The Ascent of the Prince of
Chu Opera
Profile
Yu Wei Gang sits down with Sonia Tan, giving an insight into his journey as a Chu opera star in Wuhan.
By Sonia Tan - October 14, 2019
G
laring stage lights, thick layers of colourful makeup, heavy elaborate costumes and a sea of people watching. Such is life for young Chu opera performer Yu Wei Gang (余维刚).
Although he has only been in this trade for 13 years, which is seen as quite short for the industry, he already has an illustrious career, earning himself the accolade of the ‘Prince of Chu Opera’. A traditional art form typically enjoyed and performed by the older generation, the 31-year-old is considered young in the world of Chinese opera. Despite his age, Yu has made his mark in the industry, amassing a total of 10 awards and starring as the lead actor for multiple big productions.
His love for Chu Opera sparked from a young age when he first saw a rendition of Qin Xianglian (秦香莲), a popular Chinese opera story, on television. Coupled with his expressive nature, Yu found himself taking a strong interest and liking to the traditional art form.
Chu Opera is a form of Chinese opera native to China’s Hubei province with over 150 years of history. It usually narrates stories of legends and family life. The overall tone is often simple and comical. PHOTO COURTESY OF YU WEI GANG
When he enrolled in the Hubei Chu Opera Academy, Yu was already 13, which is considered rather late for one to commence opera training.
Chinese Opera troupes usually enrol new batches of students every 10 years. With the exception of natural-born talents, troupes typically only accept children aged eight to 14 years old, because that is the prime age group for their body muscles to withstand the arduous training in Chinese Opera.
Just as the old Chinese saying goes: three minutes of glory on stage is attributed to 10 years of hard work off stage (台上三分钟，台下十年功 ). Yu shared that the road of Chinese opera is one filled with challenges and hardship.
“You don’t just get thrust onto the stage immediately, you train a lot, and I mean a lot,” said Yu. Reminiscing to his trainee days, Yu mentioned that the average trainee’s daily routine consists of one waking up early at 6am for a full day of lessons, ending the day off with an indefinite period of self-practice until he’s tired.
“I repeated this routine daily for six years and although it was a gruelling period, it was necessary to help me get accustomed to the life of a Chu opera performer,” said Yu with a strong sense of conviction in his voice.
Although he graduated 13 years ago, Yu still places a high emphasis on the importance of discipline when it comes to self-training. “There’s a saying within the Chinese opera community which goes: if you don’t practise for a day only you will know, if you don’t practise for two days your colleagues will know, if you don’t practise for three days your audience will know (一天不练, 自己知道, 两天不练, 同行会知道, 三天不练，观众就会知道 ),” quipped Yu, signifying the importance of self-discipline.
With that in mind, even with performances on the same day, he sets aside three to five hours to train and practice.
Earlier this year, Yu participated in China Central Television’s competition programme, Ding Ge Long Dong Qiang (叮咯咙咚呛), where he partnered with famous Taiwanese singer, Julia Peng (彭佳慧) to perform duets consisting of the amalgamation of Chu opera and modern pop music.
During the competition, judges and audience members were left in awe at the unique and melodic sound of the unfamiliar Chu opera. Impressing everyone with their unconventional music fusion, the duo managed to clinch the highest-scoring title in multiple weeks of the competition.
After the broadcast of the final episode, people from different provinces of China flew down to Wuhan just to watch Yu’s performances.
To show his gratitude, Yu gave tickets away to let them watch the show for free. Explaining that the price of the tickets is nothing compared to the price they paid to travel, he was reluctant to take money from them and that their support and newfound love for Chu opera sufficed for him.
Yu regards this as one of his greatest achievements and most memorable moments in his career. He said: “As a youth opera performer, I somehow feel that it’s my duty to spread the awareness about Chu opera. Chu opera has always been a beautiful art form, it just lacks the recognition it deserves.”
Even with the fame and recognition he has gained in the opera world, Yu shared that it is an ongoing struggle to maintain his current financial commitment; further expressing that he needs to earn more as he shoulders the additional responsibility of a son, taking on the mantle of being a good husband and father. He said: “In our trade, it is a fact that we earn less than a middle-income white-collar worker.”
However, this has not fazed him from continuing to step onto the stage and performing what he loves.
“At the end of the day, I’ve dedicated almost half my life to [Chu opera] and I’ll continue striving no matter the adversities I face along the way. I see this as my lifelong career, ” affirmed Yu.
To him, hardship and financial rewards are secondary factors. Instead, Yu feels as he was blessed to be able to have his passion as a career, he should be putting his best foot forward.
“I’ve gone through a lot of emotional and physical turmoil in those 10 years I’ve trained and waited to earn my place as a lead actor. However, it’s all worth it because I want to give my best performance I can to my audience.”
As a youth opera
performer, I somehow
feel that it’s my duty to
spread the awareness
about Chu opera. Chu
opera has always been a
beautiful art form, it just
lacks the recognition
it deserves
- Yu Wei Gang
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