LI Bao-Chun on Traditional Chinese Operas
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3/3 Farewell My Concubine
After the fall of Qin dynasty began the war of Chu and Han. Liu Bang, king of Han, and Xiang Yu, king of Chu, agreed to a temporary truce. Li Zuo-Che, a senior consultant of King Liu faked surrender to Xiang Yu who, upon listening to Li, decided to invade Pei. Despite all the advice he received, Xiang Yu attacked Pei and ended up being under siege in Gaixia. Han’s troops were ordered to sing the folk songs of Chu to make all Chu soldiers homesick.
Xiang Yu’s Consort Yu Ji heard the singing and reported to Xiang Yu. Xiang Yu believed his hometown was taken by Han and informed Concubine Yu of his anxiety and worries. He ordered a drink; Concubine Yu danced and sang to comfort him. Upon completing the performance, Concubine Yu took her own life so Xiang Yu wouldn’t have to worry about her in future battles. Xiang Yu fought his way out but felt ashamed. He resolved to kill himself by River Wu.
3/10 Wu Zi-Xu, the Innocent Fugitive
WU Zi-Xu (Wu Yuan) by LI Bao-Chun
SHEN Bao-Xu by YANG Yan-Yi
Emperor Liao of Wu by YANG Yan-Yi
WU Shang by LI Long-Xian
Dong Gao by LI Long-Xian
Meng Ying by HUANG Yu-Lin
HUANG-FU Na by LI Chao-Yun
JI Guang by LI Chao-Yun
Emperor Ping of Chu by ZHU Jin-Rong\
FEI Wu-Ji by CHANG Gui-Xiang
ZHUAN Zhu by LEE Yen-Long
Jinhu(Head of Strings): YE Guang
Drum(Head of Percussions): LIU Yun-He
Filmed on June 5, 2010, Novel Hall for Performing Arts, Taipei
King Chu Ping wanted to wed his own son’s bride, but Royal Mentor Wu She advised against it. Wu She ended up being imprisoned and was forced to write a letter to summon his sons, Wu Shang and Wu Yuan, from Fan City where they were stationed. Wu Yuan suspected the letter was a trap and fled. Wu Shang went as summoned and was beheaded with his father.
Wu Yuan fled Fan City, but when he reached Zhao Pass, he found his portraits posted everywhere for a reward. He went into hiding in Dong Gao-Gong’s house. His hair turned white during the seven days in hiding, before Dong Gao-Gong was able to sneak him out of the Pass.
Wu Yuan finally arrived in Wu State, ruled by King Gi Guang, where Wu Yuan meant to borrow soldiers to get even with King Chu Ping. He met and befriended the virtuous Zhuan Zhu. Together they helped King Ji Guang regain his power by killing the latter’s enemy/usurper, Ji Liao.
3/17 A Jade Bracelet
In Ming dynasty, a wealthy business man, Yu Ren, had a daughter named, Su-Qiu. She was betrothed to an impoverished young man, Zhang Shao-Lian. When the emperor announced his desire to look for new royal concubines, Yu Ren decided to break his daughter’s betrothment with Zhang Shao-Lian and enter her as a candidate for royal concubines.
Su-Qiu was in love with Shao-Lian and had no wish to marry into the royal house. She had a pair of jade bracelets. She decided to send one of them to her fiancé to finance their wedding. However, the bracelet by mistake went to a rascal named Han Chen who, after receiving the bracelet, got into Su-Qiu’s bedroom at night and raped her.
A thief by the name of Jiang Hai went into the Yu’s house in the same night and stole the identical bracelet, killing an old lady of the Yu’s. While fleeing the thief threw away the bracelet, which was then picked up by the impoverished young man Zhang Shao-Lian, and that got him imprisoned. Yu Su-Qiu was required to testify in the court, but upon hearing it was not her fiancé that entered her room a few days ago, she killed herself out of shame.
Rascal Han’s sister, Han Yu, saw the bracelet her brother brought home and was fond of it. She asked her brother for it but was rejected. She by chance saw an identical one in the market and tried to buy it. This one turned out to be the other of the pair stolen by the thief Jiang Hai. When Jiang Hai heard the girl say in the market that she had an identical bracelet at home, he decided to steal it, too. Jiang Hai was caught, and the impoverished Shao-Lian was finally released. Han Yu fell for young Shao-Lian and married him.
3/24 Tears in the Wilderness
During the final days of the Ming dynasty, king Chong Zhen, a harsh ruler, kept raising taxes, causing great suffering among the people. Gao Liang-min, a farmer from Jiyuan city, was unable to pay the taxes. One day, while he and his son were out gathering herbs in the mountains, they were tragically attacked and killed by tigers. The devastating news led to the death of his wife, and their grandson was taken away by soldiers, never to return. The only surviving member of this family of five was Gao's daughter-in-law, Zhang Hui-Zhu. This opera depicts how, overwhelmed by grief and desperation, Zhang lost her sanity and fled into the mountains where, despite her attempts to escape, the relentless tax collectors continued to pursue. Eventually, sad and humiliated, Zhang Hui-Zhu chose to end her own life.
3/31 14:30 The Battle of Puyang
In the Era of Three Kingdoms, General Lu Bu seized control of Puyang and made it his military base. Cao Cao wanted to recover Puyang. He sent his troops to attack. Lu Bu’s advisor Chen Gong ordered General Tian to fake surrender and give Cao to know that Puyang was being guarded by only one general. Cao Cao attacked Puyang. His army were ambushed and burnt to the ground. He lost his battle and fled.
