A different Cantonese opera dream

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Written by: Wang Yuechen

2020-12-15 06:00

Last update date: 2020-12-15 06:00

Leung Feitong, a graduate of Culture and Cultural Industry Management from the Chinese and History Department of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, received his bachelor's degree in 2017 and then immediately pursued a master's degree in cultural management.

On the surface, she is just a young man who is interested in the cultural industry, but in fact, she is as famous as her name on her dream journey.

She is one of the few young Cantonese opera actors in Hong Kong.

Before entering CityU, she had studied art at the Hong Kong Bahe Cantonese Opera Academy; after graduating with a master's degree, she studied for the Higher Diploma in Cantonese Opera Performance at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.

Leung Feitong, who obtained a bachelor's degree in culture and cultural industry management from CityU in 2017, continues to further his studies to strengthen cultural management knowledge and Cantonese opera skills.

Cantonese drama that started from TV show

In the eyes of young people, Cantonese opera is equivalent to tradition. Is Liang Feitong's fascination with it because of his parents?

She said: "My parents are not keen on Cantonese opera, but they will also watch TV shows. I naturally watch them together. When I was a five-year-old, the TV station produced a special feature about Cantonese opera performances. After watching it, I realized that Cantonese opera It's my hobby. I seem to have the feeling of "being a Cantonese opera actor" since I was a child."

When she was in high school, YouTube became popular.

When everyone was watching celebrity variety shows, she was looking for clips of Cantonese opera.

At Form 5, she entered Bahe College and began to pursue the dream of Cantonese opera.

The teachers all appreciate her enthusiasm for learning art, dedicated and conscientious; but she also cherishes the opportunity to learn opera and is eager to enjoy every moment of walking around the world of Cantonese opera.

To learn Cantonese opera, you must practice a variety of basic skills, including handles (basic skills for controlling weapons such as knives, guns, swords, halberds, sticks, etc.) and blankets (hand, waist, and leg movements, such as tossing and kicking), as well as acting And practice singing.

After entering the industry, I often rehearse in the morning and perform in the evening, and the schedule is densely arranged.

However, she enjoys it and does not think it is bitter. Even the leisure activities are related to Cantonese opera, such as going to watch the performances of seniors.

Liang Feitong is grateful to her parents for letting her choose the career she loves, and her parents are also gratified that her daughter will realize her dream step by step.

No retreat decision

The choice is extraordinary. Fortunately, her parents are very supportive. They only ask her to focus on completing the degree course. "Then you can do whatever you want." She also took courses that are more related to Cantonese opera and culture at the City University School of Humanities and Social Sciences. For her, there is no so-called backup plan for her choice. No matter what difficulties she encounters, as long as she can still do Cantonese opera one day, she will not give up.

She firmly said: "I don't want to regret it."

Liang Feitong (first from left) and his classmates complete graduation assignments, showing the accumulated learning results over the years.

Having said that, she did encounter challenges that could make her step off the stage.

Before preparing for her graduation performance, she fell to a broken elbow during rehearsal and required surgery.

She remembers that the injury was in March and the performance was held in July. Fortunately, she was young and had a fast recovery. In the end, the teacher was surprised to complete the performance.

In September of the same year, she played the lead role in the drama "Zhu Bian Hui Chao" in which the famous Cantonese opera actress Yin Feiyan served as the artistic director.

Thank you seniors for sharing

Looking back at the learning process along the way, I am very grateful to the seniors and teachers for their support and encouragement.

She has unforgettable conversations with her predecessors, as well as their oral and personal teaching methods and experiences. She regards them as role models.

She believes that the Cantonese opera performance must be taught and corrected by the teacher, and the video mode is difficult to replace. However, this year encountered the epidemic, and many classes, rehearsals, and performances were suspended.

However, she also tried to remain positive and optimistic, and regarded this pause as a chance for her to reflect on her performance and precipitation. When the theater reopened in October and November and she stepped onto the stage again, "the performance felt Don't go before."

In Hong Kong, Cantonese opera has a fixed audience, but it is not popular.

Asked how Fei Tong could promote this cultural treasure to all walks of life in Hong Kong and the rest of the world, she said that one is that Cantonese opera performances should be accompanied by English subtitles to allow foreigners to understand the plot. However, she is quite fluent in English, but she does not agree with it. Performing Cantonese opera in English will lose its essence.

In addition, she believes that Cantonese opera has a strong literary character, and it might as well introduce it to schools and students with its educational character.

Cantonese opera contains many elements of traditional Chinese virtues, such as filial piety and friendship, which are also worth spreading among foreign audiences.

Looking to the future, Fei Tong will continue to develop in the Cantonese opera industry, and hope to participate in other art media, such as movies and dramas.

She believes that the nourishment obtained from different artistic fields will also benefit her Cantonese opera performances.

When Liang Feitong was studying at CityU, she took a course in creative media. The picture shows her shooting for her project.

To this day, she will still seize the opportunity to explore different art forms such as movies.

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