广东潮剧院三团 Guangdong Teochew Opera Troupe 3
再谈广东潮剧院三团的演员 - 2

For this blog, I would like to share my experience watching the performances by 许碧霞, 许佳婉 and 李少娟.

In my previous blog, I briefly mentioned about my encounter with 碧霞. She played the key female lead role in 碧血丹心, 节义夫妻 and 梦圆锦香亭. She is definitely very versatile and can perform very well in many different roles. No wonder she is the 当家花旦 of 广东潮剧院三团. Her friendly disposition somehow makes her quite popular.

Next, I would like to introduce 许佳婉. I only got to that there is such a talented actress after I watched 薛刚兴唐. 佳婉 played the role as 薛葵. Her ugly painted face had already captured the audience attention. Then, came along her talented performance during the scene where she was about to meet her father 薛刚. One other factor that contributed to her very good performance was her size. She is a small build person. It is definitely convincing to the audience for her to play the role as a teenager.

Lastly, I would like to introduce 李少娟. She appeared as male lead or supporting male lead in many of the performances. In 闹花灯, she played a supporting male lead as 薛猛. In 安禄山犯长安，she played the key male lead as 钟景期. It is a fact that guys are normally assigned to act as key male leads in China Teochew Opera Troupes. She must have put in tremendous efforts to emerge as one of the male leads.

广东潮剧院三团 Guangdong Teochew Opera Troupe 3
再谈广东潮剧院三团的演员

Time flies. Guangdong Teochew Opera Troupe 3 has returned to Swatow for a week already. Out the 11 performances, I have watched 6 of them. To me, this is definitely a new record. When 广东潮剧院一团 was here in Jul 06 with 林初发 and 黄映伟, I could only find time to watch 3 performances. This round, I told myself that I should squeeze out sufficient time to support 广东潮剧院三团 after I had watched 薛刚闹花灯.

Personally, I feel that it is easier to develop a good relationship with the actors and actresses from both 广东潮剧院一团 and 广东潮剧院三团. My wife and I felt 林初发 and 黄映伟 are very nice and approachable actors. It is not because we knew them in person or through some introduction. We approached them just like strangers talking to another person. However, they reciprocated as if they are our good friends. Regardless of their status (Take for example, 林初发 is the key male lead of 广东潮剧院一团), they are very humble and sincere. My recent encounter with 张楚武, 李勇强 and 许碧霞 confirmed this.

I am going to share the ‘before and after photos’ of 李勇强 and 张楚武. “Before” means the photos of them in civilian without any make up.

I understand from 李勇强 that 广东潮剧院三团 had reached 汕头 at about 5 plus in the morning of 20 Sep 06. 张楚武 called me on 21 Sep 06 and shared that 广东潮剧院三团 was busy preparing for their performances in 汕头,China. Best wishes to them in their upcoming performances.

广东潮剧院三团 Guangdong Teochew Opera Troupe 3
梦圆锦香亭

满座满座满座

Sunday, 17 Sep 2006. Tonight is the final performance by 广东潮剧院三团 in Singapore. In the morning, I went to Chong Pang area to develop some photos so that I could give them to my opera fans before they leave. When I reached that shop, I was surprised with the high tech machines installed for developing of photographs. I passed them the CDR and followed some simple steps, based on guidance since it was my first time doing it, to get the 219 photos developed. I collected the photos within 30 minutes though the standard processing time is one hour.

I left home at about 5.30 pm and I went to People Park's Complex to eat Yong Tau Fu at 高记酿豆腐 for my dinner. I missed that stall quite a lot. Three years ago, I patronized that at least once a week when my office was located in Central Mall. After eating, I stopped by Polar cake shop to buy some pineapple tarts. I told my wife I should buy a little present for 勇强 and 碧霞. So some local food would be good.

I reached the backstage at about 6.45 pm. The first person I met was 楚武. I passed him an envelope containing some photos. Then I saw 佳婉. I also gave her some photos. After that, I met 勇强. I passed him the pineapple tarts and some photos. I also asked him to autograph on 2 of the photos. We did not have much time chit chat as the backstage was very packed. I saw some aunties carrying packets of presents, some were busy sorting out photos while others were busying distributing red packets or 'ang pow'. I heard one auntie said each red packet contained $24. Wow! These people are really strong supporters of Teochew Opera.

