The Tang Xianzu Memorial Hall in Fuzhou is a comprehensive cultural venue built to commemorate Tang Xianzu, one of the world’s hundred great cultural figures and a master of Ming‑dynasty drama in China. It is also one of Jiangxi Province’s ten major memorial halls dedicated to historical luminaries.
A Fine Article to Share | Contemporary Interpretations of Tang Xianzu’s Dramatic Works—Inspired by the Youth Edition of the Kunqu Opera “The Peony Pavilion”
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Tang Xianzu Memorial Hall Official Account
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2024-04-09
A Contemporary Interpretation of Tang Xianzu’s Dramatic Works — Originating from the Youth Edition of the Kunqu Opera “The Peony Pavilion”
One
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On May 18, 2001, a moment that will forever be remembered in the history of Kunqu Opera: UNESCO announced for the first time its List of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity, which included a total of 19 entries.
China’s Kunqu Opera ranks first among the inscribed items, representing UNESCO’s highest honor for this art form and a profound recognition of its unique status, contributions, and value in the transmission of human cultural heritage.
This demonstrates that Kunqu opera has attained a position of global significance, becoming a cultural heritage of all humanity. It is rare for an art form—particularly a performing art—to transcend the constraints of time and space and cultural barriers, thereby achieving worldwide recognition.
Its artistic stature must be elevated to a certain level in order to be appreciated by experts worldwide.
I first came into contact with, and grew to love, Kunqu opera in 1982. That year, while studying in Suzhou, I wandered through its classical gardens, savored Kunqu performances, and listened to Pingtan, gradually developing a vivid, intuitive understanding of the Ming and Qing dynasty chuanqi dramas, Jiangnan culture, and Kunqu itself.
In April and May, Suzhou hosted a Kunqu opera festival featuring the two provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang and the municipality of Shanghai. I attended performances of three full-length productions of “The Peony Pavilion” as well as more than a dozen excerpts from the “Four Dreams of Linchuan.” The full-length plays included the first act…
The Hai Kun Opera Troupe’s adaptation of “The Peony Pavilion” is divided into seven scenes: “Instructing Daughters in the Boudoir,” “A Dream at the Garden,” “Chasing Dreams and Heartbreak,” “The Soul’s Journey and Judgment,” “Presenting a Painting to Seek an Audience,” “An Ephemeral Encounter with a Painting,” and “Reviving the Garden Through Torture.”
Jiangsu Kunqu Opera Troupe’s abridged version of “The Peony Pavilion” (Part One), along with excerpts from “The Peony Pavilion” performed by the Zhejiang Kunqu Opera Troupe—such as “The School,” “Picking Up the Painting,” and “Calling for the Painting”—all left a lasting impression on me, shaping my subsequent research…
It laid a solid foundation for the study of Tang Xianzu’s dramatic and poetic works. In October, in Jiangxi—Tang Xianzu’s birthplace—commemorative events were held to mark the 366th anniversary of his death, featuring performances in Gan Opera styles: Yiyangqiang, Qingyangqiang, and Yihuangqiang.
Performances of the Xuyu River Opera’s high-pitched vocal style, the Fuzhou Tea-Picking Opera, and other vocal traditions and theatrical genres present “The Four Dreams of Linchuan” along with its excerpted scenes.
I authored the paper “From Cui Yingying to Du Liniang” for the academic symposium commemorating the 366th anniversary of Tang Xianzu’s passing, held in Fuzhou and Nanchang. The essay received high praise from the theater historian Jiang Xingyu. Mr. Jiang, in…
In “The West Chamber and the ‘Four Dreams of Linchuan,’” it is pointed out: “In Jiangxi, in Linchuan, Fuzhou—the hometown of Tang Xianzu—Zou Zizhen has published an essay titled ‘From Cui Yingying to Du Liniang.’ … Xu Shuofang, Zou Zizhen, Xiong Guyouzi, and others have already…”
“Considerable achievements have been made in the comparative study of The West Chamber and The Peony Pavilion, as well as of Cui Yingying and Du Liniang, setting a commendable and promising precedent.” In the same year, I also published “Selected Commentaries on Tang Xianzu’s Poetry” in the Series of Studies on Ming and Qing Poetry and Prose at Soochow University.
