#Cantonese opera; opera; Chinese

[wlwcatalogue]

Female Queer Icons of Hong Kong // Yam Kim Fai (任劍輝) and Pak Suet Sin (白雪仙)

Photo 1: Promotional photo for 1955 contemporary movie The Model and the Car (玉女香車) (no video available) (Source: LCSD Museum Collection Search Portal)

Photo 4: Photo from Sin Fung Ming Opera Troupe's 1958 trip

Photo 5: Photo from a 1962 newspaper feature on Yam, Pak, and others at their (?) summer villa in Central, Hong Kong

Photo 6: Christmas celebrations with Yam, Pak, and their protégés of the Chor Fung Ming Troupe

Far and away the most iconic duo in Cantonese opera, Yam Kim Fai (任劍輝) and Pak Suet Sin (白雪仙) – commonly referred to simply as Yam-Pak (任白) – were famed for their partnership both on and off the stage… Click below to learn more!

Edit on 28/07/2023: Updated to link to a photo of the entrance to the Hong Kong Heritage Museum’s Pop Culture 60+ exhibit, and to add information regarding Yam and Pak's marriage status.

Iconic? How?

Yam-Pak are the face of Cantonese opera; you can't talk about the latter without mentioning the former. It's to the point where a gigantic picture of them graces the entrance to the Hong Kong Heritage Museum’s permanent exhibition on Hong Kong pop culture’s evolution across the past 60 years (“Hong Kong Pop 60+”) - they are the first thing you see upon entering!

Best known as the originators - with Yam playing the male leads and Pak the female leads - of five masterpieces of Cantonese opera, namely:

1. Princess Cheung Ping (帝女花) 2. The Legend of the Purple Hairpin (紫釵記) 3. The Dream Tryst in the Peony Pavilion (牡丹亭驚夢) 4. The Reincarnation of Lady Plum Blossom (再世紅梅記) 5. Butterfly and Red Pear Blossom (蝶影紅梨記) (Note: Princess Cheung Ping, Purple Hairpin, and Butterfly and Red Pear Blossom were made into abridged movie versions, with the Sin Fung Ming troupe members reprising their roles from the theatre productions. Also, the "Fragrant Sacrifice" (香夭) duet from Princess Cheung Ping (movie clip) is one of - if not the most - famous songs in Cantonese opera.)

Yam and Pak were the leading pair and co-founders of the legendary Sin Fung Ming Opera Troupe (仙鳳鳴劇團; 1956-1961), which is widely held to have pushed Cantonese opera forward as an artform due to Pak and scriptwriter Tong Tik Sang’s (唐滌生) emphasis on poetic libretti and adapting source material from Chinese literature and history. (Note: it has been common practice since the 1930's for Cantonese opera troupes to be founded by key actor(s).)

They were also very active in the Hong Kong film industry in the 1950's, being paired in over 40 movies together across roughly 8 years. One of those – the aforementioned Butterfly and Red Pear Blossom (蝶影紅梨記) – is the sole Cantonese opera movie on the Hong Kong Film Archive’s 100-Must See Hong Kong Movies list (IMDB list / archived version of the official PDF). It's a well-deserved inclusion - check out this beautifully-shot dance scene.

Even their post-retirement activities had a significant effect on the industry! In the early 1960’s, they held auditions for prospective students and provided - for free - systematic, hands-on training to those who passed; Yam and Pak even hired other veterans to teach skills they personally were not as familiar with. Prior to this, apprentices were expected to learn primarily from observing their masters, and to pay handsomely for the privilege. Yam-Pak’s methods proved exceedingly effective: the Chor Fung Ming Opera Troupe (雛鳳鳴劇團; 1963-1992) starring their apprentices reigned supreme in the 1970’s-1980’s. Following this success, Cantonese opera institutes - most notably the major 1900s-era guild, the Chinese Artists Association of Hong Kong (八和會館) - started to offer systematic coaching to young hopefuls in the 1980's.

Okay, so why are they queer icons specifically?

The lazy answer is that they're queer icons because nearly all of Yam's roles were male, so Gender is involved by default, and since most hit Cantonese operas of the time were romances, that means you get to see two female actors performing being in love onscreen (and also on stage, but there aren't any video recordings from back then). So far, so Takarazuka Revue.

