2014，When Cao Qitai came to the National Center for the Performing Arts in the mainland for the first time with the 25th anniversary version of "Tsui Tamsui" of "Guo Tuo Theatre"，Probably few people know，The National Experimental Theater (which is the predecessor of the National Theater) also staged the original work of this play in 1987，That is, "Our Town" by Thornton Wilder。

Maybe even fewer people know，The soul character "stage manager" in the play played by Cao Qitai，Played by Lei Kesheng, the "veteran actor" of the Experimental Theater 27 years ago。Rehearsed this play in Beijing that year，It can be said to be a grand event of cultural exchange between China and the United States。

Bettina Entell, who co-directed with Mrs. Snow, still remembers the scene of arriving at the Capital Airport many years later: Theater director Zheng Zhenyao and Foreign Minister Huang Hua personally led a large team to pick up the airport，The staff of the "Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries" rushed to carry their luggage，The equipped car is a Hongqi sedan...

But，In the late 1980s when Chinese avant-garde theater was gradually declining，This performance directed by the US ended up just becoming a cultural gift，In memory of "old friend of the Chinese people" Edgar Snow。Chinese dramas that emerged from the "Cultural Revolution"，Not as welcoming as "The Life of Copernicus"、Like "Anna Christie" and "Death of a Salesman"，Really shocked and impressed by "Our Town"。

Maybe，In that era when "Absolute Signal" and "Station" were created，Wilder’s old works can no longer bring much freshness to mainland drama – Huang Zuolin’s “freehand drama” and Wilder’s have already had the same approach。Meng Jinghui, who was still studying at the Drama Academy，Watched this play which was translated as "Small Town Style"。He told Antle privately，What impressed me most，The sound effects of the entire play are simulated by four ventriloquists。

However，This is just a little bit of the American director’s whimsical ideas on cross-cultural drama，Wilder as a playwright to Meng Jinghui、What did Lin Zhaohua and others leave behind？I’m afraid it is indeed extremely limited。

So after the 1990s，Except Beijing、Nanjing、There are sporadic amateur drama club rehearsals in Ningbo，Except Jiang Ruoyu of the Central Academy of Drama rehearsed a graduation drama with her students in 2002，“Our Town” is the most performed drama in the United States，But almost disappeared from mainland theaters。This kind of cold reception，Compared with the liveliness of Taiwan’s Gotot Theater which has rehearsed seven editions in the past 26 years，It’s really a world of difference。

The wonderful journey of Wilder’s drama in China，Another interesting case to discuss。In the 1960s, Hong Kong’s drama culture was quite depressed，Today’s World Publishing House, which has always 188bet online sports betting been supported by the US government, is under the chairmanship of Dong Qiao and others，Translated and introduced a number of American literary classics，Among them are three Wilder plays translated by Liu Wenhan in 1962。

Coincidentally，Chung King-fai returned to Hong Kong after graduating from the Yale Drama Department the following year，Teaching at Baptist College，The first one selected for rehearsal is this newly translated version of "Small Town Scenery"。For Chung King-fai, Hong Kong’s future drama icon，Wilder represents a very revolutionary "theatricalism"，Not only is it not bound by the realism and storytelling of old-style dramas，And will inspire Hong Kong artists to adopt a more radical modernist attitude，Arouse the artistic consciousness of this city。

May 1965，The Baptist College Theater Company finally staged "Small Town Scenery" directed by Chung King-fai at the Hong Kong City HallTaiwan (as far as I know，This may be the first official performance of the play in China)，Received high praise from all walks of life。

However，Although Hong Kong did enter a prosperous period of translated dramas in the 1960s，Albi、Williams、Pinter、The masterpieces of Beckett and others enter the Hong Kong stage like a crucian carp crossing the river，But it’s the same as the rehearsal in Beijing，Wilder is used more as an introduction to modern American drama，The playwright did not find the soil to take root in the local culture。

Although the dramatic marriage between Taiwan and Wilder came late，But it has a completely different trajectory from Hong Kong and mainland China。1988，Liang Zhimin, who is still studying directing, and his wife founded "Guo Tuo Theater"，Albee's "Zoo Story" as the founding drama。

When Albi was young, he gave up poetry and turned to drama，Actually, thanks to Wilder’s guidance，And Leung Chi Min rehearsed "Tsui Town" the next year，It’s an interesting coincidence。

