她是不能够平静，柯湘在这时候，她是动情了。平静了，就是装腔作势，假的了，那“我就是赴汤蹈火”是假的了，所以她要激动起来。“赴汤蹈火，死也甘心”以后，音断气不断，“可是”以后再大吸一口气说：“不能啊不能”，下边这句话非常重要，体现她在这么强烈的冲击面前，而思想感情在非常深厚的无产阶级感情面前，但，什么是第一性呢？很清楚。可是不能只表现她的高度党性原则，所以下面这句话，就不仅仅是对杜小山讲的，也是自言自语说的，好象心对心说话一样，只有声音而已。所以要控制，这就需要基本功了。
“不能贸然行动！”原则上是不能含糊。原则上不含糊的，但又充满了无产阶级感情。这样处理了人物就有深度了，就能够比较正确地体现英雄人物的思想感情。所以正确地掌握人物的思想感情是非常重要的一环。不仅是念白要这样，在唱腔的时候，动作的时候，都是这样。又比如第三场，柯湘有一大段念白“毛委员说过……”那段，就是教育雷刚，宣布党的政策这一段念白，这一大段念白是有层次的念白，有“起、承、转、合”，也是难度比较大的念白。这段念白集中体现柯湘的党性原则，她对主席革命路线的信仰；坚决执行、维护党的政策高度的政治觉悟；对劳动人民深厚的无产阶级感情；对同志们的极端热忱；又非常善于做思想工作，耐心启发教育同志，有这么多的内容来反映柯湘的正确的侧面。处理这段念白的时候，也必须从人物来出发、从思想来出发，以思想感情为依据，来精心地、一句一句地、一字一字地来细致地处理。“起、承、转、合”，象文章一样有结构的发展，节奏的推进。是推，是逐渐地推进，然后是“转”，要有迂迥；“合”是再推进；节奏是这样的。这样的从人物出发，开始柯湘“毛委员说过”，要带无产阶级感情，因为她的内在的来源就是来自主席的思想。她对毛委员非常敬爱，热爱主席，热爱主席的革命路线，所以她很崇敬，带着深厚的阶级感情来念这段语录。如果没有这个感情，念台词就不行了。所以她要带着深厚的阶级感情把主席的每一句话，每一个字象热浪头一样推向战士们的心里去。主席的话每一个字也深入战士们的心，因为他们是第一次听到主席的声音，对他们的思想境界，对他们心胸是很大的推动。所以柯湘在念语录的时候，是这样的情绪；不能念得很严、很呆板的，要带着深厚的阶级感情。我来举个例子：“谁是我们的敌人？谁是我们的朋友？”这两个“谁”字，就不能念得一样。一个“谁”是敌人，一个“谁”是朋友，这两个“谁”念起来要有区别，要带着浓厚的阶级感情。第一个“谁”是敌人，念得要强烈些；第二个“谁”是我们的朋友，感情要深厚些。
毛委员这段语录在整个这段念白中，它是“起”。下边是“承”了，“承”上启下的“承”。“承”在“所以”段开始。有了毛委员的这段教导是纲，下面“承”这个“所以，白军俘虏，要宽大处理；一般商人，应该争取”；这个“承”在语调上要变化一下，要把柯湘的话和毛委员的话区分开来。这时开始讲解党的政策，所以在语调、音调处理上，中间这段要求柔和，要有表现力，表现柯湘非常耐心、非常细致地、苦口婆心地来教育雷刚，来解说党的政策。所以说思想工作不能急呀，不能硬顶雷刚呀。“白军俘虏，要宽大处理；”（这是上下句）“一般商人应该争取；”她意思似说“你看是不是这样做才对呀，党的政策是这样的，雷刚同志你说这样做是不是才对呀？”很沉着也很耐心，好象自己提问题自己来解答，循循善诱来讲解党的政策。
所有这几句里边共四种人：一是“白军俘虏”，其次是“一般商人”，再就是“豪绅列强”和“劳动大众”这四种人。对这四种人感情上也是不同的，不能用同样的音调，要分析的。念“豪绅列强”要硬一些，要揭露他们，因为他们是我们的敌人么。“豪绅列强，是我们的死敌；而劳苦大众”，这“劳苦大众”要强调，因为这一件事实的本身，就是雷刚打了田大江，打了劳苦群众，打了自己的阶级弟兄。所以柯湘的感情是很激动的。“而劳苦大众【黑体字是编者加的——编者注】，乃是革命的主力！”强调劳苦大众这件事关系到“打板子”的原则问题。
“可你”，就是“转”了，是迂迥，下面就是针对雷刚。我们分析柯湘的思想感情，这里她不是单纯的指摘雷刚、申斥雷刚，因为雷刚还急切望党来领导，但是他对党的具体领导不理解，对党的政策不理解，所以他要力打田大江。这时柯湘很激动，亲眼看到自己的阶级兄弟也不理解党的政策，而且“错把亲人当仇人”——要把自己的阶级兄弟“打板子”，她非常激动，所以她不是客观地来指摘雷刚，她是把自己摆进这件事里去，而且是关系到原则问题，柯湘就“当仁不让”，这也反映她高度的党性原则。柯湘要动情，“可你”是“转”了，在紧张度、节奏上都是要推上去。“可你，杀俘虏，抓商人，还要毒打推车的雇工，我们的阶级兄弟。”节奏要推上去。“雇工”两字要稍向上扬一点，表现柯湘的激动。推车的雇工也要“打板子”，这是不可容忍的，是我们自己的阶级兄弟呀！