Female actors playing male roles in Cantonese opera To give some context, each Cantonese opera performer specialises in one of four major role-types, and Yam was a sung (生) - i.e. an actor specialised in playing standard male roles. Female sung were fairly common in the 1910's-1930's due to women being banned from performing with men during that period, but when the ban lifted in the mid-1930's, many troupes shifted towards cis-casting. Yam was pretty much the only one whose popularity survived the transition. Just take a look at the huge number of Cantonese opera movies produced during the 1950’s-1960’s – you’ll be hard-pressed to find a female sung other than Yam, let alone one with top billing. Happily, thanks to Yam's immense popularity, her profilic film career (over 300 movies!), and the prominence of Sin Fung Ming works in the Cantonese opera canon, there has been a resurgence in female sung which endures to this day. Two noteworthy examples are Yam's protégé Sabrina Lee/ Loong Kim Sang (龍劍笙) - a star in her own right - and Joyce Koi/ Koi Ming Fai (蓋鳴暉), one of the biggest names still active in the industry. (Note: perhaps due to cinema being more "realistic" in nature, Yam's early movies often involved her playing female characters cross-dressing as men, including in some Cantonese opera movies. However, she received increasingly more male roles as her fame grew, and from the mid-1950's onwards she was playing male characters onscreen nearly exclusively-- even in non-Cantonese opera movies! See Photo 1 above.)

What sets Yam and Pak apart is that they were particularly known for their chemistry. Long before Sin Fung Ming's formation in 1956, the advertising copy for their first Cantonese opera movie together - Frolicking with a Pretty Maid in the Wineshop (酒樓戲鳳, 1952) - declared "Only this movie has Yam-Pak flirting on the silver screen" (source - 華僑日報 1952/05/23-26). And indeed, they were popular for their flirtatious duets: their Cantonese opera works invariably contained at least one, and such scenes made it into some of non-Cantonese opera (i.e. "contemporary") movies too. In fact, there are not one but two contemporary movies where Yam and Pak's characters are not paired up and yet still sing a duet together in such a way that their significant other(s) become convinced that the two are in romantically interested in each other - see 1952's Lovesick (為情顛倒) and 1956's The Happy Hall (滿堂吉慶) - a weirdly specific situation which doesn't crop up in the other, non-Yam-Pak movies I have seen.

Speaking of contemporary movies, let's talk about a certain plotline that keeps cropping up in works featuring the both of them and where Yam plays a woman! Six of the eleven movies which fit that criteria involve Yam's character cross-dressing as a man (a common characteristic across Yam's handful of female roles), and Pak's character falling for her. Nothing ever comes of it, of course, but, um. It was certainly a trend. Actually, even their very first movie together - 1951's Lucky Strike (福至心靈) - falls into this category.

Such storylines, and the emphasis on their chemistry, are particularly interesting given that both Yam and Pak remained ostensibly unmarried throughout. This was unusual for female performers of their stature, who tended to wed in their twenties, often to fellow-actors or wealthy men (e.g. Hung Sin Nui/紅線女, Fong Yim Fun/芳艷芬, and Tang Pik Wan/鄧碧雲)... In contrast, by the time Yam-Pak retired from the stage in 1961, they were both over 30 years old and without husbands.

Also, did I mention they were popularly believed to be living together? There doesn't seem to be any conclusive evidence either way... although it's a little strange that separate newspaper pictorials depicting "Yam at home" and "Pak at home" seem to be of the same location... however what is conclusive is that they did spent a lot of time together offstage. Pak has talked about how when they had no guests over, Yam would watch TV by herself while Pak was in the living room (source - p93), and protégé Mandy Fung/ Mui Suet Sze (梅雪詩) has said that Pak would sometimes cook for Yam at home (source - 03:53~). They would also celebrate birthdays, New Year's, and Christmas together (see Photo 6 for an example of the latter).

Shortly after Yam's passing in 1989, Pak set up the Yam Kim Fai and Pak Suet Sin Charitable Foundation (任白慈善基金) to support the arts and provide welfare for the elderly. In 1996, Pak made a large donation to Hong Kong University, resulting in one of the buildings being renamed Yam Pak Building (任白樓) in thanks (source).

Thanks for reading! Please feel free to DM me or send an ask if you have any questions, or are just interested in learning more.

If you made it here, have this bonus piece of trivia - Yam and Pak were also well-acquainted with Hong Kong's preeminent queer icon, Leslie Cheung (張國榮), who was a massive fan of theirs. Sadly there don't seem to be any pictures of them before Yam's passing, but here's one of Pak (centre) having afternoon tea with Cheung (left) and his long-term romantic partner Daffy Tong (唐鶴德) (right) at the Cova cafe in the Pacific Place shopping mall.

