China National Centre for the Performing
Arts presents theatre play <Life between Heaven and Earth>
The one-man show Life between Heaven and Earth is an adaptation of the novella The True Story of Ah Q by the renowned Chinese writer Lu Xun, performed by Su Xiaogang.
It is a cold rainy night with a bleak autumn wind. Ah Quei is beheaded for being a member of the Chinese Revolutionary Party, and his soul starts wandering through Weizhuang, the town where he lived before his death.
Feeling embittered, the spirit of the dead man looks back on his short life and tries to understand the cause of his miserable fate. He consults wise men, the noble lords in Weizhuang and his enemy, but they are unable to help. He is confused by his death and feels hatred towards the cold world.
The confused and angry spirit asks himself the same question, but doesn’t find an answer. He sighs helplessly, suspended in his life between Heaven and Earth. His ruminations on human nature turn into dreary, sorrowful rain.
Lu Xun (1881–1936), who was hailed as the ‘commander of China’s cultural revolution’, is considered China’s greatest modern writer. Unlike some of his colleagues, he has never been criticised for political ‘errors’. Lu Xun is best known for his short stories. His writing style is sophisticated and his works lend themselves to various interpretations. Through exaggerated characters and vivid analogies, Lu Xun presents his personal vision of Chinese society, castigating social injustice and political corruption.
Zhejiang Drama Ensemble
Director Liu Libin
Text Yang Zhankun, translated by Yu Yi
Performer Su Xiaogang (National Centre for the Performing
Arts, Beijing)
Scenic painting, lighting and set design Deng Wen
Sound Yang Zhankun
Stagecraft Liu Huan, Diao Wei
Running time: 75 minutes
Language
Chinese
Director Bio
Liu Libin
Liu Libin (born 1953, China) is Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Central Academy of Drama, Beijing, where he also held the concurrent posts of Vice-president and Director of the Acting Department. Professor Liu Libin is a doctoral supervisor, Executive Chairman of the Performance Art Committee of the Chinese Drama Art Institute, Vice-chairman of the Asia Theatre Education Centre (ATEC) and member of the Art Review Group of the State Degree Office and of the International Committee of Theatre Olympics.
Liu Libin is the recipient of the Innovation Award and the Golden Lion Award (directing honour) from the Chinese Ministry of Culture. His teaching course, Creation of a Full Figure, was named Beijing Excellent Course and won the first prize of Beijing’s Education and Teaching Achievements, and the Famous Teacher Award. His directorial credits include: Thunderstorm,Beijingers, Three Sisters, Twelfth Night, As You Like It, Servant of Two Masters, Wet Paint, Turandot, Wen Na Came down from the Tree, Japanese musical A Cat Wants to Become a Man (Chinese executive director), British children’s musical The Gingerbread Man, musical Hypocrite (chief director, script adaptation), one-man show Double Bass, Red Sky and Country Memories. He is the author of: An Exploration of the Creative Psychology of Actors, On the Creation of Characters, On the Concept of Performance, On Nature and Adhere to the Principles and Methods of Realism to Construct and Practise a Rigorous Performance Teaching System.
Since he began teaching in 1977, Liu Libin has been mainly focused on the teaching of drama students as well as on creative work and theoretical investigation of acting.
It is a cold rainy night with a bleak autumn wind. Ah Quei is beheaded for being a member of the Chinese Revolutionary Party, and his soul starts wandering through Weizhuang, the town where he lived before his death.
Feeling embittered, the spirit of the dead man looks back on his short life and tries to understand the cause of his miserable fate. He consults wise men, the noble lords in Weizhuang and his enemy, but they are unable to help. He is confused by his death and feels hatred towards the cold world.
The confused and angry spirit asks himself the same question, but doesn’t find an answer. He sighs helplessly, suspended in his life between Heaven and Earth. His ruminations on human nature turn into dreary, sorrowful rain.
Lu Xun (1881–1936), who was hailed as the ‘commander of China’s cultural revolution’, is considered China’s greatest modern writer. Unlike some of his colleagues, he has never been criticised for political ‘errors’. Lu Xun is best known for his short stories. His writing style is sophisticated and his works lend themselves to various interpretations. Through exaggerated characters and vivid analogies, Lu Xun presents his personal vision of Chinese society, castigating social injustice and political corruption.
Zhejiang Drama Ensemble
Director Liu Libin
Text Yang Zhankun, translated by Yu Yi
Performer Su Xiaogang (National Centre for the Performing
Arts, Beijing)
Scenic painting, lighting and set design Deng Wen
Sound Yang Zhankun
Stagecraft Liu Huan, Diao Wei
Running time: 75 minutes
Language
Chinese
Director Bio
Liu Libin
Liu Libin (born 1953, China) is Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Central Academy of Drama, Beijing, where he also held the concurrent posts of Vice-president and Director of the Acting Department. Professor Liu Libin is a doctoral supervisor, Executive Chairman of the Performance Art Committee of the Chinese Drama Art Institute, Vice-chairman of the Asia Theatre Education Centre (ATEC) and member of the Art Review Group of the State Degree Office and of the International Committee of Theatre Olympics.
Liu Libin is the recipient of the Innovation Award and the Golden Lion Award (directing honour) from the Chinese Ministry of Culture. His teaching course, Creation of a Full Figure, was named Beijing Excellent Course and won the first prize of Beijing’s Education and Teaching Achievements, and the Famous Teacher Award. His directorial credits include: Thunderstorm,Beijingers, Three Sisters, Twelfth Night, As You Like It, Servant of Two Masters, Wet Paint, Turandot, Wen Na Came down from the Tree, Japanese musical A Cat Wants to Become a Man (Chinese executive director), British children’s musical The Gingerbread Man, musical Hypocrite (chief director, script adaptation), one-man show Double Bass, Red Sky and Country Memories. He is the author of: An Exploration of the Creative Psychology of Actors, On the Creation of Characters, On the Concept of Performance, On Nature and Adhere to the Principles and Methods of Realism to Construct and Practise a Rigorous Performance Teaching System.
Since he began teaching in 1977, Liu Libin has been mainly focused on the teaching of drama students as well as on creative work and theoretical investigation of acting.