“推车的雇工，我们的【黑体字是编者加的——编者注】”。这“阶级兄弟”四字，往往由于念，把节奏游离出来了。要从整个来讲，“起、承、转、合”，到了“转”的时候，节奏就要往前推了。如果念成“还要毒打推车的雇工，我们阶级兄弟”，有时候演员的情到这时就念得散了，一“散”了，就把这一段统一的念白的节奏性就给破坏了。这儿，紧张度和节奏还要推，不能游离一下。这样的话，就为最后“合”做了铺垫，从节奏上来讲，它就做了垫了。“你，这是革谁的命？”就是“合”了。这四句是用反问句来做结尾的，“你，这是革谁的命？造谁的反？灭谁的威风？长谁的志气？”这四句反问句，也不是单纯的斥责，而是柯湘带着非常沉重的心情，她看到自己的同志，不善于与毒蛇胆斗争，犯了许多错误，她很沉痛，带着痛心的成份，（她的思想上想）“这样做不对，你想想，是谁高兴谁痛心呀？”所以，柯湘不是很客观地指责一下，而是很痛心的！所以这四句反问句，震动了雷刚，也震动了战士。这一段念白，在感情上处理，是从节奏上处理来的，是很深厚的。都需要我们过细地来分析、来研究。才能正确地体现出来。这就是说，如果不是深刻地理解英雄人物的思想感情，那末，这样的念白虽很规整，它的节奏性、韵律性要求都很规整，可是徒有形式，没有内容，也就成为躯壳了，就不能正确地体现英雄人物的思想感情，甚至会损害了英雄人物。在处理这样的念白[的时候]，最主要的就是要从人物出发，从英雄人物的思想感情出发，以思想感情为依据，过细地、一句一字地来分析理解英雄人物的思想感情。
其次，就是技巧上如何来处理念白，怎么样更强烈地去表现英雄人物的思想感情？这就需要有技巧了。当然，我们必须明确不是单纯的卖弄技巧，这是以感情和人物为前提的。
这种念白和过去散文式的念白不一样，它是诗一样的念白，是有韵律的，是规整的。就要求我们对于这种念白要有全局观念，就要求我们注意：哪里是韵律、哪里是韵脚、哪里是对称、哪里是呼应、哪里是层递、哪里是迂迥……都要清楚。这样的话，从人物出发，去研究解决念白当中的音调、力度、润腔、节奏、速度、起伏等一系列的问题。排演当中，在于会泳同志领导之下，总结了下面这十四条关于技术如何来体现这样的念白，这是第一次提出要求，以后一些戏还要体现这样的念白：
1.争取上下句的对称和语言的对仗
念白要有律动性，没有律动性，韵律性就差。于会泳同志说：念白的内在起伏就是律动性。这样念白有上下句，有一问一答的感觉。上句相对的不稳定，象是提出问题引起人们的注意，下句是相对的稳定，带有结论性的、肯定的、有力的。那末，不稳定和稳定就构成了矛盾，节奏推进就有律动性了。
2.“层递”是律动性的又一个形式
层递不仅是一个上句一个下句了，它有时候是一连串的几个不稳定的句子，节奏的动势更大，象宝塔一样，推、推、推，最后一句是稳定的。这样，最后一句要突出、稳定，动势更大。比如第八场（斥叛），柯湘揭发、揭露温其久罪行那一场，从李石坚念白开始：
> 李：哼，你到底为谁尽心？
>
> 郑：你究竟为谁竭力？
>
> 乙：为什么要摘掉袖标？
>
> 女：为什么要落下红旗？
>
> 罗：什么居心？
>
> 男：什么用意？
>
> ……
> 节奏是这样推。推、推，一直往上推，最后一句是柯湘的念白。
>
> 柯：你出卖革命，
> 叛变投敌！
这才是稳定的句子。前面一连串不稳定的句子，节奏越推越快；最后柯湘的念白就更有力，更突出，“字字千金，铁证如山”了。
还有，两个人的层递，如第六场杜妈妈与雷刚的一段对话：
杜：可记得半月前，井岗山派来几个人？
雷：一男一女两个人。
杜：女的是柯湘，
雷：男的叫赵辛。
杜：柯湘受伤被捕，
雷：赵辛不幸牺牲。
杜：你可知，那赵辛，
他是柯湘的什么人？
雷：什么人？
杜：结婚三载的贴心人哪！
前面九句台词都是层递推进的，都是不稳定的句子。最后一句“结婚三载的贴心人呐”才是稳定的句子，节奏起伏更大，最后一句更突出；对观众来讲，感受也是更突出。;When handling this form of narration, we need to clarify which parts are layered and progressive, and which sentence is the final stable one. When reciting, the rhythm should become tighter and stronger with each sentence. The main purpose is to pave the way for heroic characters and to highlight the final stable sentence of the hero, making it more prominent. This is the second aspect.
