Star performer revitalizes Peking opera
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E-mail China Daily, January 15, 2020
To everyone's surprise, Zhang even changed one of the best-known scenes in Farewell My Concubine, in which Yu Ji dances with two swords.
In Mei's signature creation, Yu dances in this scene with Xiang's sword on their last night together before she uses the sword to kill herself.
Unlike Mei's version, in which the swords did not have tassels, Zhang added two long red ones attached to the swords in her interpretation, making her performance more impressive, but difficult.
Fu, a friend of Zhang's who reviews her shows, said, "Her dress had many ornaments, such as pearls and raised embroidery, which became entangled with her swords' tassels as she turned around waving her arms."
The sword-dancing scene lasts about 10 minutes and Zhang practiced for it for a year.
"She told me that every day she practiced sword dancing at the end of her daily rehearsal because it's energy-consuming," Fu said. "It's very difficult for her to control her breathing to sing after dancing with swords. But she performed the part perfectly."
Zhang said in an interview after her performance on May 25 that she was exhausted and sweating heavily, adding, "I could do the moves better if I was 10 years younger."
Born in Baicheng, Jilin province, she was introduced to traditional Chinese opera by her father, who performed Pingju Opera, a traditional art form popular in northern China.
Her elder brother, Zhang Huoqian, who began studying Peking Opera as a child, was trained to play qingyi－"graceful female roles".
In 1989, after graduating from school in Tianjin, Zhang Huoding joined a military Peking Opera troupe in Beijing, and from 1995 to 2008 she performed with the National Peking Opera Company. She now teaches at the National Academy of Chinese Theater Arts in Beijing.
She always keeps her hair short and neat, dresses in colorful outfits, but rarely gives interviews, keeping her personal life a closely guarded secret.
Ye Shaolan, a 78-year-old Peking Opera master who performed with Zhang Huoding in the classic piece The Legend of White Snake in 2016, said: "She really loves Peking Opera. Her life is simple and although she rarely gives performances, she practices every day in the rehearsal room at the National Academy of Chinese Theater Arts."
After watching her rendition of Farewell My Concubine, Ye wrote in a People's Daily article: "Zhang Huoding designed her moves and singing totally based on the role of Yu Ji. The performance style of the Cheng School blends naturally and convincingly in her interpretation, and the show deserves to be watched over and over again."
In 2016, the National Academy of Chinese Theater Arts launched a project that enabled Zhang Huoding to mentor young female Peking Opera students performing in the style of the Cheng School. Ten actresses have been recruited.
In May, her students staged a show to highlight classic roles from the Cheng School, including Bai Suzhen from The Legend of White Snake and Zhu Yingtai from The Butterfly Lovers, at the Tianqiao Performing Arts Center in Beijing.
One of Zhang Huoding's students, Li Li, 30, said: "She told me that the only way to guarantee the quality of a performance is to practice again and again, from eye contact to breathing and movements. Although she speaks few words, she is very disciplined and always inspires us."
Li started her Peking Opera training in her hometown of Tianjin at age 7, before moving on to graduate with a master's from the National Academy of Chinese Theater Arts. She now works with the Jingju Theatre Company of Beijing.
She said that before she studied with Zhang Huoding, she was struggling, as Peking Opera was losing popularity. She even considered quitting her job as an actress.
However, in 2014, she changed her mind after watching a performance by Zhang Huoding at the Chang'an Grand Theatre. The standing ovation, which Li said was the longest she had ever seen, and the enthusiastic response from the audience restored Li's faith in the art.
"I used to be restless, as I had lost my career path as a Peking Opera actress, but now I am very calm and determined. I am touched not only by Zhang Huoding's solid technique onstage, but also by her attitude toward this old art," said Li, who sports short hair, just like her mentor.
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