However，This debut in 1989 can hardly be considered a success，Probably because "Galot Theater" has not dared to make too many mistakes in the adaptation-except for moving Glover's Point in New Hampshire to Tamsui near Taipei，I dare not neglect the "no curtain" in the original work，Minimalism without scenery。

If it weren’t for Liang Zhimin’s radical second version of the script adaptation in 1993 (it also became the final version of all subsequent performances)，"Tsui Town" may also be like the two performances in Beijing and Hong Kong，Lost in the river of history。

For Liang Zhimin, who is interested in running a Broadway commercial theater，If "Guo Tuo Theater" wanted to survive and develop in Taiwan at that time，I’m afraid I can’t take the elegant route of spring and snow。Wilder’s naked stage and theatricalism aimed at breaking all illusions of melodrama，Placed in a secondary position by Liang Zhimin.

He wants to completely localize "Freshwater Town" in a new adaptation，Let it carry the collective memory and nostalgia of Taiwanese，Or in his words，Let Tamsui become “the emotional outlet of Taipei people”。

To achieve this adaptation，It’s not just about changing “George” and “Emily” in the play to “Chen Shaowei” (this role was played by Zhang Yusheng in the second version) and “Ai Moli”，Or it could be as simple as asking the folks in town to speak a few words of Taiwanese when they meet and greet each other。

Field research done by Liang Zhimin，It can be called an ethnographic writing in the sense of cultural anthropology: he not only visited "188bet online sports betting Zhongzheng Road, which was covered with smoke and dust during construction"，I found traces of the old street in the winding streets"，Also consulted the century-old photos and historical yearbooks collected by Tamsui Town Library，The Taiwanese version of the small town story with historian-like accuracy，Embedded in Tamsui’s timeline—Amore’s tenth birthday is set to March 20, 1955.

This Pisces birthday is the completion day of Tamsui’s “Huwei Fishing Port”，Provincial Chairman Yan Jiagan presided over the ribbon-cutting ceremony that day；The important conversation between Chen Shaowei and Ai Moli took place on September 8, 1963 while eating ice cream in the ice shop，Their civil marriage in the Taipei District Court took place on October 26, 1965...

If we talk about Wilder’s demographic analysis of the fictional town “Glover’s Point”、Accurate geographical latitude and longitude and stratigraphic structure，It’s just an ironic way of using limited life to contrast the vastness of the universe，Then Liang Zhimin’s accuracy is more out of a true feeling of local sustenance，As if this way we can salvage the lost four hundred years of fresh water from time on the stage，Continue to let the fishing songs and the sea breeze sing together。

In order to create this sense of historical reality，The “Goto Theater”, which has increasingly strong financial resources, spares no expense in investing in costume styling and stage design。The most eye-catching，It is an original circular stage with a height of 50 centimeters and a three-dimensional circular slope with an inclination of 5.5 degrees，This is not just Qingshui Street surrounding the town，It also uses pure geometric structure to symbolize the universe and time with Chinese characteristics。

At the same time，The clothing styles of Taiwanese villagers in the 1950s and 1960s should not only correspond to Chinese elements and Taiwanese customs，We still need to create a three-act play from early summer、Color changes from autumn to early winter，Using green, yellow, green, blue, red and orange fabrics to symbolize the texture of life。

It is said that the 25th anniversary edition is in production，A total of one hundred and fifty yards of printed cloth，Up to fifty kinds of patterns，The effort and money spent，Probably unrivaled in the world performance history of "Our Town"！

Liang Zhimin, who is also a screenwriter and director, of course knows it，His "Taishui" cannot return to the old path of completely realistic dramas，So the style of the stage still follows a Chinese style of "freehand brushwork" (he believes that Wilder's plays draw on the "freehand brushwork" of traditional Chinese drama)。

Liang Zhimin borrowed an oil painting from painter Li Yongtuo in 1993，In 2006, he visually chose the “pointillism” of French post-impressionist painter Georges Seurat，Will be quiet、Quiet colors and stillness、Eternal town time associated。

This visual "Tsui" consists of historical photos projected on the stage background and "Tsui Town" themed paintings created by ten contemporary artists，And ingeniously used three giant pieces of gauze in the middle of the stage to form a close-up view，Space switching is formed through the penetration of stage lights。