[vitalconviction]

tseng! I was attempting to make a play off cantonese opera makeup and opera masks to invoke a tiger feeling but I don't think I got it across so I made another version where I removed the added forehead adornments that act mostly as a huadian. open to suggestions for the makeup :)

[bpsimple]

practicing some stuff

[deaths-darling]

I am going to the museum today because there’s a cantonese opera exhibit I want to visit for my theatre project, but I also hope there’s a place for me to just sit and get some work done. I’m very excited.

I’m going alone (and surprisingly, looking forward to it), but my friend may be joining me after her band practice.

I can’t think of a better way to spend an afternoon :)

[metropolitant]

Experience the Vibrancy of Tradition at the 2024 Dragon Boat Festival in Chinatown, Singapore

[eroguron0nsense]

Today's Episode of Shit I Do To Write About Media

So I've been trying to get into Kabuki and Noh (especially Kabuki) to better understand stock characters, stagecraft, famous plays etc and apply that knowledge to my Japanese cinema/anime/Wano Arc analysis since I'm a massive weeb/film bro/Asian Studies Major, but either the free English language sources I'm using suck or I'm just approaching it entirely the wrong way because I now know some of the stories and the basics of kumadori but have understood fuck all about any other aspect of it? Maybe it's the linguistic barriers, which I always knew would be part of it, but I'm decently familiar with Japanese history, lit, and famous plays or narratives that have been adapted into Kabuki and Noh that I did not think I'd be this fucking lost. I have spent the last forever googling "what does red wig mean" and I *can't figure it out*

...The things I put myself through to try and write about one piece

[blackmoonlightexpress]

Luo Yunxi Appreciation Master Post: How can someone be so multi-talented?!

In case you did not already know, here are LYX's many talents. It's insane how many different things he can do at a near-professional level beyond acting!

1. Dance/Ballet

LYX graduated from the Shanghai Theatre Academy majoring in ballet with over 11 years of professional experience.

This is him doing 13+ pirouettes in a performance of Tchaikovsky Rhapsody (full video, he's on the right)

Interpret dance solo (燃烧的火苗) where he won the first gold ever for STA (video, news)

Swan Lake solo at the Taoli Cup Dance Competition in high school (video)

Modern dancing solo (黑白影画) at his graduation performance (video, he's the only guy in white)

He also taught at the Macao Conservatory for a year and danced in front of national leaders in Flying to the Moon (奔月) at the Macao 10th Handover Anniversary (video)

He's super flexible and has a strong core (despite being naturally thin)

In response to request from fans, he performed the Black Moonlight dance in a now viral video on Douyin.

2. Wuxia / Posture

LYX is known as one of the best actors working today for wire work - you can see him here doing 3 consecutive jumps 2-3 stories above ground (compilation videos 1, 2)

He does a lot of his own stunts and is often better (i.e. more graceful) than his stunt double, even though it's really risky and he's sustained some serious injuries from being dropped accidentally (And the Winner is Love: B roll video, actual scene, other BTS, other fight scenes)

He moves with elegance, not just in action sequences (Ashes of Love fight compilation 1, 2), but people have made video compilations of how he walks, kneels, works his sleeves and train

Of course, it's thanks to his dance foundation, but he also puts a lot of hard work into stunt training. Not something a lot of actors do because it eats up time to make more TV or go on variety shows (Ashes of Love stunt training, BTS)

3. Diving

He played a diver once in Flip in Summer (夏日心跳) and actually learned to dive... I mean he's no Tom Daley but this looks pretty good for an amateur... (full video)

4. Voice Acting

He’s always dubbed himself since circa 2018 (with the exception of And the Winner is Love due to Covid logistics issues), which is not the norm in Chinese drama (Ashes of Love dubbing BTS). In fact, he is sometimes the only person in the cast to use his original voice (e.g. in Princess Silver)

He also lends his voice to animations - he was the voice of Viktor in Arcane (BTS video), which received positive feedback (most people didn't realize he was not a professional voice actor)

He appears as a judge and live dubbing performer in Voice Monster alongside the top voice actors in China, Bian Jiang (aka voice of Yehua in Eternal Love, Nan Wangj in the Untamed) and Zhang Jie (aka voice of Donghua in Eternal Love, Sifeng in Love & Redemption). He has so much respect to those working behind the scenes, and it really shows (full video)

