Yu Shangyuan

Yu Shangyuan

Yu Shangyuan (1897-1970) was born in Jiangling, Hubei Province. Chinese drama educator and theorist. He is from Shashi, Hubei Province. Born on October 4, 1897. He died in Shanghai on April 30, 1970.

Life of the characters

Yu Shangyuan (1897-1970) was born in Jiangling, Hubei Province. Chinese drama educator and theorist. He is from Jiangling, Hubei Province. Born on October 4, 1897. He died in Shanghai on April 30, 1970. Yu Shangyuan entered Wenhua school in Hankou in 1912, and after graduation, he was promoted to the liberal arts department. Later, introduced by Hu Shi and Chen Duxiu, he transferred to the English Department of Peking University to study western literature. He graduated from the English Department of Peking University in 1921. At that time, he took part in the drama activities and published articles on drama in the supplement of morning post. In 1923, he studied drama at Carnegie University School of art in the United States. He then transferred to Columbia University in New York to specialize in western drama literature and theater art. He also studied stage technology at the Geddes Institute of technology, Americana School of drama and art. At the same time, he continued to write for the supplement of the morning post, introducing American drama trends and relevant drama theories. After returning to China in 1925, he organized the "Chinese drama society" in Beijing. Later, he set up the drama department in Beijing Art College (later changed to Beijing Art College), and taught modern drama art, stage design and performance, rehearsal and other courses. He also directed his one act drama "mutiny" for the May 5th drama society.

In the autumn of 1926, Yu Shangyuan was a professor of Shanghai Guanghua University and Jinan University. He also worked with Xu Zhimo and others to organize the crescent bookstore, and served as a part-time manager. He translated changshengjue, the admirable Clayton and other famous foreign dramas. He also collected papers on drama and compiled them into the book "National Drama Movement". In the winter of 1928, he was again employed by the Secretary of the Peking Chinese education and culture foundation. He was also a professor in the drama department of the Art College of National Peking University, and organized the Peking Opera House as an amateur. During this period, he has directed the "Camellia girl", "French Open" and other famous dramas. In 1935, he accompanied Mei Lanfang on a visit to the Soviet Union. Then he went to Western European countries to study drama education.

During the reign of Daoguang in the Qing Dynasty, Hubei famous actors Mi Yingxian (Xizi) and Yu Sansheng successively brought Han Opera (now known as Han Opera) to the capital. Later, Han Opera blended with Hui opera, and MI and Yu were known as the founders of Beijing opera. A few decades later, in the Republic of China, two Hubei students who loved drama entered Tsinghua University from the Yellow Crane Tower and then studied in the United States. They launched the "National Opera movement" on the other side of the ocean, leaving a glorious record in the cultural history. They are Yu Shangyuan from Shashi, Hubei Province and Wen Yiduo from Xishui, Hubei Province.

In 1924, more than ten thousand apartments were located in riverside, New York. Also living in the apartment are Zhang Jiazhu, Zhao taimou, Xiong Foxi and other Chinese students who love drama. Yu Shangyuan studied western opera literature and theater art at Columbia University. Wen Yiduo's main direction at this time was art, and he was very interested in stage layout and costume design. These pioneers of modern Chinese culture gathered on the other side of the ocean, but it was a blessing in the history of Chinese culture.

During his stay in New York, Yu Shangyuan often met with Zhang Jiazhu, Zhao taimou, Wen Yiduo, Xiong Fosi and others. These like-minded people often go to Zhonghua restaurant to eat wonton, drink Wujiapi, and talk about the art of drama. Soon after, Wen Yiduo and Xiong Foxi co wrote a one act play, and then cooperated with Yu Shangyuan and Zhao taimou to organize the performance of "Cowherd and Weaver Girl" (Hongshen screenwriter). When the first test was successful, the fellow students began to smile and want to go up to the next level.

In the winter of 1924, the Chinese Students Association of Cambridge started to write and play the English drama "this regret is endless" (a "Princess Yang"). This play is based on the famous Chinese classical drama "palace of eternal life". In the adaptation, Yu Shangyuan fully absorbed the strong freehand features of traditional Chinese opera, and translated into English by Wen Yiduo. Before the performance, Yu Shangyuan, Wen Yiduo, Zhao taimou, Zhang Jiazhu and other directors gathered day and night to plan and consider every line, every scene and every light. In spite of the sometimes red faced arguments, we were united in the end. With the support of overseas Chinese businessmen, this regret is finally officially performed in the auditorium of Wanguo apartment. Huang Qianyi, who plays Yang Guifei, and Huang renlin, who plays the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, are particularly energetic in the gorgeous costumes designed by Wen Yiduo and painted with the sea, red sun and white crane, as well as the scenes and lights designed by Zhao taimou with symbolism. Yu Shangyuan, Zhao taimou, Wen Yiduo and Xie Bingxin play the roles in the play. The audience applauded and the performance was a great success. The next day, a praising article was published in the newspaper, saying that "this regret is endless" is "better than all the performances of other countries, striving for glory for the country" (Memoirs of Huang renlin, Taipei Biographical Literature Press).