Use sound like this、Light、A freshwater town made of electricity，It naturally has a strong impact on the theater audience，But it is far 188bet app from the dark void that Wilder intended to create in the original work。At the beginning of Act 1，Originally the "stage manager" would point to the two arches that were just brought up，Jokingly: "This is the scenery，For those who think a setting is a must。”Of course，Such lines were also deleted by screenwriter Liang with great self-awareness。

However，The projection that best evokes the audience’s local resonance，It is also a clever interweaving of Taiwan’s modern history and politics in the adaptation。Chen Shaowei’s family are from other provinces who moved to Taiwan after 1949，The neighbor Ai Moli’s family are natives of Taiwan。

Mrs. Ai’s Hokkien words and jokes about Mrs. Chen’s pronunciation from time to time，Far more impressive to the Chinese audience than the clumsy New England colloquial translation in the translation of "Our Town"。

At the same time，In addition to retaining the core lines and structure of the original work，Anything that may cause cultural barriers to the audience，Everything was replaced with the customs and customs of Tamsui Town - Howie the milkman became the uncle doing morning exercises on the mountain，Breakfast coffee turned into hot tea，The chicken farm that George will inherit becomes Chen Shaowei’s orchard，The title of Emily's speech "Louisiana Purchase" became Emily's Shandong Geography。

In Liang Zhimin’s opinion，There is nothing unfaithful about this functionalist translation in cross-cultural drama，Because these trivial daily details are just to evoke common memories，Create "simplicity、Rustic、有情”，And whether he is "sentimental" is his drama standard。The performance of "Tsui Town" frequently aroused the audience's knowing laughter，Exactly what the translated dramas performed in Chinese in Beijing and Hong Kong could not achieve。

What makes other adapters even more jealous is that，On some cultural references，Glover Point and Freshwater Town have a natural compatibility。There is no need to replace George’s favorite sport with basketball or table tennis，Because the national sport in Taiwan is baseball。

There is no need to replace the Presbyterian churches in New England with ancestral temples，Because there were Christian missionary activities in Tamsui Town as early as the seventeenth century；The church choir that the two wives participated in is certainly in line with local history，Because Tamsui Chapel happened to be the 30th anniversary of the completion of Shaowei’s freshman year。

However，The most important coincidence between two time and space，I’m afraid these cultural background symbols are not universal yet，But their seemingly static small town time is also placed in the violent and turbulent historical background。

The half-hidden "World War" in "Our Town" and the confusion of Taiwan's identity alluded to in "Town of Tamsui"，It also constitutes a tearing modernity experience that contrasts with the tranquil pastoral。

It is precisely Liang Zhimin’s in-depth appropriation of Taiwan’s unique historical experience，Makes this play break away from the general pattern based on the commonality of all mankind——In Wilder，Glover's Corner to the Gibbs or Webbs，They are all pure homes，But in Liang Zhimin’s place，The Chen family’s feelings about Taiwan are naturally very different from those of the Ai family，What is the Tamsui town of the 1950s? Home，Still 188bet app a place where guests live，Not without a doubt。

Most noteworthy，is the only character in the play: the church organist、Small Town Drunkard Stimson。In "Freshwater Town"，The screenwriter retained this important marginal person，In addition to giving him the Chinese identity of "Lao Wang"，Also reinterprets his alcoholism and violent temper。

Original，Lao Wang comes from Shandong, which Emily had only imagined in class lectures，As a veteran of the Kuomintang，He misses his Taishan all the time、Yellow River and his fiancée in his hometown，After living on the island for ten years，He has gradually discovered that the so-called "counterattack on the mainland" slogan is nothing but a political dream。

On the surface，Lao Wang is the same as Stimson in Tamsui Town，They are all “outsiders” who cannot adapt to small town life，But in fact there are profound differences between the two。In Wilder's pen，The reasons for the organist’s alcoholism are unclear，His existence and suicide aim to reveal the darkness behind the pastoral scenery of the town、Boring、The boring side。

Some critics even think that，Stimson’s monstrous image is derived from Sherwood Anderson’s Winesburg，Represents Wilder’s anxiety about his homosexual identity。

However，Here at Liang Zhimin，Lao Wang’s drinking to drown his sorrows does not point to an individual identity crisis，It is not that small town life constitutes an oppressive existence，But this character carries a grand narrative of nostalgia for home and country。This adaptation of Lao Wang seems irrelevant，But it is a thoracotomy on the original symbolic system，Because it actually cuts out the poetic ambiguity in "Our Town"，Closes the secret door to a critical look at small town life。