Eighteen years later, in October 2000, I was invited to attend the ceremony marking Fuzhou’s elevation from a prefecture to a city and the 450th anniversary of Tang Xianzu’s birth, where I once again had the opportunity to watch Fuzhou’s tea-picking opera, “The Peony Pavilion.”
As well as the “Four Dreams of Linchuan” short operas, performed in vocal styles such as the ancient sea-salt cavity: “The Peony Pavilion—Strolling in the Garden,” “The Peony Pavilion—Oath in the Underworld,” “The Purple Hairpin—Scattering Gold in Resentment,” “The Story of Handan—The Hero Awakens,” and others.
Moreover, during my time working in Fuzhou, I also consulted with playwrights such as Long Xuexiang and Xia Xueqing on adaptations of selected scenes from the “Four Dreams of Linchuan,” including “The Dream of Nancha—Ants’ Battle” and “The Dream of Handan—Summoned Back.”
However, modern adaptations of classical operas inevitably give rise to many new challenges. Whether it is “The Peony Pavilion,” or “The Story of the Southern Pillow,” “The Story of Handan,” or “The Story of the Purple Hairpin,”
Between the performance formats of the modern stage and classical texts, there invariably exist mismatches and disharmonies. The traditional staging of classical works tends to center the drama on one or two actors—encompassing stage design, spatial arrangement, and other elements as well—
Once transposed onto the modern stage, the vast, empty space can feel cramped when occupied by just one or two performers. How to make the most of the stage’s spatial possibilities is a question that directors and choreographers must address when mounting a contemporary interpretation.
From a positive perspective, this is a powerful means of bridging the gap between contemporary audiences and classical texts.
Four performance versions of The Peony Pavilion at the turn of the century:
In 1999, the Shanghai Kunqu Opera Troupe staged a three-part, 34-act production of “The Peony Pavilion.”
The opera “The Peony Pavilion,” composed by Tan Dun and directed by Peter Sellars.
The 55-scene full-length production of “The Peony Pavilion,” directed by Chinese-American Chen Shizheng.
Presented by the Chinese Theater Workshop in the United States, and featuring a cross‑disciplinary performance of “The Peony Pavilion” by Kunqu opera actors and puppeteers.
Whether reassembled from classical texts or newly derived, these song-and-dance performances lend the audience a sense of familiarity with the canonical works. Yet the downside is equally apparent: modern interpretations must simultaneously grapple with both the classical texts and the inherited traditions of theatrical performance.
What continues to win the approval of contemporary audiences and experts when staged on the modern grand theater is still Kunqu Opera’s “The Peony Pavilion,” rather than the eponymous opera, puppet show, or anything else. Between inheriting traditional classics and offering modern interpretations,
The theater artists walked the tightrope—and did so with considerable success. From a broader cultural perspective,
The ideas presented here carry universal cultural significance: to ensure that the time-honored traditions of Chinese culture flourish and reach the world, we must modernize them in ways that resonate with contemporary audiences—while preserving their essential spirit and authenticity, so as not to distort or dilute their original essence.
After reading the English translation of “The Peony Pavilion” by Birch that Chen Shizheng had recommended to him, John Rockwell, director of the Lincoln Center in the United States, was as thrilled as many Chinese audiences and consequently invested $500,000.
It is imperative to bring this classic work—the history of Chinese drama, a masterpiece worthy of standing alongside Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet—fully and intact to the world stage. The fulfillment of this aspiration has also filled countless foreign theater enthusiasts with great excitement.
Subsequently, the Shanghai Kunqu Opera Troupe staged a triumphant run of 55 full‑length performances of The Peony Pavilion on American stages, with the ardent love between Du Liniang and Liu Mengmei resonating across the ocean—a development that can only be hailed as a fortunate milestone in the history of world theatre at the turn of the century.
According to the Qing scholar Jiao Xun’s “Ju Shuo,” when Tang Xianzu was composing “The Peony Pavilion,” he “toiled alone in his thoughts… and so lay upon a pile of firewood in the courtyard, covering his face with his sleeve and weeping bitterly”—the profound meaning behind this scene remains elusive to most.
