"The Phantom's Revenge": a traditional Chinese fairy tale was presented in Moscow.

The traditional Chinese fairy tale "The Phantom's Revenge" was presented in Moscow. These are the first performances in our country by a Cantonese opera troupe. This ancient form of performing arts combines singing and acrobatics, comedy and drama. Yulia Kundryukova immersed herself in the atmosphere of the Eastern theater. The premiere on the Russian stage is just hours away. Right now, a technical rehearsal is taking place without costumes to check the lights, sound, feel the stage, and soon the actors will face a long and complex stage makeup process. Cantonese opera has never been heard in Moscow before, despite the genre having a long history. The negotiations for the tour took a long time, and eventually even the Chinese government provided support. "We have done something truly grand: to bring a Chinese theater troupe of thirty people - quite a large show," shared the representative of the Chinese government organization The Beijing Society of Hong Kong, Evgeny Shabanov. The music is always live, with the orchestra right on stage. The traditional Chinese instruments were brought by the musicians, while the rest were provided here. Cantonese opera requires the artists to sing, dance, and also master traditional martial arts. The script of this play, "The Phantom's Revenge on the Evil Lover," was written by Professor Yuen Siu Fai. He still performs in plays and has been teaching the basics of Cantonese opera for many years, where the Cantonese dialect from southern China is spoken. "This play is a dark comedy. It may seem funny on the surface, but at its core lies tragedy. In reality, this play raises an important social issue. In the past, women in Chinese society were oppressed, with men dominating over them. This play is a defense of women," said director, playwright, and actor Yuen Siu Fai. The director plays the main role in this play. The merchant Liu Junyan stays overnight in a hotel room where he encounters the ghost of a woman who was betrayed and deceived by her husband, leading her to take her own life. Now, moved by sympathy, the merchant wants to help the ghost punish the wrongdoer. The makeup for the actors is intricate, although each of them is skilled in this art. The girl playing the ghost, young actress Lun Tze-kei, spends about half an hour on makeup, using white, black, and red colors. "This is my first time in Russia, and this is the first premiere of Cantonese opera in this country, so I am a bit nervous, but we are well-prepared, and I am excited about this state," confessed actress Lun Tze-kei. There are usually around ten characters in Cantonese opera. They are like masks with specific characteristics and clear tasks. But from this specificity arises imagery and the philosophy of concepts like good, evil, friendship, revenge, and sacrifice. "In Chinese opera, everything is abstract, that's its main feature. When someone is riding a horse, we don't see the horse. But the artist creates the image of riding. Besides, the image of the horse can carry deep meaning," explained producer Tan Kungpik. The external events in this story may seem amusing and evoke laughter. But beyond the important social theme of women's protection, another theme familiar to Russian culture emerges in the play: what a "little person" is capable of. The spirit that thirsts for justice alone can be enough to achieve the impossible.

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