Fuhai, protagonist of This Life of Mine, a 100-minute monologue adapted from Lao She's novella, is performed by actor-director Fang Xu. The play will be staged over July 27-28 at the Capital Theater in Beijing. [Photo provided to China Daily]
With his stage adaptation of Lao She's classic novella This Life of Mine, actor-director Fang Xu continues to celebrate the work of the renowned author, Chen Nan reports.
He is a low-ranking policeman, born and raised in Beijing. He has waited for years to become the head of his local police station but is replaced by a new policeman. He gets married but his wife runs away with his best friend. Soon after, he is sent to work in a small town, where he is later told that his son has died.
It's the story of Fuhai, the protagonist of This Life of Mine, a novella by renowned Chinese writer Lao She (1899-1966), which was published in 1937.
The novella chronicles the life story of Fuhai which is set against the backdrop of the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). It was adapted into a monologue of the same name by actor-director Fang Xu and premiered at the Central Academy of Drama, from where Fang graduated in 2011.
Enlisting Shu Yi, the son of Lao She, as a consultant, Fang directed and performed the monologue himself, before embarking on a nationwide tour with around 60 shows after its debut.
To mark the 120th anniversary of Lao She's birth this year, Fang decided to revive the work for the stage on July 27 and 28 at the Capital Theater in Beijing following a three-year hiatus.
"Back in 2011, when I discussed the idea of turning This Life of Mine into a monologue, my colleagues were not really sure about the idea since it was a challenge to tell a man's life story onstage within the space of 100 minutes all on my own, "recalls the 53-year-old Beijing native. "But I was insistent and it turned out to be the right decision.
Fuhai, protagonist of This Life of Mine, a 100-minute monologue adapted from Lao She's novella, is performed by actor-director Fang Xu. The play will be staged over July 27-28 at the Capital Theater in Beijing.[Photo provided to China Daily]
"Fuhai tells his life story in a humorous way despite all the suffering and sorrow. He is hopeful about his life, but always ends up disappointed. Lao She is sympathetic toward Fuhai, as well as to the suffering of many other poor people living through those chaotic years," Fang adds. "What makes this story interesting is that it still works today. When we look back at our own lives, we, like Fuhai, try to remain positive even when bad things happen."
After watching Fang's monologue at its premiere at the Central Academy of Drama in 2011, Shu Yi said: "It's one of the best adaptations of my father's works. Fang's adaptation is loyal to the spirit of his novella."
Born as Shu Qingchun to a Manchu family in Beijing in 1899, Lao She is best known for his vivid descriptions of ordinary life, especially of poor people, which reflect the social reality of the time. His precise depictions of local hutong life sparkle with his unique sense of humor and the raw dialect of the capital.
Lao She's novels, including Rickshaw Boy and Four Generations Under One Roof, and his plays, such as Long Xu Gou (Dragon Beard Ditch) and Teahouse, have earned him the reputation as a literary master worldwide.
It is no surprise that, as a Beijing native who grew up in a crowded courtyard house in a traditional alleyway like Lao She, Fang also felt a deep connection to the writer's works.
As Fang says, he enjoys reading Lao She's works because the characters appear as familiar as his neighbors.
After performing This Life of Mine in 2011, Fang began to plan other adaptations of Lao She's works.
Fuhai, protagonist of This Life of Mine, a 100-minute monologue adapted from Lao She's novella, is performed by actor-director Fang Xu. The play will be staged over July 27-28 at the Capital Theater in Beijing. [Photo provided to China Daily]
With the support of Lao She's children, including Shu Yi and Lao She's daughter Shu Ji, Fang adapted two more of the writer's well-known novels, Divorce and Cat Country, for the stage between 2012 and 2014.
In 2016, he adapted Lao She's novel, Mr Ma and Son, into an all-male cast stage production of the same title, which largely draws on Lao She's experience as a Mandarin teacher at the University of London from 1924 to 1929. Last year, he directed another all-male cast play titled Lao She's Six Stories, based on six short stories penned by the writer between 1934 and 1935, which deal with the struggles and lives of ordinary people, depicting the plight of a young couple living a hand-to-mouth existence and the relationships between local neighbors.
Fang is working on his latest play, The Story of Niu Tianci, which was written by Lao She in 1934.
"Compared with Lao She's other works, The Story of Niu Tianci is less well-known. But Shu Ji likes it very much and it's a pity to ignore such a great novel," he says. "The story is about a young man's struggle against his social environment, and I am sure that audiences will find the story interesting and connect with it. I am very excited about it."
