《北京人》

Went to watch the play, Beijing Ren, with Papa, Mama n Qing last evening at the Esplanade. It was the longest play I've ever watched. Both Acts 1 and 2 took about 2 hours, then with a 20-minute break, and finally, Act 3 took about 45 minutes or so.

A short summary from the website :
Beijing Ren (the Peking Man) is Cao Yu's own personal favourite play. It bespeaks the fragility and fractured emotions of the people who live and take shelter in it. Set in 1937, a family is torn apart by selfishness, divided loyalties, unrequited and unfulfilling love, and yet unable to escape its own entrapment. This theatre classic exposes the eclipse of traditional feudal families at a time of turbulent change in China.

Sounds quite arty-farty and abstract huh?

Ok, let me put it simply.

The family had a strict father who tried to keep his family and home together. The eldest son, was completely useless... didn't bother to help with the financials of the family, but instead, had an opium addiction and refused to take any risk and get out of his comfort zone. He got a wife whom he didn't love. Instead he was in love with his cousin, who so happened to love him back, and was also living unmarried under the same roof. (and everyone in the family knew they loved each other. duh.)

Naturally, this cousin was a sweet, kind-hearted and well-liked lady, who because of that useless man, chose to stay unmarried, sacrificed her own youth to stay in the house to take care of the aging uncle (who is the father of the useless man).

Oh, and naturally also, the wife is the typical sharp-tongued and horrid daughter-in-law from hell. But in the end, she actually wanted the husband to take in the cousin as his concubine, which she thought would make him happy again. So, she wasn't as bad as everyone thought.

Then the younger sister had a drunk for a husband, who only knew how to talk big, but didn't dare to do anything, which is what we call "all talk no action". There was also the 17-year-old grandson, who had a 18-year-old pregnant wife, but they had nothing much to say to each other except comment about the weather. The young wife liked her husband but he was completely clueless about the marriage and was still behaving like a child.

Simple enough plot?

Maybe so. But the more thoughts given to the different personalities and scenarios from the play, the more one can appreciate the hidden message and meaning that it was trying to convey. Filial piety, forbidden love, sacrifices made for loved ones, and cowardice to stand up for yourself, your life and your own happiness.

Personally, I felt that it was like many "lessons of life" integrated into one. It showed how things were handled, though in the proper and ethical way, it didn't mean that it was the good way, or that it gave the best outcome.

Seems like my view about the play is completely different from the synopsis. But then again, plays are subjective, and I have not read this work, so I didn't know what to expect. But on the positive side, at least I know I learnt something from it and that I'm ever so grateful not to be born at that period of time.