So，"Shuishui Town" adopted the line "People always have to live in twos together" as the motto of life，But I forgot how Wilder himself never married、A lonely life，The irony and bitterness implicit in this sentence in the original work are also lost。

This cultural deviation in Liang Zhimin’s adaptation，Of course it is to let "Tsui Town" better mobilize the "emotion" of the audience，At the same time, this kind of implantation of Taiwan’s local history，It can also make it a "national drama" in the true sense，Making the play a classic cultural memory through constant re-enactment。

What Liang Zhimin needs is a commercial stage play that will become the flagship product of "Guo Tuo Theater"，Need to gain "affection" and emotion，Without intending to emphasize Wilder’s deliberate subversion of Broadway sentimentality。If we continue to investigate，You will find the real contradictions，In fact, it is not as simple as the difference between the personal intentions of the screenwriters。

Between "Freshwater" and "Our Town"，There is a gap between Chinese and Western cultures，It is not only reflected in the adapter's difficulty in translating Stimson's existential crisis of individualism in a tradition that values ​​collectivism，This is further reflected in the difference in representation of the view of life and death in the universe in the third act of the play。In the crucial third act，The semi-realistic circular stage of "Tsui Town" has become an installation art that unites nature and man: it is both the Qingshui Street of Tamsui Town，A round universe again，At the same time, it also became a huge dial of time。

The world of life and death are no longer facing each other on the left and right sides of the stage as Wilder designed，Instead, it uses the gentle slope of the stage to form the upper and lower divisions。The undead in Tamsui Town sit at the twelve o'clock position on the dial，The living are in the middle and lower part of the funeral for Emily。

At the climax of Emily's return to the world，She slowly walked through "time" counterclockwise，The dial scale on Qingshui Street lights up and goes out at each hour。At the end of the play，All actors walk to the hourly position of the clock stage，Remind the audience of the time significance that each of the twelve people represents。

This kind of materialized time presentation，Like the compass of the cycle of life and death in Buddhism，Coincides with an ancient Eastern religious imagination，Not the Western philosophy of death as Wilder intended，Because the former is a metaphor for the dialectical transformation of life and death，The latter only regards death as a "harvest" from God to the human world。

It is precisely because of this view of death、Cultural differences in time perspective，Chinese audiences are understanding Ai Moli’s return to the world，Seems to be more distant: She is the resurrected spirit of the dead，Still harassed by ghosts？

There is no Revenant in the Western sense in traditional Chinese culture，For us，The restlessness and wandering of ghosts after the death of the physical body，means the manifestation of some kind of karma。It is difficult for the audience to imagine a Western-style ghost who returns to the world in pursuit of ethical dialogue，I can’t understand this ghost’s admonishment and disappointment for the living。

In order to avoid this cultural gap，Leung Chi Min increases the emotional weight of the third act，Let Mrs. Chen in the underworld shout to her husband who came to visit: "Han Xiang，It’s time to go back，You will catch a cold。”When asked about his wishes after death，Mrs. Chen even said affectionately: "I just hope，Your dad remembers to close the windows and doors before going to bed every day，Turn off the gas stove...hope...hope he takes good care of himself。”

Of course，These tear-jerking lines were never written by Wilder，It also deviates from the intention of his script，Because he tried to present it in the third act，It is not the lasting attachment and memory of the deceased to the living，It is the indifference of the dead towards the living、Forget。

Wilder’s conversion of hot and cold，Constitutes the most shocking theme speech of "Our Town"；A tender presentation of family life in the first two scenes，It is a foreshadowing of anti-climax，Thus more intensely triggering a change in the audience’s understanding。

Such a dramatic effect and the philosophy of life and death behind it，Obviously Liang Zhimin had no intention of transplanting it into the adapted script，Because it does not conform to the warm-hearted line of "Tsui Town"，It also does not conform to the Chinese audience’s Confucian understanding of ghosts and life。

Is Liang Zhimin wrong?？Maybe not。This is his fresh water，His town，His literary metamorphosis。In intercultural drama，The translation and adaptation of the original work is like the wonderful journey of a hyacinth。

"Our Town" in Hong Kong、Experiences in Beijing and Taipei，Explains the unpredictable 188bet online sports betting connection of world literature、Take root and grow，This itself is a Wilder testimony to the vastness of time and space。