Peking University, September 18, 2024: Almost 20 years since it premiered at PKU, the youth edition of "The Peony Pavilion" returned to the PKU Hall for the fifth time. Starring esteemed Kunqu opera performers Shen Fengying and Yu Jiulin, the opening act "Dreamer’s Love" set the stage for the three-act performance scheduled across three days from September 14 to 16. 


The Kunqu Opera "The Peony Pavilion" is a classic in the history of Chinese opera, written by the Ming Dynasty playwright Tang Xianzu and hailed as the "champion of Kunqu". The play tells the story of a love that transcends life and death between Du Liniang, the daughter of the governor Du Bao during the Southern Song Dynasty, and Liu Mengmei, a scholar from Lingnan. Du Liniang falls in love through a dream, is deeply devoted to Liu Mengmei, and ultimately dies of love, only to be reborn because of it. Their love endures many trials in the human world before they are finally reunited. The characteristics of "The Peony Pavilion" lie in its profound emotional expression and exquisite artistic techniques. It uses the unique 'water-mill tune' of Kunqu to reveal the complex inner world and rich emotional changes of the characters.

To thunderous applause, the producer and renowned writer Bai Xianyong took the stage to address the audience during the curtain call. A testament to the legacy of the youth edition of "The Peony Pavilion", Bai recounted fondly the international outreach to America, Europe and Southeast Asia, with performances staged in over 40 higher education institutions. "As the future disseminators of culture, students are our main target audience, and I hope you will spread the beauty of Kunqu opera to your loved ones!" he urged. 

In a pre-show lecture titled "Youth Edition of 'The Peony Pavilion': Journey to the West" on September 13, Bai described "The Peony Pavilion" as "a play that celebrates youth, love, and life". Indeed, the youth edition of the play further appeals to the younger audience through the preservation of the traditional Kunqu opera aesthetics and performance techniques while revitalising it with injections of modern styles of lighting, costumes and staging. "The youth edition of ‘The Peony Pavilion’ is a cultural masterpiece made possible by the cooperation of cultural and opera elites from Taiwan [in China] and Hong Kong [in China]," Bai said in an interview with China News Service. "It has become a cultural name card that should be treasured and supported, in order to continue being performed and promoted to the world stage."


Compared to the melancholy and coolness often found in traditional Kunqu, the youth version added some light-hearted and humorous scenes, such as the segment where Chunxiang and the tutor imitated bird calls in the study, which brings more fun to the drama and makes the originally heavy atmosphere livelier and more relaxed.

In the well-known segment "Startled by a Dream", the youth version of "The Peony Pavilion" chooses to stay true to the original work without making any changes. This respect for tradition allows Du Liniang's yearning for love and her cherishing of youth to be fully displayed, with her inner world vividly portrayed on stage through delicate performances.

Overall, the revision of the youth version not only revitalizes this classic work of art but also successfully attracts the attention of the young audience, allowing the art of Kunqu opera to continue being inherited and passed on in modern society. Bai's revision is a meaningful exploration and practice in the inheritance and innovation of traditional opera.

Written by: Leow Kai Lim, Lee Jie Xin
Edited by: Wang Jia En