昆曲介绍,中英文

昆曲，惊艳六百年
Kunqu Opera, Six hundred Years of Tradition

释义：昆曲，也叫“昆腔”，“昆剧”，戏曲声腔，剧种。以演唱传奇剧本为主，具有六百年的历史，被称为“百戏之祖”。
Definition: Kunqu Opera, also known as "Kunqiang", "kunju", is a type of dramatic opera, mainly devoted to chuanqi (romance). With a history of six hundred years, Kunqu Opera is considered as the "mother of Chinese operas".

起源：元末明初，一些声腔开始流行起来，流行之江南，昆山腔形成。从昆曲到昆剧，足足经历了两百年。最初只有曲子，民间哼唱，直到两百年后，又乐第一个剧本叫做“浣纱记”，讲的是范蠡和西施的故事，才正式地把曲加入到剧当中。
Origin: At the end of Yuan dynasty and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, some tunes grew popular and spread to the south of the Yangzi River, then formed the Kunshan tune. It had taken two hundred years for Kunqu Opera to develop into Kunju. Starting as melodies sung by the common people, it wasn't until two hundred years later that the first play Huanshaji was written and officially incorporated these tunes into drama.

鼎盛：从明代中叶到清代中叶，使它最鼎盛的时期。引用余秋雨的话，综观中国的历史，没有任何一个剧种可以让全民族痴迷二百年。每年中秋的虎丘曲会，上至达官贵人，下至平民摊贩，所有人结伴而行，到苏州的虎丘山去PK唱曲子，一轮一轮淘汰，直至午夜一人胜出，盛况空前。
Peak: From teh Mid Ming Dynasty to the Mid Qing Dynasty Kunqu Opera reached its peak. Yu Qiuyu once said, "In Chinese history, no other type of drama had fascinated the entire nation for two hundred years like Kunqu Opera did." The annual Huqiu Opera Competition is an especially important occasion, drawing all kinds of people from high officials and celebrities, to ordinary people and stall keepers, marching to the Huqiu Mountain in Suzhou to strut their stuff. Round after round, only the best of the best are crowned as winners.

没落：进入宫廷之后，攀比之风遂起，逐渐脱离观众。花（京剧属于花部）雅（昆曲属于雅部）之争中，大家发现京剧更加容易上口和流行，从清代中叶开始，昆曲开始衰亡。解放之前，昆曲几乎绝迹。
Decline: After reaching the royal court, Kunqu Opera grew apart from the masses. The competition between Beijing Opera and Kunqu Opera eventually ended with Kunqu Opera in decline from the Mid Qing Dynasty as Beijing Opera was thought to be easier to learn and more popular. Before the Chinese Liberation, Kunqu Opera was almost extinct.

昆曲和昆剧的区别：现在来讲，基本无区别，已经变成一个符号和指称了。最早只有曲子没有情节，所以叫昆曲。
Difference between Kunqu and Kunju: today the two are almost the same and both can be used to name the

opera. But in early times, Kunqu only had tunes (qu) and no plots.

昆曲和京剧的区别：除了唱腔不同之外，昆曲的剧本是正统的中国戏曲剧本构成的形式，作者多为文学家、剧作家或知识分子；京剧是俚俗的剧本，传统剧作者多为社会中下层。昆曲基本上是随着唱腔而又舞姿；京剧在传统上是呆站着唱，有动作的时候是不唱的。
Difference between Kunqu Opera and Beijing Opera: Besides the difference in tunes, the plays of Kunqu Opera adopt the standardized and classical form of Chinese operas and their authors are mainly writers, playwrights and intellecturals. The storylines of Beijing Opera are plain, and their traditional playwrights are of mid and lower society. In Kunqu Opera, the performers dance and sing at the same time; in Beijing Opera, traditionally, singing and dancing do not happen at the same time - the artists sing only when they are stand still.

