Gai Jiaotian Learns Peking Opera

By Qin Lyuzhi

Apart from practicing his crafts, Gai Jiaotian,a Peking Opera artist,spent most of his time on deep meditation. However, he was not simply sitting around doing nothing—he was thinking about his opera, and the “logic” behind it.

He got into the habit of thinking this way when he was a kid. He remarked, “When I was young, my teacher wouldn’t tell me directly what to do. Instead, he would guide me to the answer.”

When Gai learned the Opera Wu Song Fights the Tiger,his teacher asked him several questions.

“How old is Wu Song?” The teacher asked.

When Gai gave the answer,another question immediately came, “What is he doing now?”

“He’s leaving home,” Gai answered.

“Why?” Gai thought for a while and answered, “Because of the famine in his hometown, Wu has to find food.”

The teacher quizzed, “Think about it carefully, Gai. Is he hungry before he gets food?”

“Of course he’s hungry,” Gai answered.

The teacher followed up the question by asking, “How would a person walk when he’s hungry?”

It was noon at that point and Gai was famished. He hadn’t eaten anything since he woke up. He was so hungry that he was about to faint, so the teacher gave him a break, letting him have a bite to eat. After lunch, the teacher asked if he remembered how he walked when he was hungry. Gai affirmed that he did.The teacher then asked him to walk the same way. Gai tried to walk while thinking of how he felt when he was hungry.

The old version of Wu Song Fights the Tiger starts from the point in the story where Wu Song leaves his hometown. He is starving when he is on the way to find Chai Jin. The reason why the teacher asked Gai so many questions was to guide him to feel where Wu Song was at. With the first-hand experience of extreme hunger, Gai understood how to present that same feeling on stage.

(From Interview with Gai Jiaotian, Shanghai People’s Publishing House. Translation:Yu Lan)

蓋叫天與他的師父Gai Jiaotian and his teacher

Gai Jiaotian (1888-1971),also known as Zhang Yingjie and Yannan,was born in Gaoyang County, Hebei Province.Gai specialized in the role of Wusheng (male characters who appear in battle scenes). He created a unique Gai style by combining traits from Peking opera, Kunqu and other local operas as well as martial arts.

Gai, who spent most of his career in Shanghai and Hangzhou, was most famous for the role of Wu Song (a fictional hero in the Water Margin,one of the four most famous classical works of Chinese literature).

蓋叫天學戲

文/秦綠枝

京劇表演藝術家蓋叫天每天除了練功，其余時間大部分消磨在沉思里。你以為他就是呆坐在那里么？不是，他是在想他的戲，想戲里面的“理”。

這是他自小學戲延續下來的。蓋叫天說：“那時候師父教戲，不會爽爽快快地教你，而是先跟你繞上一大圈兒。”

他學《武松打虎》時，師父先把他叫去，問：“武松幾歲了？”蓋叫天作答后，師父又問：“他現在干什么？”蓋叫天答：“出門”；再問：“出門干什么？”蓋叫天想了想，說是因為家鄉鬧饑荒，出門找飯吃。師父說：“這就好了，你再想想看，飯沒有找到之前，肚子餓不餓？”蓋叫天說：“當然餓。”師父說：“那么餓的時候，走路是副什么樣子？”問這話的時候，已經是中午了，蓋叫天一早起來練功，直到此刻還滴水未進，被師父一提，頓時覺得肚子空得難受，人也有點支撐不住，晃晃蕩蕩。于是，師父關照他吃飯去。吃完了飯，師父再把他叫去，問他吃飽了沒有。接著，師父又問他：“剛才沒有吃飯的樣子記得么？”蓋叫天說：“記得的。”師父說：“既然記得，那么你現在做給我看看。”蓋叫天便回味著飯前挨餓的情景做了一遍。

原來，老本子的《武松打虎》是從武松離鄉開始的，一上來，武松是帶著一種饑餓難當的心情去找柴進的。師父跟蓋叫天兜上這么大的一個圈子，目的就是要他領會武松當時的處境，加上蓋叫天自己挨餓的經驗，這樣，到了臺上，便顯得真實了。