Black Slave's Cry to Heaven (simplified Chinese:黑奴吁天录; traditional Chinese:黑奴籲天錄; pinyin:Hēinú Yūtiān Lù) was a 1907 stage play performed by the Spring Willow Society, a Chinese student troupe, in Tokyo, Japan. Adapted by Zeng Xiaogu from a translation of Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, the play told the mistreatment of two people, Eliza and George, and their escape from slavery.
Modified to allegorically call attention to the the experiences of Chinese migrants in the United States, Black Slave's Cry to Heaven was innovative in its use of spoken dialogue and realistic set designs. Performed twice at the Hongō-za theatre, the show was well received by critics and audiences. Although the script to has been lost, the play has inspired subsequent works. Due to its technical innovations and nationalist themes, Black Slave's Cry to Heaven has been canonized as the first modern Chinese drama.
Synopsis
The American farmer Arthur Shelby and his wife Emily own several slaves, including Tom, Eliza, and Eliza's son Harry. They also owe a large amount of money to the slave trader Haley, who pressures them to pay immediately. The Shelbies thus offer him their slaves. Meanwhile, at a party at the Wilson Factory, the worker George is denied recognition for his hard work when his owner takes away his award. When he returns home, he learns from his wife Eliza that Harry is to be sold to Haley. Crying in each other's arms, they decide to run away. That night, taking advantage of a raucous crowd, the slaves make a bid for freedom. They are chased by hunters, including George's owner, but escape after killing several of their pursuers.[a]
Background
Following a series of military defeats against Western powers and Japan, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries the Qing dynasty sought to implement reform.[1] Drama took a special place in this agenda, as it was perceived as being better able to reach the common person, without the educational requirements of the written word. In a 1905 essay, the philosopher Chen Duxiu argued, "theater is a big school for the world, and actors are teachers of the people."[2] Spoken-word drama, which had been introduced to China through cultural interchange, was perceived as ideal for such reform.[3]
Parallel to this development, a large number of Chinese students began to take their studies in Japan. From three in 1896, the number of Chinese students in Japan increased to 1,000 in 1903 and between 8,000 and 9,000 in 1907. Japan was seen as a cheaper alternative to studying in Europe or the United States; it was also perceived as more familiar in its language and culture.[4] Although these students were generally not in Japan to study theatre, many attended drama performances to hone their language skills.[5]
Production
Black Slave's Cry to Heaven was put on by the Spring Willow Society (春柳社).[6] Established in late 1906,[5] this Tokyo-based group of Chinese students was guided by the Japanese dramatist Fujisawa Asajirō[ja].[7] Drawing from the conventions of shinpa, a Japanese form of spoken-word drama, in early 1907 they troupe had performed the third act of Alexandre Dumas fils' The Lady of the Camellias (1852).[8] As a follow-up to this successful performance, the troupe decided to do a larger show, for which it brought in new members.[9]
For this performance, the Spring Willow Society decided to adapt an American novel: Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852).[9] The script to this play in five acts was penned by Zeng Xiaogu, a student of the Tokyo School of Fine Arts, based on the first five chapters of a Chinese-language translation by Lin Shu and Wei Yi that had been published in 1901.[10] In his foreword, Lin drew parallels between the African-American slaves and the experiences of Chinese migrants in the United States;[b][7] this allegorical approach was also taken by the stageplay.[11] Such a reliance on a detailed script differed from most contemporary Chinese theatre, wherein stories were presented as general synopses and filled out by actors through improvisation.[12]
The party at the Wilson Factory; Black Slave's Cry to Heaven included several elements not present in the source novel.