I saw a signboard showing 'Full House' prominently displayed at the ticketing counter. At 7.45 pm, there was a short announcement by the MC. I got to know that one man spent $15,000 to sponsor the show for Sunday night. No wonder, those who bought a ticket to watch 节义夫妻 on 16 Sep 06 were given a free ticket for the Sunday performance. Not bad at all. I paid $20 for watching 节义夫妻 and was given a free ticket costing $40. I did not quite like the seat assigned to me. It was on the first row, right block, 5th seat from the end. It was not a good angle for taking photos. Some people were not happy with the seat allocation as several seats were issued double tickets. As a rule of thumb, first come first served basis. I told myself how lucky I was. If I were to mingle a little longer with my opera fans, I might end up sitting on PVC chairs. Then, one Member of Parliament appeared on stage. He delivered a short speech in Teochew and also introduced 知名丑角方展荣 and 中国潮剧著名青衣花旦姚璇秋. The MC also said the first day of the performance by 广东潮剧院三团 was also a full house as 义安公司 booked all the tickets. See a related article extracted from 潮剧大观园. “新加坡牛车水人民剧场人山人海，热闹非凡。喜逢新加坡潮阳会馆80大寿，广东潮剧院三团排演的新戏《节义夫妻》在这里鸣锣开演，祝贺本次庆典活动。当晚剧场门口摆满祝贺，演出成功的花篮，场内挤满观众，自始至终笑声阵阵，掌声雷鸣.”That evening, 碧霞 played the key female lead role, 天然. 勇强 continued to play the role of 高力士.

Below are some other photos taken.

At the end of the show, a group photo was taken.

广东潮剧院三团 Guangdong Teochew Opera Troupe 3

安禄山犯长安

Saturday, 16 Sep 2006. After the show 节义夫妻, I took a stroll to People Park's Complex. As I stayed in the North, I did not want to travel to and fro since I have to watch 安禄山犯长安 in the evening. I made arrangement for my wife to meet at Chinatown MRT station so that we could have dinner together. We had our dinner at a Chinese restaurant in Chinatown. On that day, the decorations for Lunar eighth month moon cake festival have already put up along the main street in Chinatown.

This evening, the backstage was slightly more crowded than before. May be, the opera fans wanted more opportunities to talk to the actors and actresses since the next day would be the last day of their performance. I was busy searching for 勇强 as I wanted to introduce my wife to him but I could not locate him. So we decided to leave the backstage. On my way out, I saw 许佳婉 and asked her where 勇强 was. She pointed to someone behind me. Oh yes, that 勇强 had already dressed up for the show. I introduced my wife to him. However, his wife 碧霞 was busy making up so we did not disturb her. In the show 安禄山犯长安, 勇强 played the role of 高力士.

According to a newspaper report by 汕头日报 (25 Jul 06) and a writer called 邵建生, the show was specially picked to showcase the skills and talents of Guangdong Teochew Opera Troupe 3. See reports extracted below:

倾力打造新编历史剧《锦香亭》在本次历史剧目中，三团颂力打造了一部新剧《锦香亭》，在抛弃原先广场戏拖沓冗长的基础上，以全新的构思理念、导演手法、演绎方式，力求融入现代都市剧的特点，予以观高雅、简洁的艺术感受，该剧分为上下两集，分别以《安禄山兵犯长安》和《梦圆锦香亭》.

上集《安禄山起兵》讲述唐开元末年，葛明霞与钟景期于葛府“锦香亭”邂逅而相爱。葛明霞这父葛太古因弹劾安禄山被贬范阳。这对恋人随之离异。钏景期考中状元，上表弹劾安禄山，又被贬四川，途中遇虎而为猎女天然所救。安禄山在范阳召集叛军进攻长安，葛太古斥贼被投监牢。

下集《梦圆锦香亭》讲述安禄山之子安庆绪图强占葛明霞，婢女红莲以身代死，葛明霞逃离虎口。玄宗皇帝与杨玉环逃难至马嵬坡，钟景期与天然前往救驾。得悉葛明霞已死，天然又真诚相爱，钟景期当着玄宗的面向她求婚。逃出虎口的葛明霞与书僮困顿于穷途之中，得天然救助。各路勤王大军杀败安禄山。葛太古得救，玄宗皇帝回朝。为了祭奠死去的葛明霞，葛太古和钟景期于锦香亭设坛拜祭，谁料葛明霞却在此时归来。故事曲折，剧情跌宕起伏，演出声情并茂，丝丝入扣，引人入胜。《锦香亭》由著名导演郭楠任艺术指导，编剧许镇焕、导演郑松明、作曲王庆苏，阵容较为强大，全剧共有30多名演员出场，在舞美设计、服装设计以及灯光器乐、音响投影等方面都结合剧情进行精心创作设计，融入了新的手法。新编潮剧《锦香亭》排了一个多月，花了编创人员和演员们的不少心血。

Personally, my wife and I did not find the show 安禄山兵犯长安 outstanding. I told my wife the show 碧血丹心 which I watched on Friday night was much far better than 安禄山兵犯长安. The show ended at about 10.30 pm. As it was not too late, we decided to go to the backstage again. We managed to meet up with 许碧霞.I introduced my wife to her. We talked to her for about 10 minutes. 许碧霞 also knows 蔡碧霞 and 林嘉. What a small world!

广东潮剧院三团 Guangdong Teochew Opera Troupe 3

节义夫妻

On 16 Sep 2006, Saturday afternoon, I went to watch 节义夫妻. The show started at 2.30 pm.