5. Singing

Some of you may know that he started out in a boy band called JL with Fu Longfei - these videos didn't age well, but here you go: JL (MV), 我们 (MV)

He has released a number of solo singles, including 缘起 (MV), 星星之火 (live), 不是我 (MV), 等风停 (MV). and 勇 (soundtrack), which he composed and wrote the lyrics himself (these are all mando-pop ballads if that's your jam)

He performed Big Fish 大鱼 at Tmall's 11/11 Festival (live video) - while his rendition is not as powerful as the original, he can hit really high notes with an impressive falsetto - I think it goes up to G5 (one octave above middle C)

He performed Pipa Xing (琵琶行) at the Douyin Festival (live video) - the notable part is his Peking Opera style singing at the end

He occasionally releases covers of songs on Chinese karaoke app Changba or Douyin: 要不然我们就这样一万年 (youtube), 黑月光 (youtube), 不染 (youtube), 山水又一程 (youtube)

He can also sing in other languages, including 喜欢你 in Cantonese (recording) - it's actually a very good cover and his Cantonese pronunciation is >95% accurate - there are parts where you can't tell he's not a native speaker.

6. Musical Instruments

He's an accomplished classically-trained pianist, which you can see in...

JL MV (video, starting around 3:30 mark) - don't mind the makeup, it's from ages ago

Mr Mossie season 2 (video)

Love is Sweet (BTS video) - impromptu jazz, he was deciding which song to play

Fan thank you recording (video)

He also plays the guitar, though probably at an amateur level

7. Music Gaming

During college he was obsessed with this music game called O2Jam (劲乐团) to the point where he created new tracks (i.e. arrange/compose the music) for the company under the username Dinoroy (explained by himself here, videos of him playing).

He became well-known within the fan community as the legendary D神 (D God). There are a lot of funny comments from old players saying that they thought D God is a bitter middle-aged recluse trying to screw them over with difficult tracks (read comments here).

D God was so prolific and reliable that gaming company accepted his submissions without review. Here are some of his best tracks - game arrangement only (Lydia, Croatian Rhapsody, Digital Emotions), music & game arrangement (黑暗魅影), original composition (光之乐章)

8. League of Legends

He's an LOL super fan, commentator, and player since season 2, went to see worlds in person twice, and was a cast member in a gaming show called Beyond It! Hero (episodes here)

He played the 2018 All-Star Event in Las Vegas teaming with reigning world champion Rookie and delivered the final blow that beat the other team 2:1 (video)

He got a quadra kill at a celebrity mobile game even though his team was crap (video clip)

He co-invested 1M RMB in a team led by Misaya 若风 - you can see them playing together in a live broadcast of the mobile game (video)

Update: Our longtime fan boy has become spokesperson of League of Legends and official commentator at the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou! The love is reciprocated!

9. Calligraphy/Drawing/Culture

LYX is known for his Chinese handwriting (he practices regularly) - there's even a font based on his handwriting called 汉仪罗云熙体 (download here)

He does all his own handwriting for marketing materials (e.g. Immortality below) and doesn't need a hand double for scenes where his character is practicing ancient Chinese calligraphy

He's also got amazing drawing skills - check out the Queen of the Night 昙花 he drew as Runyu while waiting around on set in between takes (video)

While he doesn't go on a lot of variety shows, he's often a guest on cultural programs, like the beauty of Chinese Calligraphy 书法之美 (video), Chinese Fans in 指尖上的非遗 (video)

His self-produced Mr. Mossie covers a lot of cultural topics (seasons 1, 2, 3), the segment on Hanfu was featured in the UNESCO Chinese Language Video Festival (video)

10. Photography

Luo Yunxi is often seen taking photos on set with his top-of-the-line Leica camera. Here are some of the photos he has shared:

[ziseviolet]

Does Chinese opera costumes like Beijing’s opera counts as Hanfu? Or they have their own category?

Hi! Thanks for the question, and sorry for taking ages to reply!

As I explained in my post on huafu, Chinese opera costumes are called 戏服/xifu (lit. "theatrical clothing"), and may or may not be counted as hanfu depending on the specific design and construction of the garment. As such, I typically put hanfu and xifu in separate categories, although they may overlap.