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3. Displaying Rhyme
Because this kind of rhyme is rhymed, during recitation, attention should be paid to issues like “running rhyme” and “hidden rhyme,” and the rhyme ending should be emphasized appropriately. “Display” here means to show the rhyme ending clearly. Sometimes it is recited as “san” (散), then the rhythm loses its sense. In our opera, as we perform and lead, when the leaders say “the rhythm is off,” the rhythm and momentum are affected, and the rhythm fluctuations become less apparent, and the rhyme ending is not prominent. Of course, paying too much attention to the rhyme ending is also not good. It is best to recite the rhyme ending longer and heavier, so the audience can feel it. In writing, generally, rhyme endings should be two syllables; if it is a single syllable, it resembles a quick beat. Two syllables can display rhyme, while a single syllable becomes plain language, which is a failure.
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4. How to Reflect Rhythm?
Rhythm is about tightness, slowness, ending, and connection. It is reflected through the order of fast, slow, broken, and connected. Generally, at the connected parts, recite faster; at the broken parts, slower. Fast and connection often serve as a prelude to slowness and breaking; they are all preparatory to the latter. Breaking and slowness are often emphasized sentences, such as the example: “The White Army captures prisoners, should be lenient; ordinary merchants should strive; the landlords and warlords are our deadly enemies,” all of which are connected. “And the hardworking masses” is broken, slow, and emphasized. The previous connection and speed are to prepare for this break and slowness in terms of momentum and rhythm. This is the fourth aspect.
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5. Demonstrating the Power of Fluctuation, How to Show Fluctuation
Generally, fluctuation refers to ups and downs, lowering and rising, “抑” (restrain), “扬” (raise), “低” (low), “昂” (high). Handling these aspects, take some examples from “Du” plays: generally, sorrowful, nostalgic, or subtle examples are handled with lower voices; for example, “The same urgency, the same sorrow,” “anger and grief” are sorrowful, thus handled with low voices. The “close confidant” in “married for three years” is also sorrowful, nostalgic, and handled with a low voice. “The blood of martyrs sprinkling on Dujuan Mountain” is also handled with a low voice. Generally, excited, high-spirited, and intense parts are handled with a high-pitched voice, such as “Even if the sky falls, we can bear it,” which is high and intense, handled with a high voice. Similarly, “If I can be rescued by descending the mountain, I am willing to go through fire and water, even death is willing,” is also intense and handled with a high voice. This is the fifth aspect.
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6. Holding Breath and Using Mouth Spray
From the perspective of Peking Opera techniques, many parts of this recitation require holding breath and using mouth spray, because Peking Opera emphasizes mouth spray. Therefore, we should pay attention to mouth spray. The technique should be used according to emotional needs. For example, in the fifth scene, Wen Qijiu stirs Du Xiaoshan to say: “Are you a descendant of Dujuan Mountain,” Xiaoshan suddenly stands up and calls out “Grandma!” He needs to hold his breath, which is necessary for his emotional expression. Sometimes, a breath must be held to the end, sometimes a long breath is needed, and the handling depends on the emotion. We need to study this carefully.
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7. When Necessary, We Can Change the Initial Consonant
This is about mouth spray again. For example, in the second scene, “The Republic of China thirty-seven years,” and “This is your party discipline and national law,” the “zhe” in “zhe” can be changed to “chè” (而不读“zhè”音). Also, in Ke Xiang’s recitation of “Harmed yourself, harmed the self-defense army, and also harmed the old mother with white hair,” the “qin” in “qin” is pronounced close to “qī,” which also changes the initial consonant and emphasizes mouth spray.
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8. Concealed Melody and Innate Rhythm
Because this kind of recitation has a strong rhythmic and musical quality, attention should be paid to concealed melodies, meaning the recitation should stay within a tonal mode. For example, in the second scene “Leading the Party,”: “The regiment has orders, leading the Party!” Four “leading the Party” are recited, and behind the scenes, six “leading the Party” are recited. The voices of these six soldiers must be within the same tonal mode, and all within the tune of “Jiji Feng” (a traditional gong and drum pattern), and within the same rhythm. If they are not in the same tonal mode, there will be no melody. The so-called “concealed melody” means paying attention to strictness in the recitation, such as Du Mama reciting “A thousand branches and ten thousand leaves share one root, all are suffering people,” if “a thousand branches and ten thousand leaves” is recited as “a thousand branches, ten thousand leaves,” the melody becomes similar. But if recited as “A thousand branches and ten thousand leaves” (
), the melody will be different. So, attention to concealed melody is necessary. Also, “innate rhythm” refers to the common concept of “heart beats.” For example, in the fourth scene, Du Mama recites “Moreover, now, it is early spring,”: “Already is early—spring—time,” which is the innate rhythm. Without rhythm, there is no “beat,” as if there is no beat at all.
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9. Using Tonal Color to Enhance the Rhetorical Effect
Using tonal color to enhance the expressive power of thoughts and feelings is also a technique. This applies to recitation and singing. For example, in “Red Lantern,” Grandma Li’s singing in the eighth scene “Visiting Prison” also uses tonal color techniques. For example, the “sour” in “Mother is not worried—sour” is sung in this way. In recitation, the tonal color technique should also be used skillfully, such as in the third scene where soldiers worry about the party representative saying: “Party representative, if you let the prisoners go, Captain Lei will fight to the death with you” (original note: this part is spoken by Zheng Laowan), and Ke Xiang believes Lei Gang will follow the party line, and her recitation uses this method to say “The reason for revolution,” employing a laughing tone: “The reason for revolution, he will understand.” This matches Ke Xiang’s thoughts and feelings at the time.
