CHINA DAILY | HONG KONG EDITION Friday, January 10, 2020 | 17 LIFE Macedonian Seagull swoops into Beijing
By CHEN NAN which sees over 700 artists from 11 [email protected] countries gather in the capital. In the Macedonian National When Russian writer Anton Theatre’s version, The Seagull Chekhov’s play, The Seagull, pre dramatizes the romantic and artis miered on Oct 17, 1896, at the Alex tic conflicts of four characters: the andrinsky Theatre in St famous middlebrow story writer Petersburg, it was more of a lame Boris Trigorin, the ingenue Nina, duck than the soar away success the fading actress Irina Arkadina, its creator had hoped it would be. and her son, the ambitious play A total failure, the response left wright Konstantin Treplev. Set in Chekhov disappointed. However, the Russian countryside at the end two years later in 1898 — under of the 19th century, the characters the directorial eye of the great are dissatisfied with their lives. Konstantin Stanislavski — Mos The director tells the story in a cow Art Theatre produced the contemporary way, attempting to play again to wide acclaim. This convey to the audience that, success led to adaptations of the despite being created more than Yanxi Palace: Princess Adventures, the sixepisode spinoff of the smash hit Story of Yanxi Palace, stars actress Wang Herun as the writer’s subsequent three plays, 120 years ago, the characters are protagonist princess and actor Wang Yuwei as a Mongolian prince. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters and not much different from people The Cherry Orchard, and finally today. gain Chekhov the onstage recog “Chekhov’s plays are about life, nition he deserved. which is pure, cruel and concen For Chinese audiences, The Sea trated. It happens everywhere, in gull is arguably the best known of all languages and at any time,” says the writer’s works. It was adapted director Nikolikj. “Some critics by the Beijing People’s Art Thea view The Seagull as a tragic play Yanxi venture ter in 1991 with a translation by about eternally unhappy people. Chinese scholar Tong Daoming. However, others see it as a humor Gathering a venerable cast of vet ous, albeit bitter, satire that pokes Chinese spinoff drama on royal affairs debuts on Netflix, Xu Fan reports. eran Chinese actors, including Pu fun at human folly.” Cunxin, Xu Fan and Yang Lixin, “Some consider The Seagull as a n the summer of 2018, many the queens and concubines of the the play was directed by Oleg guide book that provides informa viewers were fascinated by the Qing Dynasty that are now dis Efremov, the chief director of tion about what kind of theater Story of Yanxi Palace, a series played at the Palace Museum (For Moscow Art Theatre. It was so productions we should make. that garnered more than 18 bil bidden City) in Beijing. well received that it is still being Great authors do not feel the egois Ilion clicks to top all online Chinese “We used the same department to staged to this day. tic need to change the world. dramas that year. design the costumes and makeup On Jan 21, a production of The Instead, they only write down Now, Yanxi Palace: Princess for Princess Adventures with the Seagull by the Macedonian their own views. Life is what they Adventures, a sixepisode spinoff of aim of recreating the royal lifestyle National Theatre — which was want to teach us. That is why the 2018 series, has been streaming of the Qing era as realistically as founded in 1945 and is the coun Chekhov is present always and on Netflix since Dec 31. Its producer possible,” says Yu. try’s oldest and largest theater everywhere,” wrote the drama and scriptwriter Yu Zheng tells Chi Yu says he enjoyed the atmos institution — will make its debut turge, Dragana Lukan Nikoloski, na Daily the latest period drama phere, “which felt like traveling back at Beijing’s Poly Theater. on Dec 4, 2018, before the produc has subtitles in 23 foreign langua in time” during the shooting of Prin Directed by the promising tion’s premiere. ges, including English, Thai and cess Adventures in Hengdian, the young Macedonian director, Nina Rather intriguingly, the pre Hindi, and is the first such Chinese country’s largest studio base for TV Nikolikj, it premiered at the Mace miere of The Seagull by the Mace series to be streamed on a foreign and film in Zhejiang province, donian National Theatre on Dec donian National Theatre platform before being released in where sets replicating imperial 18, 2018. All of the original cast happened to take place on the China. architecture have been built. members will perform in Beijing, same date as that Stanislavski The new tale takes place around “When the camera starts to roll, it including Zvezdana Angelovska, adaptation by Moscow Art Thea 15 years after the end of the first one, feels like you are jumping into Nikola Ristanovski and Petre tre in 1898 — something Nikoloski which unfolds through 70 episodes falls for someone, she takes action another world. You can see ‘ancient Arsovski. insists was completely unplanned to chronicle the rise of Wei Yingluo, without hesitation,” says Yu, 41. figures’ walk and speak, ... and the The performance will be one of and purely coincidental. That may a lowborn royal maid who over Statistics from broadcasting kind of scenery that has always cap the highlights of the ongoing 20th well be, but given the production’s comes palace intrigue to be crowned tracker CSM Media Research show tivated me and given me the impe Meet in Beijing Arts Festival, warm reception so far, it has cer the “imperial noble consort” to that the Chinese TV drama ran for tus to keep on writing,” he adds. which runs from Jan 6 to Feb 4, tainly proved auspicious. Emperor Qianlong (171199) during 42 episodes per series in 2018 on A key ingredient in making peri the Qing Dynasty (16441911). average. od dramas popular, Yu says, is char As the hostess of the Forbidden Considering that dramas on Net acter development. City, China’s imperial palace, and flix are much shorter, Princess “The audience wants to see some the most powerful woman in the Adventures recounts “a compara one special, but you also need to king’s harem, Wei — a role reprised tively simple story” to be told in just make the character convincing and by actress Wu Jinyan — is seen six episodes, Yu adds. relatable,” he adds. encountering a new crisis in the “Most domestic production com Before Princess Adventures, other latest series: Her princess daughter panies are still exploring how to bet period dramas that have won recog is urged by a Mongolian prince to ter sell Chinese stories abroad. I nition in overseas markets include cancel their engagement, as he hope this drama demonstrates the The Legend of Luzhen (2013) and believes the rumor that the young beauty of Chinese culture to foreign The Legend of Haolan (2019), con woman is spoiled and willful. audiences,” Yu says. tributing to an increase in foreign To clear her reputation and win Yu, who shot to fame after pen audience’s curiosity about Chinese back her love, the princess sneaks ning the 2005 TV series Yanhua history and culture. out of the palace to embark on an The spinoff features reprising Sanyue (The Spring of March), has TV series can do more than enter adventure, discovering that the situ actor Nie Yuan (left, top picture) since written and produced more tain, Yu says. The Macedonian ation is more complicated than she as Emperor Qianlong and than 20 period dramas featuring “They can create an interest in the National Theatre will first imagined. actress Wu Jinyan (above) as his lavish sets and exquisite costumes. legacy of Chinese culture and stage a production of The “I have had the Princess Adven character’s most loved consort. A production highlight of the Sto encourage more people to join the Seagull on Jan 21 as part tures story in my mind for a long PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY ry of Yanxi Palace is that ahead of preservation and passing on of tra of the ongoing 20th Meet time. It’s sort of a tale that is more filming the 2018 series the props ditional craftsmanship.” in Beijing Arts Festival. relatable to modern youngsters. The team had invited artisans to make PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY title’s protagonist is an adorable and replicas of, or seek inspiration from, Contact the writer at straightforward woman. When she the jewelry and outfits once worn by [email protected]