主要伴奏乐器：笛子。昆曲属于曲牌体，所有的文学格律有严格要求，而越剧、京剧等都属于板腔体，比较随意，使戏曲中的流行音乐，用胡琴伴奏。
Main Instruments: flute. Kunqu Opera falls into Qupai style, being very particular with literary rules and meters. On the other hand, Yue Opera or Shaoxing Opera and Beijing Opera fall into the Banqiang style, being more casual, they're the pop songs of the opera family mainly using huqin as the instrument.

主要角色行当：生、旦、净、末、丑、外、贴七行。昆曲中反串不多。老一辈中岳美缇是著名的女小生。
Main Roles: sheng (male characters), dan (female characters), jing ("painted face" characters), mo (main male characters), chou (clown), wai (old male characters), tie (old female characters); seven roles.

主要昆曲剧目：汤显祖的“牡丹亭”，高濂的“玉簪记”，李渔的“风筝误”，朱素臣的“十五贯”，孔尚任的“桃花扇”，洪升的“长生殿”等。
Well-known Plays of Kunqu Opera: The Peony Pavilion by Tang Xianzu, Yu Zan Ji by gao Lian, The Kite by Li Yu, 15 Guan by Zhu Suchen, The Peach Blossom Fan by Kong Shangren, The Palace of Eternal Youth by Hong Sheng.

主要造型特点：俊扮。先上底色，再画面红，定妆，然后画眼睛，眉毛和嘴巴。装扮都用马利牌油彩。化完妆之后，还要包头布，吊眉毛，勒水纱，戴帽子。身上要穿水衣彩裤，一层层往身上穿。女生更复杂一点，尤其是包头，比如杜丽娘上台，光包头就要花一个半小时。
Main Style Features: junban (light makeup). First a basic red face is applied, and then the final touch, painting the eyes, eyebrows and mouth. All the makeup comes from MARIES paint. After the makeup is done, the actor wraps his head, does the eyebrows, tightens the water-like gauze and puts on the cap, underclothes and layers upon layers of costumes. For the actresses, the makeup

is more complicated, especially with wrapping the head.

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没化戏妆的张军头发竖起，用iPhone，和台上一举手一投足都尽显古人气韵的小生判若两人。但是说起昆曲，他的气场又变了回去。
Looking at Jefferey Zhang Jun with his iPhone, one can hardly imagine the young male character on the stage bathed in ancient charms is in fact this man. He hasn't applied any makeup and his hair is spiky. Yet when we talk about the Kunqu Opera, he immediately becomes serious.

当初学戏的时候没想到它会是你一生的归宿吧？
完全没有。但是你踏进去之后，人生就改变了。我觉得很侥幸，即可以享受今天飞速发展的社会和它带来的满足感，又在从事着和传统文化根源很贴近的工作。98年，我的本命年，发生了些事情，让我觉得需要做些能掌控自己人生的事情。那年年底，我开始做昆曲普及推广，去大学巡演。我发现经过我自己的努力，可以获得我自己的观众。那时候让我觉得有了归宿感。
When you first started learning opera, did it ever occur to you that it would become your life-long career?
Not at all, but the moment I stepped into this circle, my life changed. I think I'm lucky. On one hand, I am in the middle of a fast-developing society enjoying the fulfillment it has brought to us; on the other hand, my work is closely related to the origin of traditional culture. In 1998, my (Chinese zodiac) birth year, something happened and I thought I should do something to gain control over my own life. At the end of that year, I started involving myself in the popularization of Kunqu Opera, touring around varied universities. I realized that I could have my own audience as long as I worked hard, and I got a sense of belonging.

作为一个专业的昆曲演员，要接受哪几方面的专业训练？
在戏校读书的时候，每天早上6点钟起床，之后是一个小时早功课。早功课是训练耐力，跑楼梯，跑步，后来就穿着厚底在操场上走圆场，练台步，拧旋子......8点05分开始，到10点钟，差不多两个小时毯子功，就是在毯子上练习翻跟斗的功课，从倒立，甩后腿开始，到能够翻一个空心跟斗，要练2年时间。接着是一个半小时的文化课，我们经常用来睡觉，因为实在太精疲力竭了。下午1点半到4点半，用来学戏、把子功（练刀枪把子）、身训（练水袖，身段，指法）、腿功（练腿的柔韧性）。晚饭之后，6点半到8点半，夜自修，练功的练功，练戏的连戏，有时一天轮一天，变为文化自习，要写作业，练毛笔字......晚上9点钟，关灯，拉电，睡觉。
When I was in school, we got up at 6 a.m, followed by one hour morning exercises which included stamina training, running the stairs, and practicing stage walking and spinning. After breakfast, we did tumbles on a mat.