\emsp; Another example is in the eighth scene, where Ke Xiang says to Wen Qijiu “Luring the snake out of its hole.” After Wen tells a story about “heroes see eye to eye,” Ke Xiang then recites: “…You really have exhausted your mind,” with the three words “you really” spoken in a sneering tone. Many places in “Du” plays use this technique, such as Du Mama reciting “Confidant,” with a crying tone.
\h3>10. Skillful Use of Forceful Rhetorical Techniques
Using forceful rhetorical techniques to serve the expression of heroic characters’ thoughts and feelings. When reciting, high and low, light and heavy are different. Sometimes, low does not mean light. For example, in the second scene, Lei Gang disguises himself, and in the third official town, brothers meet and recite: “How is the situation prepared?” “All arranged properly.” From the sound perspective, it is light, but the tension is very strong.
For emphasis, such as “and the hardworking masses,” it should be recited heavily. “Wen Qijiu, you!” is a heavy recitation. Also, there are light recitations, such as in the fifth scene, where Ke Xiang recites: “Tonight’s action is extraordinary. The preparations must be meticulous. Keep secrets strictly,” with “strictly” being a light recitation. The force should vary. Skillful use of forceful rhetorical techniques.
\h3>11. Using Decorative Rhetorical Techniques
The first two rhetorical techniques cannot be used with lowering the tonal mode to seek depth. Except during very excited moments, such as in the fifth scene “Calling Xiaoshan,” where recitation can use breathy voice to express, but not by lowering the tonal mode. Because the stage is large, insufficient volume cannot satisfy the audience, and they cannot hear clearly, so all premises are invalid. Instead, decorative rhetorical techniques should be used to emphasize and express special thoughts and feelings. For example, Ke Xiang calls Xiaoshan’s last “Xiao—Shan—” with vibrato, indicating her anxiety; the vibrato is like ornamented vibrato in singing.
\h3>12. Accurate Logical Stress
In traditional Peking Opera, logical stress is not emphasized; only emotional stress and musicality are considered. Now, if the logical stress in recitation changes, it becomes incorrect, and the meaning is not expressed properly. Only by paying attention to logical stress can the words’ meaning be accurately conveyed.
\h3>13. Pay Attention to Organicity and Connections
Such recitation must pay attention to organicity and connections; it cannot be fragmented or disconnected. Sometimes, the goal is to highlight one’s own recitation, but without paying attention to organic relationships, it will become disjointed, and no sentence can stand out. Just like the previous discussion on segmentation methods, it is especially important to emphasize organicity. For example, in a scene’s recitation:
Li Shijian: We disguise ourselves,
Zheng Laowan: Descending the mountain at night,
Li Shijian: Attacking unexpectedly,
Luo Chenghu: Robbing the execution ground, causing chaos in the three official towns,
Soldiers: Stir up chaos!
Each sentence is connected organically. For example, after I recite one sentence, I do not ignore the next; others continue, and so on. It must be mutually considerate. The first sentence should give the second a “key point,” and the second should do the same for the third… From the perspective of characters’ emotions and relationships, mutual understanding and tacit cooperation are essential.
Sometimes, there is another situation where emotions arrive first, and actions follow to enhance the effect of the recitation. When expressing the depth and thickness of thoughts and feelings, this is very necessary. Emotions arrive first, actions follow, creating the surrounding atmosphere before making sound; this not only avoids stiffness but also attracts the audience’s attention.
\h3>14. When the recitation is too poetic, it should not sound like poetry; when it is too scattered, it should sound like poetry
This has a principle. From the script’s writing style, in overly poetic parts, recite in a manner that does not sound like poetry; in overly scattered parts, recite like poetry. Sometimes, one or two lines are more scattered, and during recitation, adjustments should be made to make it sound poetic—neither stiff as regulated verse nor as colloquial as slang or plain language, but with “hidden meaning.” This is derived from traditional opera, where old operatic rhyme and recitation paid great attention to rhythm and musicality; gradual slowing, speeding, strengthening, weakening, with large fluctuations. But it is also not right to fully adopt the old operatic recitation method for modern recitation. Its rhythmic and musical advantages can be absorbed, but not copied outright. On the other hand, it should not be recited like new poetry reading; some aspects can be appropriately used, but not entirely. The benefits of the recitation’s natural breath can be absorbed, but the stage dialect’s flaws should be overcome.
\emsp; To recite such lines well, beyond emotional and technical handling, attention should also be paid to performance, actions, music, and even gong and drum patterns, effects, etc., to work together. This is a comprehensive process that requires prior design. What is needed for coordination? Such as gestures, actions, gong patterns, because it is a unified whole; with good design, the recitation can be performed well.
\emsp; Additionally, it is crucial to ensure the audience hears clearly, not to make them unable to hear or unclear. This is a matter of mass perspective. No matter how good the political content is, it must be heard clearly and felt to serve the educational purpose. Therefore, volume must be increased. Each actor should have a strong desire: to make sure the audience hears clearly and to clearly express the content. How to increase volume? During rehearsals, we summarized several points:
(1) The performance area should be at the front—this is a characteristic of this play. Why? To ensure the audience hears your recitation clearly and strongly feels your performance, actions, rhythm, and music, enhancing artistic appeal.
