Reference Book Cover (1967)
Talking about Peking Opera Revolution
Speech at the July 1964 symposium on modern Peking opera performances
Jiang Qing
I would like to congratulate on this performance. Everyone has put in a lot of effort. This is the first battle of the Peking Opera revolution, and it has already achieved gratifying results, with a far-reaching impact as well.
The modern Peking opera revolution is underway, but have everyone’s understandings become the same? I think not yet.
We must be confident in the revolution of Peking opera with modern themes. On the socialist stage led by the Communist Party of China, the main actors are not workers, peasants, and soldiers, nor are they the true creators of history or the true masters of the country—that is unthinkable. We need to create and protect our socialist economic base through art. When the direction is unclear, we must carefully distinguish the right path. Here, I present two figures for everyone’s reference. These numbers are shocking to me.
The first figure is: nationwide, there are about three thousand troupes (not including amateur troupes, and not counting black troupes), among which about ninety are professional drama troupes, over eighty are art troupes, and the remaining over two thousand eight hundred are opera troupes. On the opera stage, all are emperors, generals, talented women, and strange spirits and monsters. Those ninety-odd drama troupes are not necessarily all portraying workers, peasants, and soldiers; they are also “Big, Western, Ancient,” and it can be said that the drama stage is also occupied by both Chinese and foreign ancient figures. The theater was originally a place to educate the people, but now the stage is filled with emperors, generals, talented women, and feudalism, which is a set of feudal ideology and bourgeoisie ideology. This situation cannot protect our economic foundation; it will instead undermine it.
The second figure is: our entire population of workers, peasants, and soldiers is over 600 million, while a small group of people are landlords, rich, counterrevolutionaries, villains, rightists, and bourgeoisie members. Should they serve this small group or serve the 600 million-plus people? This is a question that not only Communist Party members must consider but also all patriotic artists and workers must think about. We eat the grains grown by farmers, wear clothes woven by workers, live in houses built by workers, and the People’s Liberation Army guards our national defense front line, yet they are not depicted. I ask, from what class stance do artists stand? What is the conscience of the artists you often talk about?
The modern revolution-themed Peking opera will have its ups and downs, but if we carefully consider the two figures I mentioned above, it’s possible to reduce or even eliminate these fluctuations. Even if there are setbacks, it’s okay; history always moves forward with twists and turns, but the wheel of history must not be rolled back. We advocate for revolutionary modern dramas to reflect the real life of the fifteen years since the founding of the country and to portray contemporary revolutionary heroes on our opera stage. This is the primary task. We are not against historical dramas; in this viewing and performance, revolutionary historical plays occupy a significant proportion. Historical dramas depicting the lives and struggles of the people before the founding of our Party are still necessary, and we must establish models and produce truly historical dramas written from a historical materialist perspective that can be used for contemporary lessons. Of course, these historical dramas should not hinder the main tasks (depicting modern life and shaping worker, peasant, and soldier images). Traditional dramas are also not entirely unnecessary; apart from ghost plays and plays praising surrender and treachery, good traditional dramas can all be performed. However, if these traditional dramas are not carefully sorted and processed, no one will watch them. I have systematically observed actors and audiences in theaters for over two years and concluded that traditional dramas, if not carefully refined, will not attract viewers. Future work on sorting and refining traditional dramas is still necessary, but all these cannot replace the primary task.
Next, let’s talk about where to start.
I believe the key is the script. Without a script, even with directors and actors, nothing can be produced or performed. Someone said, “The script is the foundation of a play.” That is very correct. Therefore, we must focus on creation.
In recent years, dramatic creation has lagged far behind reality, especially for Peking opera. The number of playwrights is small, and they lack life experience, so good scripts are hard to produce. The key to creation is to combine leadership, professionals, and the masses. I recently studied the creative experience of “The Long March Along the South Sea,” and they did it this way: leaders first set the theme, playwrights go into the field three times, and personally participate in a military operation to eliminate enemy agents. After the script was completed, many responsible comrades from the Guangzhou troops participated in discussions. After rehearsals, opinions were widely solicited and revised repeatedly. Through continuous consultation and revision, they managed to produce a good play that reflects the reality of the struggle in a short period.
The Shanghai Municipal Party Committee emphasizes creation, with Comrade Ke Qingshi personally leading. All regions should send strong cadres to oversee creation.
In a short time, it is still difficult for Peking opera to directly produce scripts, but now we should select people, give them some specialized training, and then let them go into life. They can start by writing small plays and gradually develop larger ones. Good small plays are also very valuable.
In creation, we must cultivate new forces, let them go into life, and in three to five years, they will bear fruit.
Another approach is transplantation, which is also good.
Transplantation must be done cautiously: first, look at political orientation; second, see if it fits the conditions of the troupe. When transplanting, analyze the original work carefully, affirm its strengths without changing them; address its weaknesses. When adapting Peking opera, pay attention to two aspects: one, it must conform to the characteristics of Peking opera, including singing, martial arts, and lyrics that match Peking opera’s rhythm and language; otherwise, actors cannot sing. Second, do not overly accommodate actors; the script must have a clear theme, rigorous structure, and prominent characters, without making the entire play fragmented just to feature a few main actors.
Peking opera art is exaggerated, and it has always been used to portray old times and old characters, so it’s easier to depict negative characters, which some people appreciate. Creating positive characters is very difficult, but we must establish advanced revolutionary heroes. In Shanghai’s “The Heroic Defeat of the Tiger Mountain,” the negative characters were originally arrogant, and the positive characters were weak. With the leadership’s direct involvement, this play was definitely improved. Now, the play has cut a scene about the Dinghe River, and the scene with Zuo Shandiao remains mostly unchanged (the actor playing Zuo Shandiao is very skilled), but because Yang Zirong and Shao Jianbo are emphasized, the negative characters look less prominent. I’ve heard different opinions about this play, and this issue can be debated. Consider which side you stand on: the positive side or the negative side? I’ve also heard opposition to writing positive characters, which is incorrect. Good people are always the majority, not only in socialist countries but also in imperialist countries, where most people are workers and peasants. In revisionist countries, revisionists are still a minority. We must focus on shaping the artistic image of advanced revolutionaries, inspiring and educating everyone, and motivating progress. Our revolutionary modern dramas mainly praise positive characters. The Inner Mongolia Art Theatre Peking Opera Troupe’s “The Prairie Heroes and Little Sisters” is very good; the playwright’s revolutionary feelings were stirred by the deeds of these two young heroes, and they wrote such a play. That part is very moving. However, because the author still lacks life experience and was in a hurry, they didn’t have time for fine carving, and the whole play is not very well done. Now, it looks like a good painting embedded in a coarse old frame. One more point worth noting is that this play was written for our children and teenagers. Overall, it has a solid foundation and is good. I hope playwrights will delve deeper into life and make careful revisions. I believe we should value our work and not discard what we produce easily. Some comrades are unwilling to revise their finished products, which makes it difficult to achieve greater success. In this regard, Shanghai is a good example; they are willing to revise repeatedly, which is why “The Heroic Defeat of the Tiger Mountain” has become what it is today. The plays from this viewing and performance should continue to be refined when they go back. Once established, do not easily dismantle them.
Finally, I hope everyone can take some time to learn from each other about drama, so that the gains from this conference can be presented on the national stage and seen by audiences across the country.
(This article was simultaneously published in the June 1967 issue of “Red Flag” magazine, the May 10 issue of “People’s Daily,” and the “PLA Daily.”)