On the closing day, Yu Shangyuan, Wen Yiduo, Zhao taimou, Zhang Jiazhu and other four major directors gathered by the stove of Yu Shangyuan's apartment, while baking, summarizing the gains and losses of the performance. In the broad-minded general discussion, the four hot-blooded youths discussed an avant-garde topic: "the National Opera movement" and "the National Opera movement", which was put forward in this way.

Yu Shangyuan and others first conducted a large number of investigations on how to carry out the "National Drama Movement". They traveled all over New York to learn about theater construction. Even the pigment shop, electrical company, glass shop, cloth shop, clothing shop, jewelry shop, glue shop, lime shop and photo studio involved in the preparation of the theater have been visited many times.

After more than two months of investigation, deliberation, and more than a dozen revisions, they drafted a "outline plan for the Peking Art Theater.". The outline envisages: to prepare for the construction of Beiping Art Theater, actor school, drama library and Museum; to establish puppet magazine; to raise funds for selecting and sending overseas students to study drama art, as well as some performance programs.

During this period, Yu Shangyuan, Wen Yiduo, Zhang Jiazhu, Xiong Foxi, Lin Huiyin, Liang Sicheng, Liang Shiqiu and other drama lovers in the United States also initiated the establishment of "Chinese drama improvement club". We "decided to start with publication" and planned to publish two kinds of publications focusing on drama, namely, Diaozhuang and Hetu. The news spread out, and the contributors were in succession.

On January 28, 1925, Yu Shangyuan wrote a letter to Hu Shi, introducing their "special interest and deep research in drama art" in the United States. The letter also invited Mr. Zhu, the "Crescent Society" established recently in Beijing, to join the Chinese drama improvement society.

Yu Shangyuan and other Chinese living in the U.S. have won a great reputation for the success of the performance, and the host of the Chinese Student Union in Cambridge has also been greatly encouraged. In the spring of 1925, they started to write and perform the English drama pipa, and invited Yu Shangyuan and Zhao taimou to guide the rehearsal. On March 28, Pipa was performed in one of the famous American Theaters, the Copley theatre in Boston, and it was a success again.

Chinese students studying in the United States have performed in ancient English twice, which makes the audience appreciate the profound connotation of Chinese traditional culture and reflect strongly. The local "Christian monitor" also specially reported the event of Chinese students studying abroad.

In the summer of 1925, Yu Shangyuan, Wen Yiduo and other like-minded people returned home one after another. Later, they founded the drama department of Beiping art college, opened a column of drama magazine in morning post supplement to discuss national opera, founded new moon magazine in Shanghai to advocate the "National Opera movement", and founded a "small theater" in Beiping to cultivate a group of outstanding performing artists such as Bai Yang. After returning to China, their most outstanding work was to establish the National Academy of drama, the "highest institution of drama at that time". Later, many of the key figures on the Chinese stage and screen came from the school.

In the autumn of 1926, Yu Shangyuan was a professor at Shanghai Guanghua University and Jinan University. He also worked with Xu Zhimo and others to organize the crescent bookstore. He translated the famous foreign dramas such as changshengjue and the admirable Clayton, and published them. In the winter of 1928, he collected relevant drama papers and compiled the book "National Drama Movement", He has been employed by the Secretary of the Chinese education and culture foundation in Peking. He is also a professor in the Department of drama, School of art, National Peking University, and organizes a small theatre in Peking as an amateur. During this period, he has directed the "Camellia girl", "French Open" and other famous dramas. In 1935, he accompanied Mei Lanfang on a visit to the Soviet Union. In the autumn of 1935, the National School of drama was founded in Nanjing, and was employed as a member and President of the school. He has employed Ying Yunwei, Chen Zhice, Cao Yu, Ma Yanxiang, Wang Jiaqi and others as full-time tutors. He has also acted as a principal teacher and directed W. Shakespeare's famous play the merchant of Venice. At the beginning of the Anti Japanese War, Yu Shangyuan led the drama school to retreat to Changsha and Chongqing, and organized students to perform street plays after class to publicize the Anti Japanese war. In the spring of 1939, it moved to Jiang'an, Sichuan province again. In 1941, it was renamed the National Academy of drama. Yu Shangyuan has always followed Cai Yuanpei's experience in running the school, hired teachers with real talents to teach, and advocated teachers' scientific research activities. He took the lead in writing "outline of performing arts", "outline of directing arts" and "outline of stage design", etc., making outstanding contributions to the establishment of a standardized drama education system and the cultivation of drama talents.

After the victory of the Anti Japanese War, the National Academy of drama moved back to Nanjing. In the autumn of 1948, he went to Czechoslovakia to attend the first annual conference of the International Theatre Association. He returned to China at the beginning of 1949. After the founding of the people's Republic of China, he was employed to teach in Hujiang University. Later, he transferred to Fudan University. In 1959, he was transferred to the Department of drama literature of Shanghai Academy of drama to teach. He wrote lectures on theoretical criticism of Western drama and introduction to drama, and translated many famous works such as Baker's drama skills.

Character evaluation

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