The performance area should be at the front, and stage scheduling and movements should be as forward as possible; avoid moving backward unless necessary.
(2) Under the premise of emotional expression and maintaining emotion, find a microphone—not deliberately seeking a microphone.
(3) The band should be light—meaning, as criticized by the leaders, avoid forming “sound pillars” or “sound walls” that drown out the actors’ recitation and block the singing. The band should be light, emphasizing a “support” role, not suppressing singing or recitation, and not causing disturbance.
(4) Actors should exaggerate—strengthen exaggeration. On stage, actors should not behave as they do in movies or small rooms; recitation should be intensified and exaggerated.
(5) When performing, the face should not face inward—if inward, increase volume; otherwise, the audience cannot hear.
(6) When multiple people respond, the response points must be especially clear—responses often occur at faster rhythm, avoid disjointedness, and emphasize clarity so the audience can hear distinctly. For example, in Scene 5, when Ke Xiang tells Li Shijian “You send out the reconnaissance team,” if unclear, how would Li Shijian descend the mountain later? Ke Xiang tells Li “You send out the reconnaissance team, pretend to transfer from the back mountain,” “luring the tiger away from the mountain,” so the audience hears clearly and understands what is happening later. Response points must be especially clear.
(7) Strengthen basic skills training—practice mouth skills, mouth spray, especially for fast recitation; practice! As the leaders said, Yu Shuyan works hard for life, and we should work hard for revolution.
(8) Use emotions, actions, gestures to attract audience attention and ensure they hear our recitation clearly.
(9) Surrounding people should support, not disturb.One of the main contents of desk work is to become familiar with the rhythm, to master all the rhythms. Because in a complete Beijing opera, the rhythm of each scene, which point is the climax? Which point is a small wave? Which point is a large wave? What is the relationship between each wave? How is this wave reflected, mainly through what methods? What is the main emotion of each wave? What are the requirements for the atmosphere on stage? Through what techniques can it be reflected to achieve good rhythm work? Moreover, this rhythm work requires directors and actors to thoroughly understand; only after unifying their thoughts can they consciously highlight the main content that should be emphasized during rehearsals.
2. Grasping Characters
Can the content of script analysis be vividly reflected on stage? How deep are the characters? Character shaping is a key point. Regarding grasping characters, there are the following seven aspects:
(1) First, focus on the inner world, analyze the thoughts and feelings of heroic characters; it must be moving, distinct, and the inner world must be rich. Actors entering into characters must ensure that their thoughts and feelings at every moment are full and solid; if not, it will definitely be superficial. If the inner world is empty and only external actions are relied upon to make up for it, it becomes formalism. Therefore, it is necessary to enrich the inner world, pay attention to the relationships of characters, and their thoughts and feelings should have both depth and thickness. For example, in the eighth scene’s singing aria, there are four important lines:
“Slaves seek liberation generation after generation,
War drums sound across the land for years.
Only because the journey is distant and directionless,
How many heroes of rebellion,怒目苍天, harboring great ambitions and drinking bitter tears in vain!”
During rehearsals, Yu Huiyong proposed that actors’ inner worlds should be full, thoughtful, broad, and far-reaching. Broadness comes from strategic thinking. Farness is from a sense of time. To be full and think broadly and far-reaching, not only should they think of the immediate Dujuan Mountain, but also think of Jinggang Mountain, Jiangxi, Hunan, the whole country, and even the whole world. “Slaves seek liberation generation after generation” should be thought of broadly and far-reachingly, not just the present, like Lei Gang’s ups and downs; it should also include the figures of past peasant uprisings, which adds depth. From visual and auditory perspectives, it also adds thickness. Therefore, grasping the inner world of characters is very important! This section of dialogue will then be expressed with great depth. Yu Huiyong opposed new formal procedures, emphasizing inner feelings.
(2) Grasping characters also involves overcoming passive states: because it is revolutionary modern opera, it differs from old traditional operas, so we must “break through three barriers”: breaking through the roles, breaking through the routines, breaking through the schools, and their limitations. If these are not broken, it is difficult to understand the thoughts and feelings of heroic characters well. For routines, such as fixed performance sets, roles like old sheng and huanlian (painted face) are divided (now art schools no longer do this), and “schools” used to refer to “Mei School,” “Liu School,” etc… We are revolutionaries! We must break through the schools.
Chinese opera actors tend to have difficulty moving their original traits and accepting new things. Old actors are like this, and young actors also have these traits; the formal routines ingrained in them are stubborn, which is a flaw, and accepting new things is difficult. But once accepted, it becomes firm, which is an advantage. On the other hand, after firming up, it is easy to become stereotyped, which is also a flaw. Therefore, in rehearsals, actors may not understand some intentions and need to “add patches,” overcoming stiffness. If they cannot grasp the essence, they cannot deepen or strengthen the hero’s character. After completing the major roles, if they still do not understand, they tend to be rigid and monotonous, so “patching” is necessary. How to turn passivity into initiative? Yu Huiyong proposed: unify creative ideas, work diligently and meticulously. By understanding the director’s intentions regarding characters, rhythm, and staging requirements, and thoroughly grasping them, characters can be deepened and strengthened.