In the afternoon, we studied plays, practiced with sword and spear, learned how to wave the water-sleeves, and do hand gestures. After dinner, we had time for independent study - some practiced skills, some practiced singing. One other day, that same period was for cultural study, and we would do homework and practice calligraphy. At 9 p.m, we turned off the lights and went to bed.

那过程中最快乐的事情是什么？
装鬼吓女孩子是我们比较喜欢的。我们那时候有许多行头，练功的衣服很飘逸，还有很长的胡子，还有各种各样的绑带，刀枪......我们寄居在市三女中的时候，练功房有二楼，我们就把绳子绑在自己腰上，让衣服飘飘然地荡在身上，把髯口挂在脸上，有人进来，就往下跳，有时候把市三女中的女生骗进来，太传神了，能把她们吓晕。有时候晚上我们还穿着戏服，从树丛里飘出来，飘出去，也能吓倒很多人。
What do you enjoy most in this process?
I like dressing up as a ghost and sneaking up on girls. We had a lot of costumes at that time, we wore baggy clothes during practice, and we had all kinds of bonds, weapons, and very long artificial beards. When we boarded at Shanghai No.3 Girls High School, we had a two-story practice building. We tied a rope around our waist, letting our costumes fly and wearing our beards. Whenever someone came, we would jump down from the second floor. Sometimes, we fooled girls to come over, and scared them out of their minds!

你觉得昆曲中最迷人的要素是什么？
唱腔。但是从整体的特质来讲，我觉得昆曲很安静。在这个高速发展的社会，这么浮躁的时刻，昆曲有它独特的意境。
What do you find most fascinating about Kunqu Opera?
The tunes, I guess. But generally speaking, I think Kunqu is very quiet. In this high-speed society and among all the restlessness, Kunqu boasts a very unique artistic vision.

在昆曲的推广和复兴过程中，你觉得哪几个人起了重要作用？我们必须铭记？
我觉得首先要记住“五百壮士”--全国五百个干昆曲的人，所有台前幕后，演员、乐队、舞美、管理者，加起来大概也就五百人。他们保存了昆曲的实体，如果没有这些人在用自己的身体作传承的话，一切都是枉然。近几年，文化大家对昆曲的贡献很大，比如白先勇、余秋雨、于丹。一方面，他们很具有影响力，另一方面，他们可以从人文学、哲学的角度讲出昆曲对当今人的意义。文学的力量是精神层面的，它更容易打动心灵。
In the process of popularizing and reviving Kunqu Opera, whom do you think should be remembered as very important contributors?
the five hundred people. I think we should be grateful to those who have devoted themselves to Kunqu Opera - all the artists on and behind the stage, actors, actresses, bands, stage designers and managers

- about five hundred people, in all. they have preserved the spirit of Kunqu, and without these people using their bodies as media to pass on this tradition any effort would be meaningless. In recent years, cultural masters like Pai Hsien-yung, Yu Qiuyu, and Yu Dan have contributed a lot to Kunqu Opera too.

