Plowing the soil, unearthing gems
December 31, 2011, Saturday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
Quan Changjie, director of the Minhang Public Art Center, is captivated by local heritage even though he wasn't born in the district.
Drawing inspiration from what he calls "the soil" of Minhang, he has written five plays in Shanghai dialect and helped set up about 20 art troupes in the district.
The five plays revolve around the theme of blossoms, blending Huju opera, singing and dancing.
"They comprise the epitome of Minhang's development over the past two decades," Quan said.
The plays have been staged at various venues over the past 20 years.
Quan, who was born in Shanghai, once worked in the countryside of the poorer province of Jiangxi. In 1988, he moved to Minhang. There he found his soul.
"Minhang people are sincere and not superficially sophisticated," Quan said. "The district is countryside in the process of urbanization. Its traditions and culture have inspired me to try to represent the people here in their everyday lives."
He said he was moved by local farmers who grow flowers in the Meilong area, then transport their blossoms to hotels in downtown Shanghai. He spent days living among the flower growers, and the idea of using blossoms to represent their lives took shape.
The first play tells the story of a girl used her wit and wisdom to help a poor village escape from its poverty. The girl was the daughter of a flower baron, who lived in a Shanghai suburban area. The father wanted to give his daughter a luxury car as dowry for her marriage. But she rejected the offer, asking instead for seeds and planting secrets for a rare species of blossom. She and her husband took the seeds and wisdom back to his poor hometown village, and the success of flower-growing helped the town prosper.
The play was staged more than 300 times in 10 years.
Encouraged by the success, Quan wrote a second play, whose characters were drawn from the workers at a flower company in Minhang's Maqiao area.
In the play, Zhang Qiangui, manager of a local gardening company, faces a crisis when his chief designer has an accident and can no longer work on a lucrative contract the firm has just signed. The company is saved by a female cyber-friend of the manager, who also is well versed in flower design. The pair eventually fall in love.
Quan said he reads a lot of books and listens to many stories. The character in his plays are usually drawn from those experiences, set against the backdrop of daily life in Minhang. The plot using a cyber-friend showed the artist's willingness to embrace the new age of technology.
"Innovation is the soul of art," Quan said.
In his latest play, he has introduced the character of an overseas scholar. That came after he was tutoring a foreigner, who spoke only Mandarin, in the Shanghai dialect. Quan said he wants the play to glorify the integration of different cultures.
Another play tells the story of two practitioners of danghuchuan, a folk dance popular in Minhang.
"These plays come into being based on my real experience of living in the district, and they showcase the process of urbanization in the countryside," he said.
Quan has won many awards, and his work has been recognized by China's Ministry of Culture.
His dream, he confessed, is to write a play that could be turned into a smash hit musical - something along the lines of "Mamma Mia!"
Quan has served as the director of Minhang Public Art Center since 1993. He was once invited to become director of the Shanghai Public Art Center, but he declined.
"I will dedicate my life to plowing the soil of Minhang because it is heaven to me - a place where I can realize my dreams," he said.
Drawing inspiration from what he calls "the soil" of Minhang, he has written five plays in Shanghai dialect and helped set up about 20 art troupes in the district.
The five plays revolve around the theme of blossoms, blending Huju opera, singing and dancing.
"They comprise the epitome of Minhang's development over the past two decades," Quan said.
The plays have been staged at various venues over the past 20 years.
Quan, who was born in Shanghai, once worked in the countryside of the poorer province of Jiangxi. In 1988, he moved to Minhang. There he found his soul.
"Minhang people are sincere and not superficially sophisticated," Quan said. "The district is countryside in the process of urbanization. Its traditions and culture have inspired me to try to represent the people here in their everyday lives."
He said he was moved by local farmers who grow flowers in the Meilong area, then transport their blossoms to hotels in downtown Shanghai. He spent days living among the flower growers, and the idea of using blossoms to represent their lives took shape.
The first play tells the story of a girl used her wit and wisdom to help a poor village escape from its poverty. The girl was the daughter of a flower baron, who lived in a Shanghai suburban area. The father wanted to give his daughter a luxury car as dowry for her marriage. But she rejected the offer, asking instead for seeds and planting secrets for a rare species of blossom. She and her husband took the seeds and wisdom back to his poor hometown village, and the success of flower-growing helped the town prosper.
The play was staged more than 300 times in 10 years.
Encouraged by the success, Quan wrote a second play, whose characters were drawn from the workers at a flower company in Minhang's Maqiao area.
In the play, Zhang Qiangui, manager of a local gardening company, faces a crisis when his chief designer has an accident and can no longer work on a lucrative contract the firm has just signed. The company is saved by a female cyber-friend of the manager, who also is well versed in flower design. The pair eventually fall in love.
Quan said he reads a lot of books and listens to many stories. The character in his plays are usually drawn from those experiences, set against the backdrop of daily life in Minhang. The plot using a cyber-friend showed the artist's willingness to embrace the new age of technology.
"Innovation is the soul of art," Quan said.
In his latest play, he has introduced the character of an overseas scholar. That came after he was tutoring a foreigner, who spoke only Mandarin, in the Shanghai dialect. Quan said he wants the play to glorify the integration of different cultures.
Another play tells the story of two practitioners of danghuchuan, a folk dance popular in Minhang.
"These plays come into being based on my real experience of living in the district, and they showcase the process of urbanization in the countryside," he said.
Quan has won many awards, and his work has been recognized by China's Ministry of Culture.
His dream, he confessed, is to write a play that could be turned into a smash hit musical - something along the lines of "Mamma Mia!"
Quan has served as the director of Minhang Public Art Center since 1993. He was once invited to become director of the Shanghai Public Art Center, but he declined.
"I will dedicate my life to plowing the soil of Minhang because it is heaven to me - a place where I can realize my dreams," he said.
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