Poster of the drama "Massillon".
December 7, 2023, heavy snow season.
Beijing, Auditorium of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. When the curtain opened, the time was reversed to the snowy night before the founding of New China.
You see, the snow on the road has accumulated, and there have been a series of footprints on the snow, some going here and some going there......But I ......It's all messy, and I don't know where to go......”
The dawn seemed to be ahead, but the road under your feet was covered with snow. How to go, where to go, in order to get to the other side where there is no more war and no more exploitation?Only then can we go to the world of national independence and people's democracy?Ma Xulun, who was over the age of six, held a candle lamp and hesitated for a long time in the snowy night.
Finding the way, finding the way, he has been searching for sixty years.
The candle in his hand flickered in the faint but warm light of the fire, illuminating the winding and thorny road he had walked over the past 60 years—a path that a generation of Chinese patriotic democrats had spent their entire lives groping.
A road to Beijing to inherit the faith
On the evening of December 7th, the drama "Ma Xulun" created by the Zhejiang Repertory Theatre was staged in the auditorium of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) during the second plenary session of the 15th ** Committee of the China Association for the Promotion of Democracy.
Stills from the drama "Ma Xulun".
The drama "Ma Xulun" tells the story of how Ma Xulun, a young scholar in the last years of the Qing Dynasty, walked out of the study step by step and walked towards the revolution in the torrent of history, and finally grew into a strong democratic fighter through the invasion of foreign powers, warlord secession, the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, and the War of LiberationIt also tells the story of how the China Association for the Promotion of Democracy led by Ma Xulun was born in the stormy era, contributed indelible strength to democracy and peace, and finally became a close comrade-in-arms with the Communist Party of China and "shared weal and woe", and became one of the eight participating political parties in the People's Republic of China.
The auditorium of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) is a venue for political, diplomatic, and cultural activities held by Chinese state leaders and democratic parties. As the first large-scale original drama in China with the theme of the history of cooperation and the founder of the democratic party, it is of great significance that "Ma Xulun" can be staged in such a solemn venue in the auditorium of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) for the first time in Beijing. During the second plenary session of the 15th ** Committee of the China Association for the Promotion of Democracy, a story about the main founders of the China Association for the Promotion of Democracy was staged, which highlighted the spiritual beliefs of the older generation of patriotic democrats and highlighted the significance of contemporary education.
On the stage, Ma Xulun held a candle lamp, with the theme of "finding the way" as his life, from the Manchu Dynasty to New China step by step, and we also followed their footsteps, in the simple and freehand space of the stage, full of symbolic charm, slowly walked into a magnificent and turbulent picture of modern Chinese history spanning more than 60 years. In the fascinating plot, step by step into the depths of Ma Xulun's soul, I feel the purest spiritual belief of the patriotic democrats represented by him and the most eternal infinite affection for the country and the people.
A road of excellence in drama creation
The drama "Ma Xulun" is written by Lin Qiaosi, directed by Li Bonan and Liu Hao, Zhou Zhengping and Zhang Hanbing serve as lighting designers, Chen Jiyuan serves as stage design, and first-class actors Wei Peng and Liu Jianfu starring.
The play has been established since May 2022, during which it has gone through a year and a half of polishing from script writing to rehearsal and performance, and the script has undergone five major changes and countless minor changes, and in a year and a half, four completely different directions of "Ma Xulun" have been staged in the theater. On the afternoon of December 7, in order to present the most wonderful performance, director Li Bonan was still revising the schedule and adjusting the performance during the rehearsal, and finally polished the fifth version of "Ma Xulun" and performed in the auditorium of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.
Stills from the drama "Ma Xulun".
The main creative team knows that a good show is polished, and we have the mission of telling the history of China's first-class cooperation and the stories of those democratic parties who have made great contributions to national peace and people's democracy, and we must also have the literary and artistic responsibility of inheriting the spiritual map and ambition of the older generation of patriots through stage works, and are committed to showing a flesh-and-blood, loyal and resilient, forbearing, resolute and fearless democracy fighter in all aspects and from multiple angles, and creating an audio-visual feast with profound thoughts, exquisite art and excellent production.
Countless days and nights of hard work in order to make a good show. If the drama "Ma Xulun" tells the story of a patriotic democrat who pursues his ideals and beliefs in his heart and tirelessly finds his way, then why don't the creators of "Ma Xulun" tirelessly find their way on the road of drama creation?
In this meaningful performance, the audience had laughter, tears, and spontaneous applause many times, and the moving atmosphere shrouded the auditorium of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference for a long time, completing the spiritual resonance and spiritual resonance on and off the stage. After watching the performance, the famous soprano singer Wu Bixia wrote passionately in the WeChat circle of friends: "Whether it is from the script, the director, or the presentation of the cast and crew, (this drama) deserves the appreciation and attention of the whole society." ”
After a year and a half of polishing, the auditorium of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) has bloomed with a successful attitude. Beijing is just the starting point, and "Massillon" is about to embark on a national tour. I look forward to meeting the audience theater, so that a lamp of peace and democracy can pass through a hundred years and light up a candle that will not be extinguished for a long time.
Author: Lin Qiaosi).