Tang also wrote, “With a heart full of sorrow, I beat my chest in vain—no one understands; I press the sandalwood mark myself, to teach the little performer.” Yet the peerless splendor of The Peony Pavilion, a UNESCO World Heritage masterpiece, continues to captivate and enchant audiences more than four centuries later.
I always long to once again “startle from my dream” and “seek my dreams,” all for the sake of those bygone days—“lovely companions, fleeting years”—as if they were still here.
In 2001, Bashu Publishing House published my first monograph on “Tang Studies,” titled “A Comprehensive Study of Tang Xianzu.” (The 1996 collection “Essays on the Talented Sons of Linchuan,” published by Baihuazhou Literary and Art Publishing House, brought together more than forty research papers, including twelve devoted to Tang Xianzu.)
“An Overview of Tang Xianzu” situates Tang Xianzu within the broader contexts of both the entire history of Chinese literature and world literature, conducting a comprehensive examination. It compares Tang Xianzu with playwrights of the Ming and Qing dynasties, juxtaposes “The Four Dreams of Linchuan” with celebrated operas from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing periods, and places Tang Xianzu’s literary and artistic creations in relation to classical Chinese novels,
Through both diachronic and synchronic comparisons with Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and by adopting a multifaceted, all‑encompassing perspective, this study comprehensively addresses key issues, including Tang Xianzu’s life and dramatic works, his relationship to classical Chinese literature and the literary and artistic currents of the Ming and Qing dynasties, and his position in Chinese and world literature.
In the preface to this book, Professor Wang Yongjian of Soochow University remarks: “‘A Comprehensive Study of Tang Xianzu’ not only draws upon and builds on the research achievements of earlier scholars and contemporary experts, but also offers its own distinctive insights. For instance, in Part II, ‘Tang Xianzu and the Masterpieces of Classical Literature,’ each section is marked by originality and fresh perspectives, standing in stark contrast to the kind of superficial, generic overviews one typically encounters.”
Two
In 2004, the Youth Edition of “The Peony Pavilion,” produced under the direction of Mr. Bai Xianyong and jointly created by artists from Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, with young performers from the Suzhou Kunqu Opera Theatre in the leading roles, began its run.
The classic opera “The Peony Pavilion” presents both the written script and the stage performance in parallel, each illuminating the other—undoubtedly a shining testament to the splendor and glory of Kunqu opera. As Mr. Bai Xianyong has remarked:
We invoke the “youthful version” for several reasons: first, The Peony Pavilion itself is a hymn celebrating youth, love, and life, with its male and female protagonists at the very height of their youthful bloom.
Accordingly, we have cast young actors in the roles of Du Liniang and Liu Mengmei, thus staying true to the characters’ age and appearance as depicted in the play. Kunqu is an ancient theatrical tradition with a history spanning more than four centuries; yet its performances must not grow stale. The future of Kunqu lies in nurturing a new generation of performers and attracting a younger audience.
Among the “Four Dreams of Linchuan,” it is “The Peony Pavilion” that the author himself regarded as his proudest work, which exerted the greatest influence on society and cemented Tang Xianzu’s reputation as a towering figure in ancient Chinese opera.
“The Peony Pavilion,” in its 55 scenes, unfolds a kaleidoscope of extraordinary emotions—love in dreams, love between the living and the dead, and earthly love. Through the tragic realities of Du Liniang’s life and the comic elements of her fantasies, the play profoundly exposes the cruelty of feudal Confucian propriety and portrays the resolute determination of those who rebel against it to break free from its straitjacket.
It celebrates their indomitable struggle in pursuit of an ideal marriage. As a tragicomic masterpiece, “The Peony Pavilion” conveys, within the tradition of ancient Chinese literature, a precious message of the quest for personal liberation. The play offers love its highest tribute: love can transcend life and death, break through the constraints of ritual and propriety, move even the underworld and the imperial court, and ultimately triumph.
