Bringing recent history to life with creative exhibits
With great attention, Shu Ji, 83, observes a life-size wax statue of Peking Opera guru Mei Lanfang (1894-1961). The figure is clad in a blue satin changpao, or traditional Chinese long gown for men, and a black satin magua, a riding jacket. It has a Chinese folding fan in its right hand while the left hand is behind its back.
The attire is similar as what Mei wore for his meeting with Charlie Chaplin in 1930, in Los Angeles, one of the six US cities that Mei and his Peking Opera troupe toured.
"I remember his face as being smaller and rounder. And his hands were more like a woman's. I shook his hand once and his skin felt rather fine and smooth," says Shu, the daughter of Lao She (1899-1966), the pseudonym of noted Chinese novelist and dramatist Shu Qingchun who befriended Mei.
