"A Critique of the Performance of 'Expectation' "1
「期待」演播的结果是良好的。 这是一个无可否认的事实。 在一般听众的心目中, 这演播是成功的。 在华埠以往的播音剧比较起来,这演播是一个很显著的突出。 以一般的立场来说,本来是不再需要批评,而且大体上是无可指摘的。 但是以艺术的眼光来分析, 美中的不足自然有出现的地方。 这缺点,不是工作者的能力未足,而是因为经验少。 许多地方还未能清楚地看出,为完成艺术的使命,我们不惜公诚作深澈的探求和检讨,希望能发见一些自己还未看到的不足地方, 以求改进。 这之先,我诚心恭祝这班青年努力的成功。
剧本是构成播音剧的骨格。 这又可分为三个组成的因素,一是故事的材料,二是故事的结构,三是言语的组织。「期待」的材料简单,针对现实的环境, 虽然只是短时间的写实, 但因为他的平凡化,简单化,使听众易于明白,了解和追随,这是「期待」的最成功处。 这突出的好处会把普通听众的感情盖以好感, 这就是我所说的无可指摘的原因。「期待」的材料虽好, 但结构却过于简陋,这一点在播音剧中比其他种戏剧都较重要,因为播音剧要有特殊的悬吊结构,才能引起追随的兴趣,也才具有艺术的质素。 只要是合理,我们不需要把故事结构得过于简单的,这一点是播音剧作者应该非常注意的地方。 「期待」分成三个独立的情节。 第一个情节只是导引故事和形成其气氛,像文章的概引,歌剧中的序乐 (overture)。 在这里,作者应该引起 Uncle Jim 这个角色, 这样到第二情节时,不会觉得过于突然,而人物的交代也很清楚,而事实上这人物占有一个重要的角色。 故此说来, 更简单一点,就只剩下两个重要的情节了。 这两个情节是绝对不同的, 可以说是对立的。 前一个是 “叔” (恕不详姓名)的别离写实。 本来作者是想以他来衬出正主人翁的,但是因为过于侧重于 “叔” 的 本人, 所以弄巧反拙。 后一个是 「期待」直白的叙事描写,非常成功。 但是把这两个情节联起来时, 中间有条无可接连的巨沟,作者没有筑起一座桥来,故事的结构因此失了平衡。 这是一件非常可惜的事。
语是描写性格的唯一方法, 但是该作者忽视了。 除了女孙外,其他的性格都很模糊。 虽然作者曾几次努力想把 “老爷” 画出来,但是过重的叙事描写又把一切盖住了。 作者的角色语言有点生硬,而加插的英语 似乎有许多也很勉强。
“嫂” 的优良表演把 「期待」在成功的路上推上好几步。 她对丈夫的期待比家中各人都深切,所以她的成功对整个剧的成功有很大的影响。 在第三个情节, 即是最后的一个中,她占了整个情节的位置, 所以她有足够的时间和机会来抒表她的感情。 她不曾把听众的情绪放松过,毫无情地要听众跟着她来流眼泪。 可惜在最末处她还未有尽量发扬她那时应有的情绪。 除了这点稍逊的外,她的表演差不多是绝对的成功。 但是在第一和第二个情节中, 她所应用的感情太重,至使声音变成哭泣的悲调,听来固然失了美感,就是她在悲哀的情况下也是同样过份的。 而事实上,人为悲伤所变换的声调也只是片刻的,演员不应该忘记他所表演的十数分钟是代表一个相当不同的长时间的。 这种悲哀的声调,在音乐中表现得最为圆满,悲哀的时候,音乐的声音不是苦涩的嘈声, 而是美妙的清音。
女孩的音调和语气都很成功,大概这个角色没有什么难表演的变态激情,不过她的表演符合性格年龄是不能抹煞的成功。 “老爷” 是第二个情节的主人翁。 他的声调和语气不曾帮助表现出他对儿子的期待。 他所发出来的言语, 差不多每个字都有一个重音,这是一种很坏的习惯。 (似乎大多数演员在初时读剧词都有这种坏习惯。 原因大概是把做戏和做人分得太清楚, 过于清楚)。 他的感情很少, 有的也颇勉强和不自然。 而他又不会应用老年人所常有的叹惜字句,所以他的完整的性格更难形成。 他的发音常杂着土音, 而 “叔” 的 发音在这方面更加显著。 虽然这样批评似乎有点太那个, 但是想来这不是作者的过度写实吧。
既然整个剧是以广州语音为标准, 这样夹杂的土音会产生很大的反感。 就是以播音剧的功效来说,言语教育也得实事求是。 (戏剧和人生是有分别的。 戏剧是人生的代表, 所以戏剧是一种艺术。 过于真实的描写对艺术的价值是有损的。) “叔” 的感情比他父亲的还差, 因为剧本的关系, 他们父子间的对话有点失常。好像演员把它读完了就了事似的, 听来生硬,失了连贯是必然的现象,而缺乏说某句话所具有的感情和语气是他们表演失败的主要因素。“叔” 本来是他的失踪大哥的借身,但是却没有表现出来。 又如他在父亲的面前说谎时, 就简直不合情理。 因为他父亲所问的话是骤然的,在他那时的情况,他断不会这样迅速就有谎话说出来,而且又是那么平淡无奇。 至于他道别的一节,本来应该是充满着感情的,但是他却开口说快话,把自己的处境也忘了。
音乐的功用不只是分段和配合情节,同时还用来制成各种特殊的感情,这点应用能把戏剧的情绪达到圆满。 而 「期待」的工作者对这不大够工夫,有许多情节的音乐过底。 尤其是在最后的一个情节中,当 “嫂” 独自悲叹和哀祷时,有许多处激情的地方是需要把音乐提高的。 「期待」所选用的主题歌和剧的气氛很溶和,这是值得称赞的。 在我先前所说的巨沟,如果能够以音乐来连结一下第二和第三个情节时,或许结构不会过于失败。 但是没有,所以就连时间也不曾被划开,弄得不明白,到底 “嫂” 的独诉是在 “叔” 别后的那短刹那间,还是再过几天呢,这聴众在先简直无从知道,因为我们听到了 “叔” 的离别后,就只有片刻的默静,而第三个情节跟着就起了。 这种不能使听众明白的地方是播声剧的最大缺点。 除了音乐外, 配音很少,只有门声,汽车角号声和少许的脚步声及门铃声。 门声是被一般初干者过度滥用的,须知门不是处处都有,而且有又不是常关的, 所以一个角色的出入不须每次都用门声来表明。
勿论导演是个体还是集体,「期待」的导演是比其他各部最为落后的。 播音剧的导演是整个演出的统一主宰, 而导演是一种纯正的艺术的。
