It was the 7th of December at No. 47 Middle School. Applause echoed around the school hall which had witnessed the performance of the traditional Peking Opera, Mei (Mei Lanfang) school - "The Drunken Concubine (or Drunken Beauty)". What made the opera special was that all the actors were students from a drama troupe at No. 47 Guangzhou Middle School, the first troupe of its kind in China.
Drama troupe set up by middle school students
When she mentioned the "how and why" concerning the founding of the troupe, Deng Dixin, the organizer of the team said, "I didn't know much about Peking Opera before I became fascinated by the essence of this art."
Little Deng Dixin is a great fan of dance. She happened to dance for the Peking Opera "The Drunken Concubine" at a middle school party earlier this year and fell in love with it the first time she got close to the Peking Opera. You Haibo, the "concubine" in the play became her teacher afterwards.
After busy recruitment and arrangements, Deng's drama troupe was finally set up in October. They gave their debut performances "The Drunken Concubine" and "Farewell My Concubine", and gained massive applause from teachers and students.
Teachers were masters from the Guangdong Peking Opera Troupe
Actually the little school drama troupe is tutored by renowned masters who are from the Guangdong Association for the Promotion of Peking Opera. "These kids are diligent. We have training every Wednesday and Friday with pronunciation and action practice. They have a great passion for the Peking Opera."
The makeup for the Opera is both subtle and delicate. The performance on the 7th of December was to commence at 4 pm, and Deng Dixin's makeup needed to begin as early as 1 pm.
The No. 47 Middle School Opera Troupe is the first one of its kind in China. According to Zou Jun, deputy headmaster of the school, the troupe started a renaissance in this opera learning. More than 300 students came for the recruitment, but only 30 of them could be enrolled in the troupe.
"Nowadays young people have less interest in Peking Opera," a master in the troupe said, "I hope this small troupe can serve as a beacon to light up people's hearts."
Sculpting the hair
Taking a photo
Peking Opera VS pop music
Wu Yaoxing, a Senior 2 student is now secretary of the drama troupe. "Of course Peking Opera is very different to pop music," The schoolboy said, "Opera needs a basis in singing skills and is also a cultural bedrock. I used to watch the Peking Opera accompanied by my grandma, but now I go there spontaneously out of my own interest."
From a curiosity to a fascination in this field of art, most of the troupe members didn't know much about the Peking Opera at first, but this was not going to be a big problem. "Sometimes I would practice in the classroom, which really surprised my classmates." Deng Dixin said shyly. She has spent much time on the Peking Opera after the troupe was established. "I search on the internet and have found out a lot about the opera."
Finally, December 7th arrived and teachers brought their all-hand-made costumes. The veil is being liftedĦ
(by Carrot Chan, Alan Devey)