The youth‑oriented version of “The Peony Pavilion” presents nine scenes—“Instructing the Daughter,” “The Girls’ Tutorial,” “A Dream in Shock,” “Expressing My Feelings,” “Seeking a Dream,” “The Spy,” “Portrait,” “The Daoist’s Visit,” and “The Departing Soul”—as the “Love in a Dream” (the first act).
With nine plays—“Ming Pan,” “Lü Ji,” “Yi Nü,” “Shi Hua,” “Hun You,” “You Gou,” “Huai Jing,” “Ming Shi,” and “Hui Sheng”—as the “Human–Ghost Affair” (the central section), and with “Hun Zou,” “Yi Zhen,” and “Ru Hang”…
“Breaking the Bandits,” “Meeting Mother,” “Mooring on the Huai River,” “Seeking the Origin,” “Rigorous Examination,” “Returning to the Palace,” and six other scenes comprise the “Human–Ghost Affection” (the second half), which unfolds the entire play and elaborates on the extraordinary, dreamlike passions of a love story from four centuries ago.
The youth‑oriented production of “The Peony Pavilion” strives to preserve the Kunqu opera’s abstract, impressionistic aesthetic and its time‑honored principle of achieving complexity through simplicity, while also embracing the innovative concepts of contemporary theater, ensuring that the entire performance meets the visual expectations of modern audiences.
Moreover, in keeping with the graceful and exquisite classical spirit of Kunqu opera, it has undertaken entirely new pursuits and explorations across a wide array of artistic forms—music, vocal style, stage design, costumes, staging, lighting, dance, and even calligraphy and painting.
It offers a fresh and invigorating experience, naturally sparking the younger generation’s interest and enthusiasm for their nation’s fine culture and refined arts.
Higher education institutions are not only hubs for contemporary popular culture and the arts, but also platforms for showcasing the nation’s time-honored traditions and refined artistic expressions.
Kunqu opera integrates Chinese literature, drama, performance, music, dance, and the visual arts into a single, cohesive whole, making it one of the most poetically evocative and comprehensive stage arts. It epitomizes the culmination of classical Chinese art and aesthetics, serving as a distinguished representative of Eastern artistic tradition.
The adaptation and performance of “The Peony Pavilion” have enabled the younger generation to encounter the beauty of traditional Chinese culture firsthand, to grasp its profound essence, and to develop a deep sense of identification with this vast and intricate cultural heritage.
Tang Xianzu’s “The Peony Pavilion” both inherits the legacy of “The West Chamber” and anticipates the emergence of “Dream of the Red Chamber,” standing as a towering peak in the tradition of Chinese Romantic literature and remaining on stage without interruption for more than four centuries.
In the new 21st century, China’s Kunqu Opera—designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site—and its masterpiece, The Peony Pavilion, have ushered in a comprehensive revival, marked by the global tour of the Youth Edition of The Peony Pavilion.
It imbues this ancient art and its classic masterpieces with the joy of youth and the vitality of life, and it will surely transcend the constraints of time and space as well as cultural divides to reach the world, showcasing its enduring artistic brilliance within the tapestry of global multiculturalism.
Examining Tang Xianzu and William Shakespeare—two towering figures of the theatrical world who lived in the same era—from a global perspective, one is hailed as the “Shakespeare of the East,” while the other was lauded by Marx as humanity’s greatest dramatic genius.
History, it seems, can be strikingly coincidental: both Tang Xianzu and Shakespeare, in the East and the West respectively, crafted monumental plays such as The Peony Pavilion and Romeo and Juliet, only to lay down their pens and pass away in the same year.
These two towering peaks, rising at the eastern and western ends of Asia and Europe respectively, have become marvels of world culture. Though they both fell into obscurity more than four centuries ago, their works have endured, continuing to shine on the world stage to this day.
The wings of their immortal ideas still soar above us, and the passionate flames of their plays will forever burn in our hearts.
Three
The youth‑oriented Kunqu opera adaptation of “The Peony Pavilion” reminds us that it is our responsibility, as scholars of our time, to thoughtfully consider how to preserve and pass on the fine heritage of Chinese culture, and to reinterpret and promote classic masterpieces through the lens of the 21st century.