The wikipedia article on "Chinese opera costume" puts it succinctly:

Xifu (Chinese: 戏服; pinyin: xìfú), also known as Chinese opera costume in English, are the stage clothes and attire worn in Chinese opera, such as Kunqu, Cantonese opera, Beijing opera, Huangmei opera. Some of these costumes bear some resemblance to the Hanfu system but also show some differences in terms of clothing ornaments and decorations, as well as color system, and in design and construction.

Please check out the rest of the article for a more in-depth explanation of Chinese opera costumes!

For more information and references on Chinese opera costumes, please see my Chinese opera and opera costume tags.

If anyone has more info on this topic, please share! ^^

Hope this helps! (Beijing opera image via douyin)

[colourme-feral]

Random thoughts on Formula 17 (2004)

Thanks to @my-rose-tinted-glasses for letting me know that it's now available on Youtube!

There are 2 Happy Together posters on Tien Tsai's walls.

Ah, MSN Messenger, those were the days.

According to the train ticket, Tien Tsai is from Daxi, Yilan, which is at least an hour and 45 minutes from Taipei.

The romanisation of the station name has since changed from Hsimen to Ximen.

Tien Tsai looks so awkward about this because his name sounds like it could mean genius, which is why he had to emphasise that it was his real name, since it sounds like a fake name. 😂

Tien Tsai's friends tell their stories are in Mandarin, while Jun tells his in Cantonese.

🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈

Yu meets Ray at Shalun beach, which is a noted spot for cruising and nude sunbathing. (more info)

THIS HAND GESTURE WAS SUCH A THROWBACK.

Tieh Nan and Jun speak to each other almost exclusively in Cantonese, while the rest of the characters mostly speak in Mandarin.

Teru teru bozu, is that you?? (more info)

Hello to the bedside Bauhaus book that architects like Tieh Nan will read before bedtime and then place before their empty Ikea picture frames.

His friends are amazing.

Tien Tsai and his friends all wear necklaces with necklaces/one that resembles barbed wire and Tieh Nan prays for a last chance with Tien Tsai. 🤔

The background music used here for Jun's story about Tieh Nan is what is used for Chinese opera.

The fortune teller uses physiognomy to tell Tieh Nan's fortune/fate.

This scene is from the actual first Taipei Pride, held on 1st November 2003, as fact checked by @my-rose-tinted-glasses.

They changed the truck of doom to the scooter of doom, which is very fitting for Taiwan. 😂

The Taiwan Tongzhi Hotline Association (臺灣同志諮詢熱線協會) is included in the film's credits. It is an organisation that provides the LGBT community with peer counseling, support networks, and a community resource center and was the first LGBT non-governmental organization registered in Taiwan. (more info)

[crab-milk]

What is lion dancing? You've mentioned it before, but I don't think I've seen it before

I'm particularly new to the world of lion dancing myself, but I hope this could also help! Lion dancing is a Asian tradition that blends puppetry, martial arts, and dancing that has been around 206 BC. Although it originated from China, countries like Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and South-East Asian countries have their own respective forms of lion dancing. There's actually quite a few types out there, but they can be identified by their martial art forms, lion heads, or nationalities. I'm probably going to info dump now so I'll cut it here for others to read if they'd like.

Before we get into that, I have to clear some common misconceptions. Lions are NOT dragons. Dragons are puppets that generally have 6 or 9 people holding it up on poles and are long (龙 lóng - do you get the joke lol). Foo dogs are technically lions, but the terminology was derived from white people who mistook lions as chow chow dogs.

To clear further confusion, the reason they're called lions is because allegedly, when China started trading with the western world, lions and their pelts were only reserved for the wealthy. Poor people spread word about what lions looked like, and it somehow turned out that way. There's a lot of mythology surrounding why people do lion dances, but the shorter version is that the lion scares off demons and ill-intentioned spirits from villages. It's now a tradition at openings of businesses, weddings, funerals, and festivities.

Most people are generally used to seeing southern Chinese or Cantonese lions. Traditionally, all of these lions are male and have different variations, again based on nationality or style of martial arts that it's derived from. There are northern lions, which have a male and female (red and green bows respectively), as well as Japanese and Korean lions, which are mostly comprised of wooden masks and long fur.

I'll mostly focus on southern Chinese lions, but they're all pretty neat! I mostly practice Fut-San lion dancing, which is a pretty common form. They notably have a ":3" face and the style of martial arts (wushu) is considered a very common standard for southern Chinese lions. Recent variations of these lion heads also have pom-poms as they are derived from Beijing opera costumes. Each lion also has a pointed horn on the top. They can also have fluffy or wiry fur for its eyelids and mouth, but there exists variations with bristles instead, which may signify that the lion is based on a historical military figure (kind of similar to how Beijing opera singers do specific makeup for specific characters).

