Reaching new heights
What has most recently propelled this centuries-old opera, one of China's oldest existing performing arts, to new heights of popularity is the hit drama The Lead, a bittersweet story chronicling a talented Qinqiang star's life journey.
Last year, nearly 200 experts and young actors from the institute assisted the cast and crew for the preparation and filming of The Lead, with actress Liu Haocun coached in Qinqiang singing techniques and stage movements.
Starring Liu as Yi Qin'e, a former rural shepherd who strives to become a star, the series generated significant buzz even before its debut earlier this year thanks to a roster of big names attached to the project: iconic filmmaker Zhang Yimou served as executive producer and diva Faye Wong lent her voice to the theme song. For both A-list celebrities, it marked their first contribution to a small-screen project in decades.
The script is adapted from the 10th Mao Dun Literature Prize-winning novel of the same title, penned by writer Chen Yan, the former director of the Shaanxi Opera Research Institute. During his more than 20 years at the institute, Chen witnessed many actors transform from newcomers into stage stars — experiences that became the wellspring for the novel.
Veteran actor Zhang Jiayi, who plays Yi's uncle and also serves as the show's artistic director, had previously starred in The Stage, a 2019 TV drama adapted from Chen's novel Zhuang Tai (Setting the Stage), about a grassroots stage crew. That experience, combined with Zhang Jiayi's roots in Shaanxi province, gave him a deep understanding of the opera and its cultural traditions.
"Zhang Jiayi and his team hold great reverence for traditional art forms," says Li, adding that the team spent eight years preparing and producing the drama, with five years devoted to polishing the script.
The painstaking preparations appear to have paid off. According to China Media Group, the show's broadcaster, all 48 episodes and related videos have been viewed online more than 3 billion times. Riding the wave of fan enthusiasm, content derived from the series, ranging from the Shaanxi local dialect to Qinqiang and other cultural elements tracing back to the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC), which established its core regime in Shaanxi, has generated a striking 5.3 billion clicks.
The surge in online attention has also spilled beyond the screen and onto the stage.
"After The Lead became a hit, we closely followed up by consistently staging more than 10 performances of the operas featured in the TV drama, with tickets quickly selling out," recalls Lyu Jiangtao, a 30-year-old actor at the Shaanxi Opera Research Institute.
There is one particularly striking change: Qinqiang's audience used to be predominantly older people. Now, young viewers are showing up in growing numbers, drawn in by the drama's popularity. "Many young people even made special trips, flying to Xi'an, the provincial capital, just to watch the operas," Lyu says.
The four operas featured in the TV drama and arranged for television fans are Da Jiao Zan (Fighting Jiao Zan), featuring a heroine of humble origins during the Song Dynasty (960-1279); Hua Ting Xiang Hui (The Meeting at the Flower Pavilion), recounting the reunion of a couple separated against their will during the Ming Dynasty; Yang Men Nyu Jiang. Tan Gu (Female Generals of the Yang Family — Exploring the Valley), centering on the legendary female general Mu Guiying; and Gui Yuan. Sha Sheng (Ghost's Lament — Killing), about a young woman's brave pursuit of love.
"It's like touching an elephant's leg, if you only know Qinqiang from the TV drama. But once you watch more of our livestream shows, you'll see the whole elephant and probably fall in love with it," says Li.