Therefore, we should continually expand and deepen our understanding of Tang Xianzu, whose reputation has long been enshrined in the acclaim surrounding The Peony Pavilion, by integrating the ideological and historical dimensions reflected in his works and imbuing both the characters and the plays with contemporary significance.
More than four centuries ago, the “emotion” and “dreams” that Tang Xianzu sought are no different in essence from those cherished by people in the 21st century; this yearning for beauty is an innate human need.
In sum, research on Tang Xianzu still leaves many gaps for scholars to fill, vast new territories awaiting exploration, and an endless stream of questions worthy of renewed reflection by future generations.
This amply demonstrates that the study of Tang Xianzu is only just beginning, with no end in sight. The subsequent publications on Tang Xianzu that we have produced all stem from the profound appeal of the youth‑oriented Kunqu opera production of “The Peony Pavilion.”
In September 2006, Fuzhou hosted an international academic symposium commemorating the 390th anniversary of Tang Xianzu’s passing. I actively contributed to the planning and organization, helping Fuzhou invite a large number of renowned scholars.
In 2008, the Tang Xianzu Grand Theater in Fuzhou was completed. Through Professor Zhou Qin, I reached out to Mr. Bai Xianyong and invited the cast of the “Youth Edition” Kunqu opera “The Peony Pavilion” to perform in Fuzhou for three days.
In 2007, Jiangxi University Press published another of my monographs on “Tang Studies,” titled “Tang Xianzu and the ‘Four Dreams of the Jade Hairpin’” (following my earlier work, “Tang Xianzu,” which was published by Baihuazhou Literary and Art Publishing House in 2004).
To be precise, this book is a biography of Tang Xianzu. It comprises eight chapters; the first five take Tang Xianzu’s life as their framework, expounding the most significant events of each major phase of his existence.
Covering the era, intellectual lineage, scholarship, thought, social life, politics, poetic and literary creation, and dramatic composition, it may be described as a richly detailed yet lucid critical biography of Tang Xianzu; the final three chapters are titled “Inheritance and Innovation in the ‘Four Dreams of the Jade Hairpin.’”
“Insights and Influence of the ‘Four Dreams of the Stone Pillow’” and “An Eternal Cultural Heritage of Humanity” offer a comprehensive assessment of Tang Xianzu’s pivotal historical position in the annals of cultural history—bridging the past and ushering in the future.
In the preface to that book, Mr. Zhou Yude writes: “On the 450th anniversary of Tang Xianzu’s birth, Zou Zizhen published his ‘Comprehensive Study of Tang Xianzu’; and on the 390th anniversary of his death, he again brought forth ‘Tang Xianzu and the “Four Dreams of the Jade Pavilion.”’”
With the sincerity of his convictions and the vigor of his pen, he can rightly be regarded as a “stalwart contributor” in the field of Tang Xianzu studies.
In 2010, at the invitation of the Institute of Chinese Culture of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, I produced an online special feature titled “The Splendid Chinese Civilization: Tang Xianzu and the ‘Four Dreams of Linchuan.’”
and was broadcast on UNESCO’s “Light of Chinese Civilization” program (the domestic edition of this special, titled “Tang Xianzu and His ‘Four Dreams,’” was published by the China Culture and History Press in 2013).
This book and its accompanying online special feature, with their accessible and refreshing prose and cleverly designed illustrations, present Tang Xianzu’s ideas and biography, the historical and cultural context of his “Four Dreams,” as well as the central themes and artistic achievements of each of the four plays—all conveyed in clear, straightforward language.
Among them, the handwritten manuscripts of Tang Xianzu that have been collected and reproduced, along with editions, woodblock prints, illustrations, inscriptions by renowned scholars, and photographs from stage performances of the “Four Dreams of Linchuan,” are all presented one by one. Having lived in Tang Xianzu’s hometown for more than thirty years, I have, through meticulous research and on-site inquiries,
It has compiled a wealth of precious cultural relics and historical materials related to Master Tang, along with newly constructed and restored cultural‑heritage sites such as Tang Xianzu’s tomb and the Tang Xianzu Memorial Hall. Accompanied by vivid illustrations, the book and its accompanying online special feature combine scholarly rigor and academic precision with accessible, straightforward presentation that appeals to a broad audience.
