World history has seen three ancient dramas: Greek tragedy and comedy; Indian Sanskrit drama; and Chinese opera. The first two have become historical and only Chinese opera has survived.
Chinese opera took shape in the 12th century. After developing for more than 800 years, its abundant local styles of opera are still enjoying great popularity, of which Qinqiang is one of the most ancient operas.
Qingiang opera is a thousand-year-old local opera originating in China’s inland northwestern region. It has established a unique tradition as an “opera shouted out” with its high-pitched arias(高音唱腔). Li Mei has won a reputation as one of the four greatest Qinqiang actresses. She’s also known for her passionate commitment to exploring the theatrical possibilities offered by Qinqiang.
Li Mei and her workmates are halfway through an afternoon rehearsal(排练)and most have broken into a sweat. Singing in a near-whisper, the forty-year-old opera star performs the stylized movements for the leading role—the bitter dead Lady Li Huiniang in Ghost’s Hate.
Little wonder that Li Mei is such a powerful presence on stage. She’s the greatest contributory actress who’s able to interpret a character so compellingly and tell a story so convincingly that European audiences warmly hug this unfamiliar art form.
Li Mei said, “We performed this opera in the Netherlands to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the founding of Holland’s National Theatre. We enjoyed a fifteen-minute curtain call and the audiences applauded wildly for a long time. The local press entitled me the ‘Nemesis of the Orient’ and the ‘Chinese Venus’. Why is that so? Because they’ve fully understood what the opera implied—the loyalty towards love, and dead as she may be, her love persists.
The reason why this opera was able to touch millions of hearts is that it has a beautiful story presented by a beautiful art form.
【小题1】What can be inferred about Chinese opera from the text?| A．It made history with ancient Greek operas. |
| B．It consists of various dynamic local operas. |
| C．It has a history shorter than Indian Sanskrit drama. |
| D．It originated from the most ancient local Qingiang opera. |
| A．Because its story is easy to be fully understood by foreigners. |
| B．Because its leading role Li Mei is famous as the “Chinese Venus”. |
| C．Because it conveys the popular message of loyalty towards love. |
| D．Because it is a perfect combination of touching plot and attractive form. |
| A．Persuasively. | B．Boringly. | C．Incorrectly. | D．Partly. |
| A．She won a reputation as one of the four greatest Qingiang actresses. |
| B．She brought Li Huiniang, the bitter dead Lady in Ghost’s Hate to life. |
| C．She explored many theatrical possibilities offered by Qinqiang opera. |
| D．She spread one of Chinese traditional cultures to the other side of the world. |