(3) To strengthen and deepen characters: After the first stage of rehearsal methods, completing the director’s task, it’s not enough to just remember the major roles or pass the test; superficial work results in mediocrity, like half-cooked rice, and must be redone from the beginning. Therefore, strengthening and deepening are necessary. How to do this? One important aspect is to grasp the dialectics of art, and to study specifically according to the needs of character actions—where to be firm, where to be soft, where to be square, where to be round, where to be strong, where to be weak. This should be as meticulous as studying lines and dialogues. Especially for Peking Opera, which is exaggerated, without edges and corners, the performance will wither. Peking Opera itself is exaggerated; its logic is exaggerated; “life” itself does not conform to original logic—it is all exaggerated. Therefore, it must have edges and corners, not be performed flatly like dull knives cutting meat, which is painless and tasteless. It is necessary to identify “key points” where the performance should shine and research accordingly. Actors should have the concept: actively express the character’s thoughts and feelings clearly to the audience. Therefore, grasping characters and exaggeration should be used with rhythm fluctuations to express the hero’s thoughts and feelings.
(4) Grasping characters also involves capturing revolutionary passion: in the past, leaders said: what is beauty? It is the passion of the proletarian revolution that is beautiful. Do not always think about how to look beautiful on stage, which angle is best for the audience, how to have a beautiful posture—that’s superficial and lacks passion and freshness. Once, a leader said: without revolutionary passion, revolutionary model operas cannot become models. Emphasize revolutionary passion.
Where the play lacks scenes, the leader said: this is a class feeling issue. Therefore, passion must be emphasized.
(5) Pay attention to multi-faceted shaping of heroic characters: The characters Ke Xiang and Lei Gang we mentioned above are multi-faceted. Multi-faceted means revealing contradictions from multiple angles and shaping heroes from multiple aspects. During rehearsals, directors should try to shape heroes from as many sides as possible, with the help of comrades and careful construction, constantly studying: how many facets does my character have? What aspects are mainly shown in each scene? How are these facets reflected through what plots? Regularly check: what is enough, what is not, what has been achieved? Don’t like Li Zhitian, who keeps losing facets; after rehearsals, all facets are lost, leaving only one, which often is the actor’s own temperament. (Editor’s note: referring to the role of the squad leader Li Zhitian in the model opera “Song of the Long River”). Sometimes, during rehearsals, facets are lost one after another, which is a contradiction and unity. Sometimes, the vigorous opposition to enemies may cause the loss of patience and meticulousness towards comrades. Therefore, we must pay attention to these multiple facets. Do not become an “encyclopedia” that has everything; the strong party spirit is missing if only all facets are present, and the character becomes empty. To shape heroes from multiple facets, continuous research and measures are necessary.
(6) Be good at engaging the audience: To highlight the main hero, we are not like old operas that focus on grabbing scenes—抢戏 (snatching scenes). But we should emphasize the main points, especially the “three highlights”: mainly highlighting the main hero. How to highlight the hero? The main hero must clearly know which point to emphasize. Other characters should serve as “three supporting roles,” supporting the hero, and should not interfere with or affect the hero’s actions. Isn’t it “floating in the same rhythm”? For example: in scene eight, Ke Xiang returns from the mountain, “comrades meet again, countless words cannot be spoken.” On stage, this scene’s staging is complex; the soldiers’ movements are also complex, but everyone’s movement must follow Ke Xiang’s singing rhythm. When Ke Xiang moves, everyone follows; when she stops, others must stop. Otherwise, it will interfere with her. Interference distracts the audience’s attention and disrupts the hero’s rhythm. Additionally, some scenes require extreme emphasis on the hero, supported by the masses. For example, in scene three, “beating the drum,” after Tian Dajiang brings her in, Ke Xiang stands at the door of the side room, which is the entrance, not very prominent or central. At this moment, the audience’s attention is on Lei Gang and Tian Dajiang. When she says “No hitting!” everyone supports her emotionally. When she says “No hitting,” all soldiers and people look at Ke Xiang. “Ah, Party representative?! That’s like this!” The audience’s gaze shifts like a camera focus, all attention on Ke Xiang. Scenes like this are common in operas: they serve as supporting roles, emphasizing the hero.
Furthermore, in grasping characters, seriousness is required—no humor. Don’t perform so well that the play becomes complacent, with trivial tricks and gimmicks. Be serious, constantly reinforce and deepen. Don’t repeat the old saying: “Clear, mixed, unseen,” where the performance becomes muddled and the edges are lost—that’s about edges and corners.
(7) Use musical interludes to strengthen and deepen characters: This refers to issues during the third stage of director’s work. In the previous stage, music was added, but it may not match the rhythm of the actors’ actions, because music has its own logic. At this point, actors should skillfully use the rhythm and dynamics of music and interludes to express the hero’s thoughts and feelings, complementing each other. Use music to refine performance, using rhythm and intensity changes to enhance the internal rhythm of physical performance, reflecting characters through actions. For example: in scene one, after Du Mama learns that Du Shan sacrificed, she sings “Countless blood and tears, unending,” and during “Unavenged father’s revenge,” the music has a strong note. She uses this strong note to suddenly lift her head, singing “Unavenged father’s revenge” with great anger! Using the intensity change in music. For longer examples, like in scene five, after Ke Xiang finishes singing the “倒板” (reversal), she immediately sings “The raging fire burns my heart,” followed by a large interlude. In this interlude, Ke Xiang must skillfully use it: “The raging fire burns my heart,” she swings her hand, then transitions into the next interlude “…” moving toward the firelight. She thinks of the suffering villagers, Du Mama tied to a big tree, Lei Gang coming down the mountain, very anxious and emotionally excited, “(interlude)…” She suddenly stops, thinking of the task given by the Party, her Party spirit is strong. “(Another interlude)…” slowly she steps back, her hand still trembling. In her thoughts…, then she turns around slowly and continues singing. So, it’s important to skillfully use large interludes because music also reflects characters’ thoughts and feelings, and can strengthen and express them.