你应该不排斥昆曲的时尚化，海派化倾向吧？
我一直觉得，首先要保证昆曲传统的完整性。这个是绝对不能本末倒置的。我很遗憾现在很多人作创新戏的时候，既不“白”也不“黑”，是个“灰”的东西，又要主流评价认可，又要青年观众喜欢，这会引来保皇派和改革派双双的质疑。但是，我绝对支持拿昆曲的一些元素出来，跟其它的艺术门类碰撞。“发胶星梦”这么红，我们为什么不能排好听好看好玩的昆曲音乐剧？但是那个不是传统昆曲，你要看传统昆曲，请到绍兴路9号上昆小剧场看我们没有任何布景的“游园惊梦”。做艺术应该稍微轻松一点点，就像我做“当爵士遇上昆曲”，也有人质疑，但是我太坦然了。
You don't mind Kunqu Opera taking on a fashionable or Shanghai style look, do you ?
I always think that we should first ensure the integrity of the Kunqu tradition, and this should never be compromised. I don't feel comfortable with those who write creative plays, hoping to win over both the mainstream and young audience. I think we can take some elements from Kunqu to mix with other artistic forms. But if you want to see the traditional, welcome to the theatre at No.9 Shaoxing Road and see The Peony Pavilion.

对于一出新戏，正是上演之前会经历多长时间的排练？
像“长生殿”排了三年。一般一出戏，至少得半年一年。如果剧本出来以后，通常三个月。
How long should a new play be rehearsed before its first performance?
Take the Place of Eternal Youth for example, the rehearsal has taken three years. Most plays need to be rehearsed for at least six months to a year.

从决定排演某一出戏到正式开始排练，一般要经过哪些准备工作？
这个很复杂。我们现在演得最多的一种形式叫明清传奇。如果选定一个本子，我们先会进行几个月的论证。可行性被认定之后，我们会找一个编剧，把几十折需要演很多天的故事进行缩编。差不多到半年的时候，剧本出来，各方再花大约一个月时间论证和修改，然后交给作曲，依照曲牌谱写唱腔。第八个月，我们拿到唱腔剧本之后，开始排练。大概两个月的时间，把这个戏从什么都没有排成一个舞台版本。这样下来，就已经十个月了，最后一个月再进行合成，磨合和演出。服装，灯光，舞美都是同期进行的。通常，一个戏，从创意开始，到真正成为一个经典，需要十年，十年磨一戏。
What kind of preparation should be made once

you decide to rehearse a play?
Sagas of the Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty are the main themes of our plays today. After a play is chosen, we spend several months doing research to find out if it's feasible. If it's proved to be feasible, we find a playwriter to abridge the story, otherwise it will take many days to stage a single play. After we get the abridged edition, usually after six months, we need another one month to discuss and revise them, and pass it to the composer to fill in the meters. the eighth month we get the tuned play and start rehearsing. In about two months, we start from nothing to an on-stage version. Now it has already passed ten months, and the last month is devoted to dress-rehearsal and performance. generally speaking, it takes ten years to make a good play.

具体到每场演出呢？要提早多少时间去剧场，做哪些准备工作？
中国人演习开幕，不是七点十五分就是七点半，我一般五点到。用一个半小时化妆穿衣服，然后叫叫嗓子，大概七点钟全部准备好。剩下的时间就让自己安静下来准备上台。女孩子的话要更提早一点。
How early do you need to arrive before a performance to prepare yourself? What kind of preparation needs to be done?
According to the Chinese tradition, a play usually starts at 7:15 p.m. or 7:30 p.m., and I usually arrive at five o'clock. I take one and half hours for dressing up and trying my voice, and everything should be ready by about seven o'clock. The rest of the time, I calm down and get ready for staging. Girls have to arrive earlier for more complicated preparations.

演出的后台是不是总是手忙脚乱的，发生过什么让你最印象深刻或者啼笑皆非的事情吗？
我们的舞台是镜框式的,观众所能看到的只是展现在面前的一方大概一百来个平方的小舞台,但是你越过那些幕布,你看到的后台完全会是另外一个大空间.什么样的人都有,干什么的人都有:有人打PSP,有人发短信,有人正襟危坐,有人打情骂俏......任何一种很自我很放松的状态,当你把一个脚伸到幕布外面的时候,就完全归到舞台上了,你就是情景里那个任务的喜怒哀乐.我们有时也会"使坏"逗台上的人.台上演太监宫女的,好些戏往往一站就是半小时.我们有时一群人站在台口的幕布那里,就逗台上的配角,他们眼睛的余光能看见我们.舞台的绝妙之处在于,你在台上想笑,越想忍越忍不住.然后舞台监督就会过来骂:"干什么?!" 大剧场,我们不敢,但在小剧场,实在无聊时,我们以此为乐.
What's the environment like at backstage with the actors?
Our stage is the typical proscenium stage, the audience can only see the small stage of about one-hundred square meters at front, but once you cross the curtains, it's a totally different space. All kinds of people are doing all kinds of things: playing Playstation, texting friends, fooling