As I was early, I went to the back stage to look for my opera friends. I called them friends because they are really nice and sincere. The first person I met was 张楚武 in civilian. He told me he was free that afternoon. I took some photos of him. Then, 许佳婉 asked me to take a photo of her in civilian so that she could give it to her fans. After that, I met up with 李勇强. He told me that he would only appear in the first scene of 节义夫妻 as he would be 'gone' after that. I took some photos of him before I went to the cinema.

In the show 节义夫妻, 勇强 and 碧霞 acted as husband and wife. Think they are a lucky couple who has the opportunity to act as husband and wife in 节义夫妻.

During the tea break, I went to the back stage. This time, I was able to see 勇强 in civilian. Again, I took some photos of him in civilian and we took a few photos together.

Below are 2 photos taken during the second half of the show.

广东潮剧院三团 Guangdong Teochew Opera Troupe 3

碧血丹心

又见李勇强,喜见许碧霞

On 15 Sep 06, I took half day pm leave to set up my new modem and desktop. I was dog tired last night as I spent a few hours but still could not establish any connection. I wondered whether my new Dell desktop gave me problem or because the new modem is faulty. So, I brought my lap top home to ensure that there is an additional source for confirmation. To my horror, the new modem could not be connected too. Then, I used the old modem and found it working on my desktop. I called the equipment supplier and left a voice mail. Then, the technician called and told me a few customers had experienced the same problem. He suggested that I tried the Ethernet cable instead of the USB cable. I told him I would try later as I had spent enough time for the day.

Then, I decided to go and support 广东潮剧院三团. 勇强 told me he would playing a bigger role for the two shows 忠烈双娇 and 碧血丹心. Since I already missed 忠烈双娇, I must try to see him in action for 碧血丹心. After I had my ticket, I went to the back stage. 勇强 saw me and approached me. I was glad with his friendliness as I would not have recognised him. I told him I was busy and missed his performance last evening. Then, I took some pictures of him.

During the break, I went to the back stage to look for 勇强 again. As he played a leading role for 碧血丹心, more people recognized him and asked him for photo taking. While he was resting in a room, I told him the box office for this show was better than the previous two shows I watched. At that time, he was standing besides a lead actress. He introduced her as his wife. I asked if she was that lady general who played the key role just now. She acknowledged and introduced herself as 许碧霞.

I told them my wife would be joining me to watch their performance on Saturday as she has to take care of my boys.Then, 许碧霞 told me she saw me just now. I asked when and she said she was actually manning the ticketing counter just now and I purchased the few tickets from her. Oh yes, I bought two tickets for Saturday evening and one ticket for Saturday afternoon so that I could get a free ticket for Sunday evening, their final performance. I tried to recall the scene a while ago and it was indeed her. Cool! I did not know that they had been assigned so many duties. Then 勇强 was summoned by his fans for photo taking and I continued to chat with 碧霞. I told her my wife has the same surname and last name as her. We then talked about 广东潮剧院三团 and the shows they performed.I am happy to get to know 李勇强 and 许碧霞. I congratulated them for winning the Bronze awards at the recent competition held in Guangdong, China. Both them are very nice and sincere.碧血丹心 has a very good plot.

I enjoyed watching the show that evening. It ended at about 1045 pm.

广东潮剧院三团 Guangdong Teochew Opera Troupe 3
薛刚兴唐

Wednesday 13 Sep 2006

初遇姚璇秋和李勇强

On Wednesday, I went to Kreta Ayer Cinema to support 广东潮剧院三团. I reached the cinema at about 6.45 pm. After purchasing a $30 ticket, I had my dinner. Then I went to the back stage to look for 张楚武. I praised him for the outstanding performance last evening. He asked whether I was present for the rehearsal. I told him I had to work. 张楚武 said their usual schedule for rehearsal is in the afternoon.

This evening, 广东潮剧院三团 put up 薛刚兴唐. This is part 2 of 闹花灯. The box office was comparable to last evening. The plot is a little different from the black and white movie 薛刚反唐 by 陈楚蕙 and 曾珊凤. There were quite a few fighting scenes and there were much applause for quite a few actors at the various segments of the show. Overall, I think 许佳婉 played the role as 薛葵 very well. In my opinion, she emerged as one of the most outstanding actresses in the show 薛刚兴唐.

During the tea break, I went to the backstage. I was fortunate to see 中国潮剧著名青衣花旦姚璇秋 in person. I had a casual talk with her and took some photos too.

Then, I saw a young man with painted face and I asked him for a photo shoot. He introduced himself as 李勇强. Immediately, I recalled seeing his name as one of the winners for bronze medal at the 广东省第五届戏剧演艺大赛(潮剧赛区) which was just held in Guangdong from 28 to 31 Aug 2006. 李勇强 was awarded a bronze medal for his performance 武松杀嫂.

I congratulated him for winning the award and had a short chat with him. He told me he only played a small role in 薛刚兴唐. He said he would have more appearance in 忠烈双娇 and 碧血丹心 but I told him I might not have the time to watch so many performances. I find him very friendly and sincere.

The show 薛刚兴唐 ended at about 11 pm.