Generally, Black Slave's Cry to Heaven followed the first five chapters of the source novel before skipping to its seventeenth chapter.[13] To advance its mission, the play experienced several modifications during the adaptation process. It focused not on the titular Uncle Tom, but on the slaves George and Eliza.[14] Throughout the story, Christian allegories were removed,[15] while a scene in which local and foreign guests– including an Indian marquis and a Japanese dignitary– attend a party at the Wilson Factory was added.[16] Furthermore, rather than be emancipated by an outsider, the slaves free themselves, with Tom– beaten to death in the novel– joining George and Eliza during their bid for freedom.[c][17] The drama scholar Shiao-ling Yu writes that these changes gave the play a clear message: "the Chinese people must resist imperialist aggression if they hope to be free."[15]
Li Shutong served as stage designer for Black Slave's Cry to Heaven, producing scenery and costumes that clearly distinguished between settings and differentiated slave owners and slaves.[12] Such scenery and costumes, as well as makeup, differed from the more abstract forms used in traditional theatre.[18] Also unlike traditional Chinese theatre, the show employed minimal dancing or singing, featuring these only in the second-act party scene.[18] It also omitted soliloquies and asides, focusing on naturalistic dialogue.[12] In a 1908 interview, Spring Willow Society member Lu Jingruo argued that "traditional Chinese [performing arts] was bound to die out, to be replaced by a new kind of drama [...] enthusiastically received by the populace".[19]
All members of the Spring Willow Society were men, and thus Black Slave's Cry to Heaven male actors in both male and female roles; such an arrangement was standard in contemporary Chinese theatre.[20] The leading character, the slave George Harris, was portrayed by Xie Kangbai. Li Shutong took the role of Emily Shelby, with Huang Nannan portraying her husband Arthur. Ouyang Yuqian took the role of an enslaved woman.[7] Several actors are credited only with their stage names; these included the ones portraying Uncle Tom (Cunwu) and Eliza (Yangang).[21] Rehearsals were held over the course of two months, twice per week, under the direction of Fujisawa.[22]
Performance and reception
Performance of Black Slave's Cry to Heaven (1907)
Advertising for Black Slave's Cry to Heaven began in May 1907.[14] Posters were prepared, depicting a collage of three scenes– Shelby agreeing to sell his slaves, Eliza and George together, and George fighting the slavehunters– as well as production credits.[d][23] Advertisements emphasized that the performance was intended to highlight the plight of Chinese workers who had been affected by the Chinese Exclusion Act.[14] Quoting Lin Shu's preface, the poster wrote:
The yellow people (in the US) are probably treated worse than the blacks. But our country’s power is weak, and our convoys are cowardly and afraid of arguing with the Americans. Furthermore, no educated person has recorded what has happened, and I have no way to gain factual knowledge. The only precedent I can rely on is A Black Slave’s Cry to Heaven ... the miseries of the blacks are depicted in detail. This is not because I am especially versed in depicting sadness; I am merely transcribing what is contained in the original work. And the prospect of the imminent demise of the yellow race has made me even sadder.[24]
Black Slave's Cry to Heaven had two showings at the Hongō-za theatre, on 1 and 2 June 1907.[12] Located in Tokyo's university district, the prestigious Hongō-za theatre had premièred numerous works of shinpa and had a capacity of 1,500 people.[25] The stage was rented for ¥500 (equivalent to ¥682,000 in 2019),[26] with tickets priced at ¥0.50 (equivalent to ¥680 in 2019); the first 300 purchasers received a small gift. The play was regarded as successful, with Ouyang Yuqian recalling that it had not lost money,[27] and contemporary reviewers reporting a packed house.[28]
Critical reviews in the Japanese press were favourable,[12] with laudatory reviews in all of Tokyo's major newspapers.[26] The theatre critic Ihara Seiseian viewed its stage design as better than those of Japanese amateur troupes, while the actor Doi Shunsho declared the acting to be better than that of contemporary shinpa stars.[29] The reviewer for the Asahi Shimbun praised the acting, giving particular attention to those portraying the slaves.[30] Ouyang Yuqian later described the play as the "most unforgettable experience of his life",[31] and recalled that audiences "shed tears for Uncle Tom's and George Harris' misfortune and gnashed their teeth in hatred of slave owners."[32]
Using a different script, Black Slave's Cry to Heaven was staged by Wang Zhongsheng at the Lyceum Theatre in Shanghai in October 1908;[33] the dramatist Ren Tianzhi also considered performing the Spring Willow Society's version in the city.[27] Unlike the Tokyo performance, the acting in this version was done in a Peking opera style. However, other elements of Western dramaturgy were retained. The work was divided into clear acts, with specific sets and setpieces, and emphasis was given to realistic scenery and lighting.[34] Audience reception appears to have been negative; the drama historian Siyuan Liu attributes this to the need to pause between scenes, an element not found in traditional theatre.[33]
Legacy
Act 5, depicting the escape of the slaves; its nationalist themes contributed to Black Slave's Cry to Heaven being recognized as the first modern Chinese drama.