around... any kind of self-indulgence or relaxation changes very suddenly once you step the first foot from behind the curtain. You are directly in the character, and you share his exact emotions.
Sometimes we enjoy a bit of mischief on stage. Those playing eunuchs and maids sometimes have to stand on stand in the same spot for thirty minutes. We stand behind the curtain teasing them. This is the most fantastic thing of th stage. The more you want to refrain from laughing the more likely you can't help but bursting out into laughter. The stage manager would shout at us, "What the hell are you doing?"

台上呢,台上遇到意外怎么办?
台上,演文戏的最怕忘词,演武戏的最怕掉帽子.再熟的戏,在台上也有可能出现真空,尤其是我们经常有大段大段的念白.又一次我在台下看"假婿乘龙",这是一出很好玩的喜剧,有场戏台上三个角色.念到某句之后,该另一个人接一句,接完戏才能往下走,但那人没接,呆了两秒钟,旁边的人急了,瞎接接上了,把戏又绕回去,再演了一遍,这个大家还没太发掘;演到那一句,那人还在木知木觉,然后又再来一遍;那段戏演了三遍,台上的演员都快崩溃了,最后只能强拖她下场,这个时候,她才回过神来.
我的老师蔡正仁在台上遇到最好玩的事情是裤带绷断.戏服的裤子时没有松紧带的,一折,两折,再扎一根带子.有一次在台上,一个屁股坐子,台下拍手叫好,站起来的时候发现裤腰带绷断了.下半场怎么办呢?一只手夹住,继续演啊.从此以后,我对此就有强迫症,穿裤子的时候从来都是扎两根带子.我们同学当中还有跟头翻到一般,发现裤子掉下来了,在空中整理完裤子,落地站好的.
我最怕忘词.我一焦虑,就做同一个梦,梦见我都化完妆准备上台，却发现这出戏我没背出来，然后惊醒，一身汗。
What about the proscenium? have you had any accidents?
For civil plays, we mostly fear forgetting lines. And for military plays we worry about dropping our caps. One can still forget lines during even the most familiar play, especially when the lines are very lengthy. Once I watched a play, and there were three performers on the stage. When one finished the lines another was supposed to continue, and the other would go on. But it was all silent for two seconds and we got worried. They managed to botch the lines, backed to the beginning and started all-over again, and the audience didn't notice it. But the actress still could not remember the lines and struck at the same part and then they repeated it again, and again she failed to spit out the lines!
The most interesting thing once happend to my teacher was he broke his belt on the stage. The costume pants do not have elastic. He stood up and found the belt was broken. He used one hand to hold the belt and went on performing. Since then, I developed an obsessive-compulsive disorder and would use

two belts thereafter. One of my classmates found his belt was loosened in the middle of a tumble, and he fastened it in the air and landed like nothing had happened.
What I'm afraid most is botching the lines. Whenever I get overly anxious I have the same dream: all the makeup is done and I'm ready to go on stage, but all of a sudden, I realize that I haven't recited the lines yet. And then I wake up with a start sweating all-over.

你觉得后台的战略地位怎样？后台像什么？
后台是我们的家园。前台属于观众，后台属于我们自己。对于演员来说，有两块地方是承载了所有，一个是排练场，一个是后台。
What do you think of the strategic role of the backstage? What's it like?
The backstage is our hometown. the proscenium belongs to the audience, and the backstage belongs to us. to us actors and actresses, two places are everything: the floor for rehearsing and backstage.