These are generally more common in other countries. South-east Asian versions of the lions are extremely decorated, intricate, and distinct.

Hok-San lions are also pretty common. They are distinguished by having a "snake" horn which means the horn curls into a circle at the end and a ":)" face.

Despite their differences, all southern lions have a mirror in the front to ward off evil spirits, some horn with a bow attached, and a beard. Traditionally, the mirror is there to scare off spirits who look into it. The horn is generally added after the lion is almost finished being made, and the bow on the horn is added ceremoniously to bless the lion and honor the gods. It is highly recommended people don't touch them, save for the practical reasons of dirtying the mirror or tearing off the delicate horn, but also to avoid getting bad luck from ill-intentioned spirits.

That aside, I'd like to finally to talk about what to do when you see lions! If you have red pockets of money, the lion eats them up (and the performer in the head puts everything in their sweaty shirt). Sometimes, lions go and play with the audience, so feel more than welcome to pet them or play fight with them! Each performer has their own distinct personality that they play in the lion and as a result, have a lot to share with the audience!

I could go on and on, but I'm afraid this is really long for no reason. I hope this info dump helped!

[wlwcatalogue]

Screening Announcement! (Dec 10th & 17th, 2023)

Update as of 6 Dec 2023: There are still decent seats left for the 6pm & 9pm showings on Dec 10th, and for all four screenings on Dec 17th!

If anyone here will be in Hong Kong this December 10th or 17th (both Sundays), and has even a passing interest in Yam Kim Fai and Pak Suet Sin (see my post on them here), queerness in East Asia and/or the 1950’s, or Chinese opera, I strongly urge you to go to one of the eight screenings of the restored version of Butterfly and Red Pear Blossom (蝶影紅梨記)!

Not only is it a great romantic comedy (yes, really), it’s also a very rare opportunity to see a classic Cantonese opera movie – or indeed any black and white Hong Kong movie – with English subtitles and in 4K resolution. For a taster, check out this excellent dance scene (not 4K) and this video from the Hong Kong Film Archive about their restoration efforts!

On top of that, it’ll be showing in the cinema of the storied Sunbeam Theatre (新光戲院), which opened in 1972 and is Hong Kong’s last commercial Cantonese opera theatre. (It must be added that being able to go there will soon become an even rarer opportunity; the venue will sadly be closing in 2025 as heritage is apparently a joke in Hong Kong.)

Here's a quick outline of the story for those who need a bit more convincing:

Penned by the Shakespeare of Cantonese opera, Tong Tik Sang (唐滌生), this retelling of Yuan-dynasty opera Tale of Red Pear Flower (謝金蓮詩酒紅梨花) starts off fairly sober - courtesan So-chau (Pak Suet Sin) and scholar Chiu Yu-chau (Yam Kim Fai) are long-distance lovers, but before they are able to meet in person for the first time, So-chau is forced to fake her death to avoid being sent off to a barbarian warlord. But then it morphs into an unexpected romantic comedy: in her escape, So-chau ends up at a relative’s house… only to find that Chiu will be moving in as a guest there that very night. Unfortunately for her, she’s been forbidden by her uncle from disclosing her identity for fear of disrupting Chiu’s studies, and Chiu is extraordinarily – albeit adorably – dumb. Apart from the two leads being played by women, it’s really easy to read queer themes into how So-chau is desperate with longing and yet unable to directly articulate her desires and identity, permitted only to hint and nudge. (As is the movie as a whole in some ways, since Hong Kong movies of that era were very prudish; even heterosexual kisses weren’t allowed onscreen.) Chiu, kind-hearted but oblivious, echoes the familiar figure of the queer crush. Also, Pak plays So-chau with the thirstiness of a marathon runner who hasn’t had a drop of water since the start of the race, so there’s that to enjoy too :)

Tickets are available on the Cityline website for HK$70 each (linked here – change the language to English by clicking “Eng” in the menu); note that you’ll need to make an account to make a purchase. Dec 10th and Dec 17th will both have four screenings each (12pm, 3pm, 6pm, and 9pm), but seating is very limited so you should definitely buy your ticket sooner rather than later!

[southeastasianists]

Located in the heart of Chinatown, the Majestic blends Western and Chinese architectural styles, and remembers the love story that founded it. 