Black Slave's Cry to Heaven has been recognized as the first modern Chinese drama,[35] gaining this recognition based on a history of modern Chinese drama prepared in 1957 by dramatists including Tian Han and Ouyang Yuqian.[e][36] Earlier performances by European expatriate communities are recorded, but had little effect on the Chinese community.[2] Meanwhile, several Chinese dramatists had attempted to implement reform through the incorporation of elements of western dramaturgy into Peking opera, such as Wang Xiaonong in his Reap What You Sow (1904).[37] The literature scholar Shouhua Qi writes, that "none of the early drama reform endeavours ... were as self-conscious, extensive, and indeed revolutionary as those mounted by the young students of the Spring Willow Society in 1907."[37]
In the years following Black Slave's Cry to Heaven, spoken-word dramas became more common, with university troupes performing several adaptations of foreign works in Shanghai, Beijing, Nanjing, and Suzhou;[38] this included the Spring Willow Society, which staged a well-received adaptation of Victorien Sardou's La Tosca (1852) in Tokyo in 1909.[39] Members of the Society returned to China after their studies, with alumni such as Lu Jingruo, Ouyang Yuqian, and Wang Zhongsheng developing a hybrid of traditional and modern dramatic forms known as civilized drama. Following the New Culture Movement, as well as the introduction of realism as taught by Henrik Ibsen, traditional influences were weaned out to establish the modern form known as huaju.[26]
In commemoration of Black Slave's Cry to Heaven, several further adaptations of Uncle Tom's Cabin have been written and produced on significant anniversaries.[2] In 1958, to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of modern drama in China, Ouyang Yuqian produced Regret of the Black Slaves (黑奴恨). While this adaptation again presented the slaves as freeing themselves, it put greater emphasis on resistance and class struggle while simultaneously decrying racism in the United States.[40] For the centenary of the performance, the Shanghai-based dramatist Nick Rongjun Yu wrote a third adaptation: Cry to Heaven (吁天; 籲天, 2007). Directed by Chen Xinyi, this play in six acts depicted the evolution of modern drama in China alongside and in parallel with the experiences of the novel's slaves.[41] The centenary was also commemorated with Search for Spring Willow Society (2007), a performance by the Beijing-based Tufeng Drama Troupe that dramatized the making of Black Slave's Cry to Heaven.[42]
↑ Lin regularly wrote introductions that placed his translations within the context of providing "intimate knowledge of the strengths and ills of Western societies", with a particular focus on said societies' exploitation of other races (Jin 2014, p.107). His translation of Uncle Tom's Cabin, also titled Black Slave's Cry to Heaven, was a commercial success (Liu 2007, p.415) and republished in 1904 and 1905 (Jin 2014, p.107).
↑ In an essay on the production of Black Slave's Cry to Heaven, Ouyang (1984, p.147) wrote that this was intended to facilitate the ending while providing audiences with a sense of relief.
↑ Liu (2013, p.9) writes that the selection of this play for canonization was calculated, as it "erased the contested hybridity of spoken theatre's birth cycle" while simultaneously emphasizing a work with a nationalistic message.
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