3. Stage Staging and Handling
The third aspect is stage staging. Because this opera’s physical and dramatic movements involve very exaggerated stage rhythms, new staging methods are required, which is a new topic. In stage staging, leadership’s requirements emphasize strictness in layout【the bold text is added by the editor—editor’s note】, avoiding triviality, paying attention to organicity and momentum, and making a complete layout from a global perspective. This opera’s stage staging uses symmetrical handling techniques, generally symmetrical. For example, in scene five, rushing to the narrow pass, “Brothers, charge!”… “Stop!” everyone retreats, forming an “8” shape, which is a symmetrical handling method, meaning “seeking symmetry in change, and change in symmetry.” The more orderly, the better. Of course, it’s not rigidly fixed. Past rehearsals used many techniques, like oil paintings, but the effects were not good, and the results failed, often drowning out the main characters. Now, symmetrical and orderly staging makes the hero characters stand out prominently. Every staging is a beautiful scene, especially crowd scenes. For example, in scene two【welcoming Party representatives】, the Party representatives come from Jinggang Mountain. They stand on the flagpole platform, surrounded by crowds: three rows in front, with soldiers bowing and kneeling, shorter; the second row is women, slightly taller; the third row is soldiers holding red flags. Very orderly, with a prominent appearance of heroes. In scene five, Wen Qiji incites “Brothers, let’s go!” Wen orders “Kill all the White Bandits,” and the stage becomes a symmetrical scene. Ke Xiang is at the center, with soldiers on both sides “pushing forward and following,” behind which soldiers hold rifles to form a scene. Then, staging changes: Ke Xiang goes up a high slope, the crowd disperses; Wen incites “Brothers, let’s go!” soldiers rush toward the pass. At this moment, Ke Xiang yells “Stop!” facing Wen Qiji. The staging changes again, with Wen as the focus, forming a parallel stage shape. There is a stone at the entrance of the stage, Wen Qiji stands on it, which is also symmetrical and well-organized. On one side, Ke Xiang stands on a high slope, embodying the “pillar in the middle of the river.” Then, it changes again: “Charge with backbone!” soldiers do not rush, four backbone figures shout “Stop!” forming a very low “8” shape. The four backbone figures form a row in front of Ke Xiang, who is at the highest point. This handling is very clear, and the hero characters are very prominent.
Stage staging also involves a routine problem in each program: every actor faces the need for standardization and neatness.
4. Emphasizing Dance Norms in Stage Movements
Regarding stage movements, this opera emphasizes standardized stage actions and dance-like norms. The so-called “dance-like standardized actions” first are not naturalistic life imitation but have a dance standard. Second, they are not old routines; they are not rigidly copied old routines. For example, Lei Gang’s first scene smashing shackles or the dance movements in “Flying across Eagle Gorge,” or even in other scenes like Ke Xiang carrying a shoulder pole in scene three, unloading it, are not exactly like real life. In real life, after pulling out the shoulder pole, she would place it on her leg and slide it naturally, then push it aside with her foot. Here, it is elevated beyond real life—more refined, more beautiful, more concentrated, more typical, and more intense. The dialogue is like this, so the actions should match, to make the audience think continuously, coordinated with music, dialogue, and singing. The action requirements are like this, emphasizing dance-like standard movements.
5. Highlighting Mass Actor Scenes
Regarding mass actors, this opera has many, with numerous scenes, large numbers, complex staging, and great emotional variation, which are characteristics of the mass scenes. Past leaders said: minimize the number of mass scenes, and if they must be performed, they must be well done. Therefore, in stage staging, movements, and dance, we emphasize these methods to meet leadership’s requirements and instructions. For “Du Juan Shan,” in some scenes, the mass roles are as important as the third or fourth hero, Li Shijian and Du Mama, meaning they carry significant weight. In traditional Peking Opera, what were mass roles? Called “extras,” “extras and minor roles,” with no real part. You had no role, no performance. Where are the roles for extras? Now, it’s different, but traces of the old remain, also a residue of ideological influence. Therefore, mass roles must raise awareness: do not belittle yourself. Do not think you are insignificant; overcome selfishness and fame and fortune thoughts. Also, pay attention to yourself, do not lower yourself to the level of extras. Mass roles should not be rigid on stage, turning into mere props; the director placing you here is not enough. First, you must recognize that on stage, you represent a specific person of a class. Also, you should know that in mass roles, you shoulder the responsibility of supporting the hero. Your mind should be clear: which aspects of the hero you are supporting in a scene? What thoughts and feelings of the hero are you supporting? Have a big picture in mind, an overall view.
Why do the masses appear stiff on stage? One reason is the lingering influence of old plays, where they are just props. Another is underestimating the importance, thinking it’s not related to the overall situation. Some do pay attention but do not perform well, so training needs to be strengthened. In Peking Opera, in supporting heroes, there is still a lack of accumulated experience and practice, which needs to be addressed.
