Ever since the four-scene drama hit the stage last Thursday, Beijing theatre-goers have been singing the praises of the production and its main character, Chou'er - the Chinese word for clown.

The play examines four parts of Chou'er's life using sharp black-humour, realistic settings and simple music.

Chou'er is a nobody and the play poignantly tells how an "unimportant" person survives in the modern world. The play is now running at the China Children's Theatre until January 3.

Written and directed by veteran Beijing Youth Daily theatre reporter Hang Cheng, the play also has assistance from well-known theatre names such as directors Lin Zhaohua and Mou Sen, the play's set designer Zhang Hui and composer Zhang Guangtian.

The play's plot structure is unique. It shows Chou'er ageing from 20 to 60 years old but it also travels back in time from present day to the 1920s. Chou'er gets older as time moves backward.

"The point I want to make is that the survival of 'nobodies' is difficult no matter what time period you live in," Hang said.

Hang had always longed to write plays, even as he worked for 10 years as a theatre reporter, he said.

"As a reporter, I have covered everything from societal issues, sports and culture - but it wasn't until I started to cover the theatre did I realize that drama is the best way to express my thoughts," he said.

"Good productions give me hope that art has a promising future here, while bad plays give me courage to make my own dramas."

His first try

Hang tried several story ideas but none made it to stage until this July, when he was inspired by something he saw on television. It was a scene of a clown carrying heavy luggage and walking in a snowstorm.

"I just happened to turn on the TV and the scene lasted less than 10 seconds, but the idea flashed across my head. I was going to stage a play about a clown's life, based on 'New Youth' - a story I wrote two years ago but wasn't satisfied with," he said.

The inspiration drove him to finish the story within a month and then search for someone to direct it.

When he turned to well-known director Mou Sen for advice in finding someone, Mou said: "Why not yourself?"

"I haven't received professional training in drama and I was afraid that I wouldn't know how to direct the actors," Hang said.

But many of his friends encouraged him after reading his story and promised to help.

Among those who helped was Lin Zhaohua, one of the most well-known stage directors in China whose credits include "The Tea House," "Absolute Signal" and "A Farmer's Nirvana."

Zhang Guantian, a versatile dramatist, directed and composed the music for the play and Zhang Hui, a professor with the China Central Academy of Drama, designed the sets.

"Zhang Hui perfectly interprets my ideas through his designs," Hang said.

Promising actors

The actors and actresses are all from professional drama companies or the China Central Academy of Drama. Rehearsals have been successful, Hang said.

"They are talented, devoted and gave me great help," Hang said.

Actress Liu Tianchi who plays three women in Chou'er's life - Xiao Qin, Xiao Fan and Li Weihong - is also a drama teacher with the China Central Academy of Drama. She has helped the other performers greatly, Hang added.

But rehearsal has been by no means easy, particularly because Hang had no practical experience in directing.

"As a director, he is not so expressive as he is as a reporter. Sometimes, he can't tell us clearly what he wants and we get a little confused," Liu said. "But we never underestimated him. He has an even stronger sense of drama than some professional directors and has wonderful ideas."

Li Naiwen, who stars as the play's avant-garde artist An Shilai, agrees.

"While he didn't know the technical directing terms which resulted in some misunderstanding, he is a bold newcomer," Li said. "He does not know the professional rules and conventions so he directs the play in a freer way and we perform in a freer style."

Zhai Xiaoxing, who plays Chou'er, said: "He may seem somewhat careless, but he is very strict in rehearsals. We often had disputes and even fought sometimes because we had different understandings about a scene. But we both feel the play has seen great progress."

Hang also admits that the play has had its challenges.

"It is not a tragedy, so the performances should not be very heavy. But it is also not a comedy, so the actors should not be too light," Hang said.

Zhai succeeds in the lead role, Hang said. The China National Drama Company actor perfectly depicts Chou'er's anxiety, confusion, desire, love and hopes. "He is a small potato struggling all his life to survive, suffering hardship and facing temptations but remaining composed," Hang said.

In the director's view, the play is about survival. Each of the four stories, which are set in four different time periods over the last century, all have to do with the antagonistic contradiction between the new and the old and how regular Joes like Chou'er seem to always be the victims.

(China Daily December 17, 2002)