On June 21st, the large-scale Cantonese opera Zheng Chenggong premiered at the Guangzhou Jiangnan Theater. "Expel the invaders and reclaim our territories!" As the actors exclaimed valiantly, the scenes of Zheng Chenggong's heroic fight to recover Chinese Taiwan over 300 years ago were recreated on the opera stage again.

The heroic deeds of Zheng Chenggong, a national hero who managed to reclaim Chinese Taiwan during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, have been shown many times on both the screens and the stages. This time, the Cantonese opera Zheng Chenggong retells his life story from a new perspective, allowing the audience to understand the national hero in a more comprehensive way.

The opera is built around two historical events: Zheng Chenggong's fight against the Qing government and his recovery of Chinese Taiwan. The story begins at the end of the Ming Dynasty. With the decline and fall of the country, Zheng Chenggong gives up his study and joins the army, while his father, Zheng Zhilong, surrenders to the Qing government. To save the country, he ends his relationship with his father and goes to the naval after making the oath. At the end of the story, he recovers Chinese Taiwan and fulfills his lifelong aspiration despite all the grief and indignation for the murder of his mother, the execution of his father, and the peril of the country. That's how he becomes the national hero.

The lead actor, Chen Zhenjiang, contributes his nuanced performance in the opera. From a gentle scholar to a majestic general, the transformation of the character Zheng Chenggong acted by him is obvious to see. As for the conflict scenes in the opera, he also gives appropriate reactions to characterize Zheng Chenggong as a vivid figure.

"Zheng Chenggong is a very thoughtful opera," said Chen Zhenjiang, "and it is set under a grand historical background. Zheng Chenggong's deeds are household stories, so we are trying our best to characterize him as close to the audience's expectations as possible. Therefore, we have added a lot of singing and grand scenes in the opera, as well as ingenious singing voices design, so as to present a work with a unique Cantonese style."

"Resisting the Qing Dynasty, restoring the country and recovering Chinese Taiwan are all immortal feats that go down in Chinese history, and what supported Zheng Chenggong to live up to his lifelong aspiration amid predicament is the literati spirit of 'sacrificing his life for the country', 'facing death unflinchingly' and 'always be the first to worry about the country's affairs'. Zheng Chenggong defined himself as a 'lone general', and that kinds of loyalty, heroism and moral integrity of taking the world as his own responsibility are exactly what we intended to present through the fierce confrontations on the stage, and are also the spirits needed in any era." said Liang Yunan, the scriptwriter.

"In this opera, we deduce Zheng Chenggong's motivations based on his patriotism. For example, in the face of the death of his mother and the execution of his father, what kinds of complicated emotions will he suffer? What choices will he make? And how will he break through such predicaments? We are trying to show the inner struggle of the character in the prescribed situation." said Director Hu Hanchi. He also mentioned that the performance, stage dispatch and presentation are all dependent on the traditions of Cantonese opera, which will not only present the style of the Guangzhou Red Bean Cantonese Opera Troupe, but also bring the work closer to the audience. 

新编粤剧《郑成功》公演：再现300多年前收复台湾场景

6月21日晚，大型新编粤剧《郑成功》在广州的江南大戏院公演。“驱逐荷夷，复我河山！”随着演员们声威震天的呐喊，300多年前郑成功为收复台湾英勇奋战的场景在粤剧舞台上再现。

郑成功作为明清之际收复台湾的民族英雄，他的英雄事迹曾被多次搬上影视剧屏幕和戏剧舞台。粤剧《郑成功》以全新的视角书写郑成功的人生故事，让观众更全面地理解这一民族英雄。

粤剧《郑成功》围绕郑成功抗清和收复台湾两大历史事件展开叙事。该剧讲述了在明末国亡家破之际，郑成功投笔从戎后，父亲郑芝龙却失足降清，于是他勇毅“背父救国”的故事。最终，郑成功在母亲被害、父亲在京满门抄斩、国家陷入危难的种种悲愤中，誓师出海，收复台湾，完成了自己一生的伟愿，成为收复台湾的民族英雄。

该剧主演陈振江的表演细腻传神。他塑造的郑成功形象从温文尔雅的文人到威风凛凛的大将，人物的每一步成长都有迹可循。面对剧中的每一次矛盾冲突，陈振江都给出了恰如其分的表演，令人物呈现立体丰满。

“粤剧《郑成功》是一部立意很高的剧目。”陈振江表示，“郑成功的故事背景是厚重、宏大的。他的事迹非常深入民心，所以我们在努力塑造一个更接近观众心目中预期的郑成功。我们在戏里加入了很多戏曲程式和场面铺排，更在唱腔设计上匠心独运，力求呈现一部别具粤剧韵味的作品。”

“抗清复国、收复台湾是史书中记载的不朽功绩，而支撑郑成功在极其艰险的困境中抒写自己一生的却是捐躯赴国难、视死如归、先天下之忧而忧的古代文人精神。郑成功说自己是‘孺子孤臣’，‘孺子’之孤忠、壮烈、以天下为己任的骨气、才气和豪气，是我们意图通过激烈的戏剧冲突表达出来的精神，也是任何时代都需要的一种精神。”编剧梁郁南说。

“这部剧是以郑成功的家国情怀来推导他的行为逻辑的。如郑成功面对母逝君丧，父亲在京被满门抄斩，他如何纠结，如何选择，如何突破，在规定情境中展现人物的内心挣扎。”导演胡翰驰表示，该剧的表演、舞台调度和呈现均是依附和回归粤剧传统的，在呈现广州红豆粤剧团整个团队风貌的同时，也让作品更贴近观众。

文｜羊城晚报全媒体记者 黄宙辉 通讯员 文瑶
图｜陈庆忠
翻译｜洪婷
责编｜王楠