Stage Setting

Stage Time and Space View

Drama, as a special form of reflecting life, requires that the scene of life in the show be expressed in the limited space of the stage and the limited time of a performance, which will inevitably produce an infinite space reflecting the scene of life (in a relative sense) and the stage. There are two contradictions between the limited space, the infinite time for the continuation of the drama plot and the limited time for the actual performance. Traditional Chinese opera has its own approach in resolving these contradictions. It publicly expresses the hypothesis of the stage, admits that drama is a drama, and adopts a detached attitude towards the treatment of stage space and time, and does not investigate whether the use of stage space is in line with life. The scale does not ask whether the performance time is in line with the continuation of the plot time. Instead, it relies on the structure of the branching system and virtual expression techniques to create a unique artistic conception on a stage without any installations, and make a broad image of life.

Hypothetical Stage Height

The highly blurred stage is the most important and unique way of expression of Chinese opera art. There is often nothing on the opera stage. However, when this character appeared in the music and danced with wooden paddles, the audience was immediately taken into a flat boat and bumped on the turbulent river. The audience and the characters seem to be in the same boat, and experience the feeling of meeting in autumn together. In roleplaying, the high whip, the “vaulting horse” performance, and sometimes the horse boy’s tossing and turning, can immediately bring the audience into the battlefield of the golden horse and iron horse. Spectators and characters experience sword and shadow, light and sword, and the battle of flesh and blood

After the role was played, the stage was still empty. However, the audience admitted that the rowing and galloping on the stage was “real”. It should be said that traditional Chinese opera performances are performed on an empty stage without scenery, using virtual actions to mobilize the audience’s associations, and jointly create a specific drama situation composed of factors such as environment, events, and character relationships. Sometimes, a table and two chairs are placed on the opera stage, but they often do not represent any specific scene. Only when an actor comes on stage, relying on the actor’s imagination, through the roles of singing, doing, reading, and dancing, can the time, place, and environment be concretized. Then let the audience begin to associate and be recognized.

Selected stills from “The Peony Pavilion· A Dream in the Garden”

Spatial Performance

The detachment of the concept of stage space in opera is manifested in two aspects: The determination of the stage environment is based on the activities of the characters. There is a certain stage environment for activities with characters; for activities without characters, the stage is just an abstract space; even if there are some decorations or music performances sometimes, if the performances of different actors are combined, it will only play a role. A certain suggestive effect cannot independently show the dramatic environment. Therefore, the character’s on and off stage becomes the hub of the drama environment change and plot development.

For example, in “The Peony Pavilion A Dream in the Garden”, Chunxiang sang two tunes with Du Liniang, and “the twelve pavilions were actually seen all over.” The audience followed them to see the golden powder in the gallery, the moss in the pond, the broken wall, the Yunxia Cuixuan, the Yanbo painting boat, the tea mushroom stand, the peony pavilion, hear the singing of fireflies, and see the mountain azaleas.

It can be described as one step at a time. However, when the actor has finished singing and dancing, all this will cease to exist, and the stage is still empty. Everything is false, everything is false. In the first scene of “The Meeting of Heroes”, although there are big tents and tables and chairs on the stage, it does not specify the specific environment, so Huang Gai and Gan Ning can dominate in front of the big tent. When Zhou Yu appeared, the stage was determined

to be Zhou Yu’s camp; when Zhou Yu and others stopped, the specific environment disappeared. In the second scene, the big tent and the table and chairs were changed, which was only a hint to the environment; it was not until Lu Su came on stage to “collect books” before the stage was determined to be Zhou Yu’s sleeping tent. ②In the same scene, through the virtual actions of actors, one can quickly transfer from one environment to another. “Pedestrian walks thousands of miles” and “horse crossing ten thousand mountains”, as long as a round field, a horse wandering can be expressed; a “digging door” means entering indoors from the outside, “one turn over twice” or a “turn around the field” means Changing places and so on are all common methods of Chinese opera.

“Gathering of Heroes” Ma Chongren as Gan Ning, Ma Shenglong as Kan Ze, Ma Lianliang as Zhuge Liang, Ye Shenglan as Zhou Yu, Tan Fuying as Lu Su, Qiu Shengrong as Huang Gai

Time Performance

The detachment of the concept of stage time in opera is manifested in: the arrangement of stage time is completely determined by the needs of the plot of opera. During the book stealing of “Four Jinshi”, Song Shijie arranged for the two bribes who had been ordered to fall asleep, dial the door, steal the book, open the book, and copy the letter word by word and send it back to the original place. All of this, He did everything calmly and methodically. As soon as the dark joint evidence was obtained, four watchdogs rang out on the scene; after a moment of silence, the cock crowed at dawn, and the bribes and the accusers went their separate ways. The arrangement of the stage time is tight, the main actions of the characters are completed, and the stage tasks of the scene are also completed. Even the arrangement of the quiet field is very ingenious. If the sky is already bright when the letter arrives, doesn’t it seem that Song Shijie is too hurried in his work? This shows that the time processing of the stage is definitely not to show the time itself, but to show the actions and characters of the characters in this time. Song Shijie was busy all night: stolen books at the door, recorded evidence on clothes, blocked his wife’s interference, dealt with with tolerance, etc., all for the purpose of complaining about the victims, anti-injustice, and also showing Song Shijie’s righteous and sophisticated character. Just to show sleep time, even one minute is not allowed. The detached view of stage time and space has two meanings:wwwwwwwIt brings a fluid, flexible, relatively fixed, continuous and relatively spaced sub-field structure to the opera.

Song Shijie Song Shijie arranged for the two bribes to steal the book after sleeping

Song Shijie prevented his wife from interfering with copying letters