Regarding how the masses support the hero in “Du Juan Shan,” there are mainly these aspects:
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Actions must be neat, for example, Lei Gang singing “…grabbed the landlord, you are not allowed to hit him, the merchant prisoners are to be released, you Communist, true or false?” In “Da, Da, Cang” (three strikes on the head), Lei Gang pulls a stool, slaps the table, and appears. All soldiers in this “Da, Da, Cang” hold knives and guns toward Ke Xiang, very accurate and neat, without interference.
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Emotional opposites: Of course, understanding emotional opposites is not uniform. For example, in scene three, the characters—A, B, C, D, and Luo Chenghu—say lines like:
Luo Chenghu: Hmph! We fight and bleed, (start)
Soldier Ding: She’s doing good deeds. (continue)
Soldier C: Outsiders are always separated by a layer! (turn)
Soldier B: How can scholars lead soldiers without hardship?! (together)
The last line summarizes. These four lines are “start, continue, turn, combine,” spoken by four people, but overall consistent. Each character’s further understanding and expression depend on their role. For example, in scene eight, Wen Qiji incites “Party representatives won’t come back, we must transfer,” and the masses are different: some have already joined the Party and become Li Shijian’s assistants; others firmly oppose, believing that the transfer is still the Party’s instruction, “Higher-ups’ orders must be obeyed,” and support Wen Qiji objectively. If everyone ignores him, Ke Xiang’s appearance becomes unnecessary; otherwise, Li Shijian could resolve him. The masses are different: some are resolute, some are deceived. When “removing the armband,” the difference is clear: “Red Army soldiers cannot remove their armbands,” and “dropping the red flag” is firmly opposed. Later, when Ke Xiang returns and exposes Wen Qiji, the crowd’s reactions vary: some comrades are suddenly enlightened, others gradually understand, so they are not all the same; the crowd’s emotions are also opposite.
Under overall requirements and based on the hero’s role, they design their own actions, paying attention to their emotions. Furthermore, rhythm must be clear. It must be “floating and sinking under unified rhythm,” supporting and highlighting the hero. Even when the hero is absent, there is a unified rhythm issue. For example, before scene three, the main part is the crowd scene. What is its rhythm? Where is the wave? “Go, talk to her,” is the wave. What is this wave for? To prepare for Ke Xiang’s entrance, creating pressure. When Ke Xiang enters, some turn their backs, some look away, creating pressure for her. Before this, there are several emotional and rhythmic changes: initially very cheerful, reflecting the current state of the troops, still untransformed, somewhat scattered but not bandit-like. When Li Shijian conveys the Party representative’s new regulations, the rhythm changes; from enthusiasm, it suddenly becomes silent. Then complaints and smashing boxes occur, emotional changes. When Qiu Chang Geng incites “Go talk to her,” it pushes a small wave, and the rhythm and atmosphere become tense. All these layers, the mass actors must understand: rhythm must be clear, emotions must be correct, actions must be accurate. Ke Xiang’s entrance amid music, if the crowd still moves chaotically, it will disturb Ke Xiang and undermine the supporting and highlighting effect, damaging her rhythm.
6. Handling Negative Characters
Handling negative characters involves opposing gimmicks, external effects, and comic elements, and not being superficial or caricatured. Leaders have also said: oppose caricatured characters, which took years to fight against. That is exaggeration, which can go off the rails—crooked mouths, slanted eyes, etc.—don’t do that! Don’t caricature! Characters should be carved from within. Caricature becomes comic.
Especially after the play becomes familiar, more caution is needed. Inner depiction of the enemy’s insidiousness and brutality is essential; relying solely on appearance is not enough and can also take away the hero’s role. Therefore, even now, emphasis on this point continues.
In “Du Juan Shan,” Comrade Jiang Qing once said: it’s like plowing land with an old ox—after years, only a few saplings grow. Referring to a few model operas. So, creating art is a serious and arduous task, a revolution of the superstructure. It must be done carefully, like plowing land with an old ox, with seriousness.
This has been reported twice, and I have shared some of my creative insights on “Du Juan Shan”; mainly, Comrade Yu Huiyong has led the creative efforts, and we are also learning.
But my own discussion is very unsystematic, my learning is poor, and my understanding is partial—only for colleagues’ reference. I have also discussed many directives from leaders, hoping colleagues pay attention and do not spread outward. To better summarize in the future, please feel free to give opinions and help us improve our work. Finally, I conclude with a couplet from the opera “Du Juan Shan”:
“Peasant armed forces must follow the Communist Party step by step,
Only then can victory be achieved, advancing steadily, like a trickle into the Yangtze River.
The revolutionary truth: ‘Party commands the gun,’ ‘Party commands the gun,’
Must never forget!
Ride the wind and waves, never lost at sea!”“The Rhododendron Mountain” reveals the truth that only by unwaveringly following the Chinese Communist Party and advancing along Chairman Mao’s revolutionary line can the revolution achieve victory.
Comrades! Let us unite under the brilliant guidance of Chairman Mao’s revolutionary literary and artistic line, and make greater contributions to the great revolutionary cause of the proletariat.
Ride the wind and waves, never lose our way, and carry the literary and artistic revolution through to the end!
(This concludes the two reports)
