Huo Xiaoyu (Huo Xiaoyu)
Overview. Huo Xiaoyu is a tragedy adapted from the Tang-dynasty chuanqi tale "The Tale of Huo Xiaoyu" by Jiang Fang, telling of the love and abandonment between Huo Xiaoyu and the poet Li Yi.
Synopsis. The gifted scholar Li Yi of Longxi and the courtesan Huo Xiaoyu fall in love and pledge themselves to each other, but because of the barrier of social rank Li Yi marries another — the daughter of Vice-Minister Lu — and betrays Xiaoyu. Xiaoyu, worn down by longing, falls gravely ill; on her deathbed she denounces Li Yi's faithlessness and dies with her grievance unredressed. The play depicts the misery and devotion of a woman abandoned in feudal society.
Artistic Features. Huo Xiaoyu is performed by the qingyi (principal female) role; the long erhuang aria in the scene of Xiaoyu on her deathbed is plaintive and heart-rending, one of the most moving scenes in the qingyi tragic repertoire.
Why Watch. With the tragic tension of "the devoted woman and the faithless man," Huo Xiaoyu has become a classic of the traditional Peking Opera tragedy.
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