To mark the 460th anniversary of Tang Xianzu’s birth, Nanchang University hosted an academic symposium in December 2010, themed “Tang Xianzu of Jiangxi, Tang Xianzu of the World.”
The School of Humanities at Nanchang University invited me to participate in the organization and planning of a conference. The conference featured in-depth discussions on research into Tang Xianzu’s literary thought, his poetry and prose, and his relationship with the culture of Jiangxi and the Gan River region.
During the conference, a performance of the Gan Opera “The Four Dreams of Linchuan” was also presented, featuring four short plays: “The Purple Hairpin—Scattering Gold in Resentment,” “The Peony Pavilion—A Dream in the Garden,” “The Story of Nankuo—Seeking the Dream of Nankuo,” and “The Tale of Handan—The Soul’s Ruin at the Yellow Mil.”
In the same year, to promote and preserve Chinese culture and to advance the study and popularization of Tang Xianzu’s operas, Baihuazhou Literary Publishing House decided to compile and publish the Complete Works of Tang Xianzu’s Operas, and entrusted me with leading the effort to bring it to fruition.
Previously, I also published “A Critical Commentary on the ‘Handan Ji,’” which was issued by the China Drama Publishing House in 2010. I cordially invited Professor Huang Shizhong of Sun Yat-sen University, Professor Zhou Qin of Soochow University, Professor Hu Jinwang of Minnan Normal University, Professor Wang Debao of Nanchang University, along with five literary scholars holding doctoral degrees, to collaborate on its completion.
After nearly five years of dedicated effort, the annotated edition of the Complete Works of Tang Xianzu’s Operas—comprising “The Purple Flute,” “The Purple Hairpin,” “The Peony Pavilion,” “The South Stream Dream,” and “The Handan Dream,” in five volumes—was published in 2015, with a deluxe hardcover edition released in 2016.
This book offers a fresh interpretation of Ming‑dynasty plays from four centuries ago, viewed through the lens of the 21st century. With meticulous annotations and incisive commentary, it provides valuable insights for contemporary readers seeking to grasp the works of Tang Xianzu.
The complete collection of Tang Xianzu’s operas that we have compiled takes the Mao Jin–Jigu Ge edition as its base text and has been collated against other Ming and Qing editions, with particular reference to the annotated and collated editions meticulously prepared by contemporary scholars such as Qian Nanyang and Xu Shuofang.
Our work consists of providing meticulous annotations and critical analyses of all of Tang Xianzu’s dramatic works, striving to remove obstacles to reading through concise and precise commentary, and, starting from the text itself, engaging with stage performance while addressing such multifaceted aspects as plot development, character psychology, and artistic characteristics.
It helps readers deepen their appreciation and critical evaluation of Tang Xianzu’s operas, making the entire volume a comprehensive reader that balances scholarly rigor with broad accessibility.
Following its publication, the Complete Collection of Tang Xianzu’s Dramas has been widely acclaimed by both the academic and publishing communities.
Professor Wang Rongpei, the translator of the English edition of “The Complete Dramatic Works of Tang Xianzu,” commented: “The compilation of this complete collection serves as a bridge between the past and the present, both reflecting the scholarly achievements of earlier generations and introducing fresh insights.”
It provides both explanations of individual words and phrases and interpretations of entire sentences; it identifies the authors of the anthology‑style poems while also quoting the full text of the original verses, making it, to date, the most valuable monograph on Tang Xianzu.
Meanwhile, the book “A Study of Tang Xianzu and Ming–Qing Literature,” published by Baihua Literary Publishing House in 2015, is the result of my scholarly research and textual analysis.
Among these, the analyses of Luo Rufang, Li Zhi, and the School of Mind of Lu and Wang provide concrete evidence for the ideological foundations underlying Tang Xianzu and his “Four Dreams.” As for the influence of the “Four Dreams of Linchuan” on Ming and Qing‑era operas and novels such as The Palace of Eternal Life and Dream of the Red Chamber,
The discussions on Tang Xianzu’s poetry and prose reflect my multifaceted understanding and scholarly inquiry into his achievements. Particularly drawing the attention of the academic community,
I was among the first to regard the “Four Dreams of Linchuan” as a crucial link between The Romance of the Western Chamber and Dream of the Red Chamber, having published a series of articles that elucidate their transmission, evolution, and influence, often offering fresh insights.
