Latest News | The Revised Complete Works of Tang Xianzu’s Operas Has Been Published; A Related Symposium Was Held in Nanchang

This journal reports. Liang Jiatian reports: A new introductory textbook on Tang poetry that balances academic rigor with broad accessibility. The Complete Collection of Tang Xianzu’s Dramas (Revised Edition) was recently published by Jiangxi Baihuazhou Literary and Art Publishing House. 9 month 13 On that day, a related symposium was held in Nanchang.

The Complete Works of Tang Xianzu’s Dramas (Revised Edition) is edited by Mr. Zou Zizhen, a researcher at the Fujian Provincial Government’s Institute of Literature and History, a professor at the School of Humanities of Minjiang University, the honorary president of the Fujian Alumni Association of East China University of Technology, and a visiting researcher at the Fuzhou Tang Xianzu International Research Center. This collection includes five major works—“The Peony Pavilion,” “The Story of the Jade Hairpin,” “The Dream of the South,” “The Dream of Handan,” and “The Story of the Purple Flute”—and marks the first time that “The Story of the Purple Flute” has been incorporated into the complete edition of Tang Xianzu’s dramas, a move of groundbreaking significance. Based on the late-Ming Mao Jin–edited Jigu Ge block print as its primary text, the volume offers meticulous annotations and insightful commentary on Tang Xianzu’s plays. Through concise and precise notes, it removes obstacles to reading, while also drawing on the theatrical tradition to explore such aspects as plot development, character psychology, and artistic features, thereby helping readers deepen their appreciation and critical understanding of the entire corpus. The first edition of this complete collection was published in… 2015 In this year, the present revision has incorporated the latest research findings from both China and abroad over the past decade, undergoing a thorough textual collation to produce a new edition that balances scholarly rigor with broad accessibility.

The symposium was co-hosted by East China University of Technology and Baihuazhou Literary and Art Publishing House, with support from the Jiangxi Drama Resources Research Center and the Center for Domestic Cooperation and Exchange at East China University of Technology. It was chaired by Professor Liu Wenhui, Dean of the School of Literature and Law at East China University of Technology and a visiting researcher at the Tang Xianzu International Research Center in Fuzhou. Following a welcoming address by Professor Li Mangen, a member of the Party Committee Standing Committee and Vice President of East China University of Technology, Chen Dongyou—former Executive Deputy Minister of the Publicity Department of the Jiangxi Provincial Party Committee, a researcher at the Jiangxi Provincial Government’s Institute of Literature and History, and a professor at Nanchang University—and Zhang Yue, Chief Editor of Baihuazhou Literary and Art Publishing House, … Wu Fengchu, former deputy director of the Standing Committee of the People’s Congress of Fuzhou City, director of the Fuzhou Tang Xianzu International Research Center, and visiting professor at East China University of Technology, Liu Zhen, former director of the Institute of Opera at the Chinese National Academy of Arts and distinguished visiting professor at Nanchang University; Xu Aizhu, professor at the School of Humanities of East China Jiaotong University and visiting researcher at the Fuzhou Tang Xianzu International Research Center; Hu Yingjian, researcher at the Jiangxi Academy of Social Sciences and member of the Jiangxi Provincial Government’s Museum of Literature and History; Lu Chuan, former director of the Jiangxi Institute of Culture and Tourism; Professor He Shijian, vice dean of the School of Arts at Nanchang University; Jiang Guojiang, associate researcher at the Jiangxi Institute of Culture and Tourism; Su Ziyu, former vice chairman of the Jiangxi Dramatists Association and visiting researcher at the Fuzhou Tang Xianzu International Research Center; Professor Xu Guohua, director of the Jiangxi Drama Resources Research Center at East China University of Technology and deputy director of the Fuzhou Tang Xianzu International Research Center; and Wan Guoying, general manager of Qingyuan Bookstore in Nanchang, among other guests, delivered enthusiastic remarks at the symposium. Professor at Fudan University, Jiang Jurong, a member of the editorial committee for the Revised Edition of the Complete Works of Tang Xianzu’s Operas, and Min Dingqing, a professor at South China Normal University and a member of the editorial committee for the Jiangyou Wenku, delivered written statements.

At this symposium, Professor Zou Zizhen and Zhang Yue, chief editor of Baihuazhou Publishing House, jointly presented the “Complete Collection of Tang Xianzu’s Operas” (Revised Edition) to East China University of Technology.

It is also learned that, 9 month 12 On the afternoon of [date], at the invitation of the Gantu Lecture Hall of the Jiangxi Provincial Library, Professor Zou Zizhen delivered a lecture titled “From Tang Xianzu to Cao Xueqin: A Literary Legacy Interwoven with Love and Dreams.” He explored the timeless literary dialogue between Tang Xianzu and Cao Xueqin, examining how Tang’s sentiment—“love arises without cause, yet runs deep and unyielding”—reemerged two centuries later in Cao Xueqin’s monumental work, “Dream of the Red Chamber.” One speaks of “dreams born of love, plays fashioned from dreams,” while the other laments, “pages filled with absurd words, tears of bitter sorrow.” As the “Cambridge Dream” finds its way into the “Red Chamber,” these two literary giants, though never having met, echo one another across time and space through the themes of love and imagination. The lecture was warmly received by the audience.