Built in 1927 by Eu Tong Sen, the Majestic Theatre was formerly known as the Tien Yien Moh Toi Theatre. In addition to being a wealthy tin mining and rubber businessman, Sen was a dedicated husband. He used his wealth to open the theater after his wife was denied entrance to a Cantonese opera. Not only that, but he bought the whole street the Majestic sits on, and an entire opera troupe, just for his wife. 

By 1938, the theater had evolved into a cinema screening Cantonese blockbusters. During the Japanese occupation of Singapore during World War II, the theatre was commandeered and renamed Tai Hwa Opera House and screened Japanese propaganda films. When the war ended, the Majestic Film Company acquired and aptly renamed the building. The theater was not only popular among Singaporean locals, but attracted Hong Kong film stars like Grace Chang, Lin Dai, and Ge Lan. 

Since then, the ownership of the Majestic has changed multiple times. In 1983, Cathay Organisation became the sole owner, screening Chinese films until the late 90s. In the early 2000s, the theatre was renovated into a three-story shopping mall that opened its doors on January 17, 2003. After going up for sale again in 2007, the building was turned into a betting center in 2009, to the dismay of many heritage conservationists and Chinese cultural arts enthusiasts.

The façade of the building is still adorned with tiles, depicting scenes of Cantonese opera and flying dragons. Its architecture reflects its connections to Singapore’s Cantonese community and the labor of love that founded it. 

[queenmelancholy]

Illustration by Jimmy Liao. In graphic novel The Moon Forgets. 

INTRO POST

Hi! Nice to meet you here and thanks for stopping by. Read more after the break line :)

My blog

Original posts about Thomas Barrow, the character who got me here in the first place

Reblogs of the things I like (see lists below)

Personal rambles

My basic info  I’m 26, from Hong Kong. INTP 5w4 for your reference. I’ve just completed my Masters in Architecture, but I only ever wanted to live in peace in a lakeside cottage surrounded by trees.

My interests Cinema, music, art, history, psychology, science, and philosophy

My languages  I can read English, traditional and simplified Chinese, and a bit of Japanese. I speak Cantonese, English, and Mandarin. I sing in Gibberish.

My ask box is always open! I have an AO3 account under the same name: QueenMelancholy It’s ok to tag me in tag games or picrew chains. They're fun XD

(Some final words at the end of this post)

Favourite films

On self

The Matrix Trilogy

Ghost in the Shell (1995)

Her

A.I. Artificial Intelligence 

Ex Machina

Memento

On ideals 

Star Wars (I-VI)

X-Men (Original Trilogy)

The Dark Knight

Cube

Dead Poets Society

The Legend of 1900 [this one holds a really special place in my heart]

On love

Cinema Paradiso

Arrival

Princess Mononoke

The Corpse Bride

Amélie

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Favourite TV series

Downton Abbey

Breaking Bad

Succession

Dark

Black Mirror

Westworld

Fullmetal Alchemist 

Neon Genesis Evangelion

Death Note 

Favourite musicals

The Phantom of the Opera 

Les Miserables

Wicked

Notre Dame de Paris 

Favourite books

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

1984 by George Orwell

Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Angels and Demons by Dan Brown

The Stranger (L'Étranger) by Albert Camus

The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger

Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Rashomon and Other Stories by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Twilight of the Idols by Friedrich Nietzsche

Favourite characters

Thomas Barrow

Erik (The Phantom)

Credence Barebone

Anakin Skywalker

Batman & Joker

Xavier & Magneto

Favourite soundtracks

Film music collection by Ennio Morricone [this man is a legend]

“On the Nature of Daylight” by Max Richter

“In the Mood for Love” by Shigeru Umebayashi

“Por una Cabeza” by Carlos Gardel

“Floating Museum” & "Nightstalker" by Kenji Kawai

"Palladio" by Karl Jenkins

Les Choristes OST by Bruno Coulais

Downton Abbey OST by John Lunn

Fantastic Beasts OST by James Newton Howard

Succession OST by Nicholas Britell

Favourite songs

“Piano Man” by Billy Joel 

“7 Years” by Lukas Graham

“The Impossible Dream” by Mitch Leigh

“I Want Something Just Like This” by The Chainsmokers and Coldplay 

“What’s Up” by 4 Non Blondes

“Viva Forever” by Spice Girls

“Space Oddity” by David Bowie

“Beautiful in White” by Shane Filan

“The Dark Side of the Moon” album by Pink Floyd

English songs: Coldplay, Adele, Elton John, Nick Drake

Cantopop: Eason Chan, Beyond, Tat Ming Pair, Faye Wong

French songs: Françoise Hardy

Some final words

While I am non-conforming in many ways, I do not wish to be burdened with labels or pronouns - to define is to limit. You may call me whichever way you prefer (it doesn’t really matter in this virtual space anyway).