In addition, the “Tang Xianzu Studies Series,” which I edited and for which Professor Wang Rongpei wrote the preface, was published by Jiangxi Higher Education Press in 2016.
The “Tang Xianzu Research Series” comprises four volumes: “Tang Xianzu and the ‘Four Dreams of Linchuan’” by Zou Zizhen, “Tang Xianzu and Luo Rufang” by Luo Jialu, “Tang Xianzu and Jiang Shiquan” by Xu Guohua, and “Tang Xianzu and Shakespeare” by Zhang Ling and Fu Yingying.
This series, conceived as a collection of monographs, represents a pioneering effort in the study of Tang Xianzu. If “Tang Xianzu and the ‘Four Dreams of Linchuan’” focuses on the foundational aspects of Tang Xianzu’s work, then the remaining three volumes offer interpretations of him from three entirely distinct perspectives.
Among them, “Tang Xianzu and Luo Rufang” traces the origins of his thought, while “Tang Xianzu and Jiang Shiquan” and “Tang Xianzu and Shakespeare” focus on examining his influence, which in turn encompasses both domestic and international dimensions.
The global significance of Tang Xue studies and the deepening and expansion of research on Tang Xianzu, as envisioned by Mr. Wang Rongpei in his preface, have already begun to take shape within this book series. We examine, from various perspectives, the relationships between “The Four Dreams of Linchuan,” Luo Rufang, Jiang Shiquan, Shakespeare, and Tang Xianzu.
This, in turn, affords the book series a broad perspective for examining and studying Tang Xianzu from multiple angles.
My approach to Tang Xianzu is multifaceted. Monographs such as “A Comprehensive Study of Tang Xianzu,” “An Inquiry into Tang Xianzu and Ming–Qing Literature,” and “Tang Xianzu and the ‘Four Dreams of Linchuan’” all examine his life and thought, his dramatic works and his poetry and prose, while also exploring the wide-ranging impact of Tang Xianzu on Chinese culture.
as well as broad topics such as the international dissemination of Tang Xianzu’s cultural legacy. These works combine scholarly rigor with accessible, engaging presentation for a wide audience. In 2016, the Tang Xianzu Memorial Hall in Fuzhou underwent an upgraded renovation, for which I authored a complete set of exhibition panel captions—also falling within the realm of academic scholarship.
A product that seamlessly blends scholarly rigor with popular appeal. Over the years, universities, libraries, and television stations both within and outside our province have hosted more than fifty specialized academic lectures on Tang Xianzu, paying particular attention to the integration of academic depth and public accessibility, thereby guiding audiences and readers to appreciate “The Peony Pavilion” and gain a deeper understanding of Tang Xianzu and his dramatic works.
The main activities in recent years have been:
“Reading the Literary Classics: The Four Dreams of Linchuan,” first broadcast on Jiangxi Education Television in August 2017. In 2016, China and the United Kingdom jointly organized a series of events commemorating two world-renowned cultural figures. In China, numerous collected works of Tang Xianzu were solemnly published, and several new stagings of “The Four Dreams of Linchuan” were presented.
A wealth of scholarly works have been published one after another. In my lecture, I pointed out that while Shakespeare’s magnificent plays were sweeping the British stage, China’s Tang Xianzu had likewise emerged as the brightest star in the Ming and Qing theatrical world. As a playwright, Tang Xianzu undoubtedly ranks among the very greatest.
Tang Xianzu also left behind more than 2,200 poems and over 600 prose pieces; the recently discovered monumental work, “Yu Ming Tang’s Commentary on the Classic of Documents,” amply demonstrates that he was a distinguished scholar as well. His erudition encompassed politics, philosophy, religion, literature, the arts, and education.
In terms of both innate genius and encyclopedic erudition, it is hard to find in the history of world drama a figure who can stand alongside Tang Xianzu.
