I just watched a documentery called the "Art of Action" and it explained how when the shoulin monk temples were destroyed the monks taught their art to performers so they could secretly keep their art alive. Even Jackie Chan is a student of the chinese opera. I hope this film falls somewhere in that vien.
"Mr.Purple is another guy on another job, you're not Mr.Purple!"
Not really that kind of stuff. This film is the kind of film that's moving and humane, sort of an art film, just like its director's other early works. It's about emotions and love between father & son.
shareThe opera features very little in this film and is a different animal to the style of opera, say, in, 'Farewell my Concubine'. This gives an annoyingly brief glimpse of the masked opera. Still a wonderful film, tho.
shareMy partner and I recently went to an East Asian Friendship event in Archway, in North London, at which we had excerpts from Chinese traditional opera, as well as a Korean classical pianist, Japanese taiko and so forth, all very well done and much applauded. Chinese opera is alive and well and living in London.
And the evening ending with a massed singing of Auld Lang Syne in whichever language took your fancy. Texts were supplied in various Asian scripts and in Romaji, there were at least five languages available, we must have sung the whole thing round and round seven or eight times, with accompaniment on piano, shamisen, koto, trumpet, taiko etc and the din was indescribable.
Just thought I'd share that with you!
Sounds like a wonderful evening, that is really multi-cultural. London has it all.
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