No DNIs here. Just remember to be kind and respectful. 

That’s it, I think. Thanks for reading this far. 

[sugarsweb]

HEADCANONS! Fine & GN!Reader who does Chinese opera. (Originally posted Sep 30th)

A/N : Thank you so much for your request! I'm so sorry I got to it so late, and sorry it's so short; I got really stuck on it since I don't know much about Chinese opera, so I did a bit of research. I focused mostly on Cantonese opera since there were so many subgenres, I hope that’s alright! If anything is off or considered offensive, please let me know and I will take the post down! Sources I used are at the end of the post. Despite the initial struggle, this was really fun to write nevertheless! I hope you enjoy, have a good day/night as well! Headcanons are under the cut (Platonic)

Eichi is absolutely in love with how you dance - or more accurately, the way you move your hands, eyes, and your walking techniques to tell your story

He talks to Wataru about your latest concert, telling him that they have to incorporate some of your hand movements for their own shows 

Wataru himself loves your voice

Your vocal projections are absolutely perfect to him, and he loves the costumes you wear. Sometimes he’ll help you make them!

Yuzuru pays a lot of attention to the stories you tell through your performances

He appreciates the virtues reflected in your pieces, and sometimes will talk to you before or after the show to discuss the meaning of them with you

Tori, just like Wataru, adores the costumes you wear as well

Sometimes it can get annoying but he will ask millions of questions about your makeup, singing, dancing, literally anything you can think of!

Oh, red makeup represents what? Oh, what about your costume? Wait, what was the red makeup again? …And it goes on and on and on

Tori will also want to have his own costume; once, you caught him trying to put makeup on like how you wear it when you sing

You best believe the entirety of Fine comes to watch all your performances! Whether you’ve invited them or not, you’ll come across them within the crowd

Each and every one of them are mesmerised by you and the rest of the cast, each performance blows them away

The sets you use inspire them to incorporate more lively colours in their own unit’s shows as well (if you work sets that are less complicated, the costumes you use are incorporated instead)

Wataru is amazed at how much emotion you can convey through eye movement alone, instead of using your words for acting - one time he followed you around for thirty minutes begging for you to show him how you do it 

Yuzuru will give you massages after your shows - your body is usually stiff and sore afterwards since the performances can be demanding (especially if you wear platform shoes!) 

Tori will sit next to you while you put on your makeup, which can sometimes take a few hours. Rest assured, he will stay put the entire time but he will not be quiet

They’re all in awe at your dedication to what you do - it took you years to get the point where you’re at today, and they feel pride bloom in their chest when they think of your hard work

[ Source 1 / Source 2 / Source 3 / Source 4 ]

[seadragon-sailing]

Still need to get used to drawing Lee in the Treasure Island style, but I think I’m slowly getting the hang of it.  What better way to get my hand used to his shapes than painstakingly drawing him performing!  And yes, Lee puts on a very convincing female voice when he does Cantonese Opera (only men were allowed to be in Chinese opera during that time, so it’s just part of the role).  He’s also a professional in the art of “water sleeves”, a dance that is a very big part in Chinese Opera in general.

As for the extra bit, this was more of an impulsive sketch.  Lee’s probably going to have a bit of trouble getting along with some of the main cast crew.  He doesn’t like the fact that Kyung was stuck on a boat with a bunch of strange men, that’s all.

[movietonight]

Okay so in mash they often play Japanese covers of American songs right? This was a super common thing in Japan at the same, genres like enka and kayōkyoku were mixing traditional Japanese music with Jazz, Latin and Country music, often covering songs in a mix of Japanese and English or Spanish (occasionally there is a bit of German).

Except China was doing the same thing with shídàiqǔ music (Jyut Jyu Si Doi Kuk in Cantonese, apparently). Obviously China was considered the enemy but we know that half the unit doesn't care about Cold War politics and they often deal with the black market.

What I am suggesting is that they should have gotten some Chinese records to listen to. And because continuity is often ignored on the show anyway it should have been specifically this cover from the opera Carmen.