Authored the script for the special documentary “Insights from Tang Xianzu’s Family Traditions and Precepts,” produced by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the Jiangxi Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection, which premiered on Jiangxi Television in September 2017.
In my essay, I point out that Linchuan is renowned as the “hometown of talented scholars,” a distinction closely tied to the longstanding family traditions of valuing scholarly pursuits and the local ethos of prioritizing education. The time-honored tradition of familial learning, epitomized by Tang Xianzu, stands as a key factor in the enduring vitality of Linchuan culture—and, by extension, of Chinese culture—down to the present day.
On April 22, 2018, on the eve of World Book Day, Professor Zhou Qin and I were specially invited by Jiangxi Province’s publicity and cultural authorities to deliver an academic lecture titled “The Peony Pavilion in the Bilingual Context of Kunqu Opera and Gan Opera” in Nanchang, before an audience of listeners and readers from the hometown of Tang Xianzu.
Following the lecture, we engaged in an on‑stage exchange with renowned Kunqu masters from Suzhou and young performers from Jiangxi Province’s Gan Opera Troupe, presenting excerpts from Kunqu’s “The Peony Pavilion” and Gan Opera’s “The Story of Handan,” and fielding questions from opera enthusiasts, aspiring young actors, and the audience.
All participants unanimously expressed their commitment to promoting and passing down China’s fine traditional culture, strengthening cultural confidence, and enabling Chinese culture to go beyond our borders and reach the world.
In 2021, Shenzhen TV invited me to produce the television documentary “The Dream‑Filled Lives of Eastern Dramatic Masters,” which featured excerpts from a youth‑oriented Kunqu opera adaptation of “The Peony Pavilion” and a local‑dialect rendition of a scene from the Xuhe Gaoqiang style of “The Peony Pavilion,” garnering significant public attention.
I also place great emphasis on the dissemination and promotion of Kunqu opera. I have attended, on more than twenty occasions, the Chinese Kunqu Opera Academic Symposium, the China Kunqu Opera Festival, and related conferences in Suzhou and Kunshan. My principal scholarly articles include: “A Comparative Study of the Works of Tang Xianzu and William Shakespeare” (published in the proceedings of the 2005 China Kunqu Opera Forum);
“Linchuan Dramatic Works and Hong Sheng’s The Palace of Eternal Life” (China Kunqu Opera Forum 2006); “Tang Xianzu Studies on the World Stage” (China Kunqu Opera Forum 2007); “Contemporary Interpretations of Tang Xianzu’s Dramatic Works—General Preface to the Complete Collection of Tang Xianzu’s Operas” (China Kunqu Opera Yearbook 2016);
“A Retrospective and Prospective on the Study of Tang Xianzu” (in the China Kunqu Opera Yearbook 2017); “An Initial Exploration of Feng Menglong’s Theory of Playwriting” (in the China Kunqu Opera Yearbook 2021); “The Inheritance and Innovation of Tang Xianzu’s Dramatic Works in Relation to Earlier Literary Traditions” (in the China Kunqu Opera Yearbook 2019);
“On Xu Wei’s Influence and Inspiration on Tang Xianzu” (in the China Kunqu Opera Yearbook 2022). The latter two articles were respectively selected as “Recommended Papers of the Year for Chinese Kunqu Opera, 2018” and “Recommended Papers of the Year for Chinese Kunqu Opera, 2021.”
We convened the international academic symposium “Inheritance and Dissemination: The Youth Edition of ‘The Peony Pavilion’ and the Revival of Kunqu Opera,” which holds profound significance for promoting the quintessence of our national culture and advancing the study of Chinese literary classics, including “The Peony Pavilion.”
Undoubtedly, today, China’s Kunqu Opera—designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site—and its masterpiece, The Peony Pavilion, have moved from being a “beautiful classical art” to a “youthful modernity.”
We extend our gratitude to Mr. Bai Xianyong, to all the distinguished colleagues in attendance, and to the host, the School of Arts at Southeast University.
Research Fellow at the Fujian Provincial Institute of Literature and History, and Professor at the School of Humanities, Minjiang University.
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