Farewell My Concubine (Bawang Bie Ji)
Overview. Farewell My Concubine is one of the Mei-school classic masterpieces performed by the great Peking Opera artist Mei Lanfang. The protagonist is Consort Yu (Yu Ji), beloved concubine of Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Western Chu.
Synopsis. At the end of the Qin, Chu and Han contended. Han Xin sends Li Zuoche (a defector) to trick Xiang Yu into advancing; at the Nine-mile Mountain, a ten-sided ambush traps Xiang Yu at Gaixia. Unable to break out, and hearing the songs of Chu on all sides that make him suspect his army has all deserted to Han, Xiang Yu drinks with Consort Yu in his camp to bid farewell. Consort Yu commits suicide; Xiang Yu breaks out, loses his way, reaches the Wu River, feels he has no face to see the elders of Jiangdong, and takes his own life by the river.
Artistic Features. The play is a Mei-school pinnacle: Consort Yu's sword dance and the Farewell duet embody refined, sorrowful beauty. The songs of Chu on all sides motif and the final sword dance are among the most iconic images in all Peking Opera.
Why Watch. Farewell My Concubine is the quintessential Peking Opera tragedy of love and honour at the fall of a kingdom, and a work every Mei-school successor must master.
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