他的工作是联系, 平衡, 匀滑, 调整整个剧的演出。 所以是一种技术和技巧的问题。 现在我只有根据着自己记忆的残影,而「期待」的脱节,失调和平衡又这么多,所以我不想逐个举例和说明解释。 不过有两个极显明的地方我想说说,在 “叔” 与其父谈话的时候,室外传来的汽车角号声似乎对 “叔” 没有半点感触,他毫无警觉地说他的话,好像那是过往街上的车声一样,而不是催他别离刚会的家人的信号。 这似乎太不近人情,他应该沈静片刻,最好把所说的话中断,过一刻才继续说, 或进一步作个明白的解释,使听众也有点头绪。 又如最后的一节里,当时所播出的是这样,当 “嫂” 独自悲诉后, 接着有门铃声响, 她迅速开了门, 把电报接在手中,立刻就叫出她的丈夫要回来了。 这样的迅速的行动使我莫名其妙, 因为这节是剧的最高潮,情绪当然要提得特别高。 悬吊的演进也应有适宜的处理,不可太长,使听众失望而减了随起的激烈情绪,但也不可像「期待」播演那么短,使听众的情绪还未达到最高点而死去。 我以为剧情的演进应该这样,当她在独自悲诉的时候,音乐随之而起。 至激情时,音乐也随着转烈,直至她诉说之末,音乐更强,强度几乎连人声也要盖上。 过了一刻,音乐沈得很低微,只有悲调还绕在空中 。 然后门铃声响, 她默静半晌才问是谁,声音还涵蕴着些微的悲调。 然后走上几步去开门, 因为她不会就站在门边哭诉的。 当她接到电报时, 音乐逐渐转强, 她理应手拿电报片刻,再匆忙地开了 (用纸声表示),她要先 ”呀” 地低呌一声,再来片刻的静寂,只有音乐转得高强。 这时她大概是会重读一次的,然后才大声呼叫起来。 音乐自然也跟着再提高了。
综上来说, 「期待」演播最成功的部分是故事的材料和两个女演员。 失败的地方,最大的是导演。整个来说,这次的演播的成绩很不错,很能博得听众的同情,虽然在技巧上还需要更努力的改进, 但是我们对它有很大的期望。 为剧运的前途, 我们应该恭祝他们这次演播的成功。
The performance result of “Expectation” is good. This is an undeniable fact. In the eyes of the general audience, the performance was a success. Compared with previous radio dramas in Chinatown, this performance is a very notable breakthrough. From a general standpoint, there is no need for criticism and it is generally flawless. However, from an artistic perspective, there are natural flaws. This shortcoming is not due to a lack of ability on the part of the performers, but due to a lack of experience. Many aspects have not been clearly comprehensible. In order to fulfill the mission of art, we do not hesitate to sincerely conduct in-depth exploration and review, hoping to discover some unforseenable shortcomings in order for us to improve. First of all, I sincerely wish success for this group of young people in their efforts.
The script is the skeleton of radio drama. This can then be divided into three components: one is the content of the story, the other is the structure of the story, and the third is the organization of speech. The content is plain and simple and is aimed at a realistic environment. Although it is only a short moment of realism, how it has been rendered ordinary and simplified, the audience is able to comprehend, understand and follow. This is the most successful aspect of "Expectation". The advantage of this breakthrough will instill good feelings in the general audience with a favorable impression, which is the reason I said it is flawless. Although the content of "Expectation" is good, the structure is too simple. This aspect is more important in radio dramas than other types of dramas because radio dramas need a special suspension structure to stimulate followers' interest, thus also entailing artistic quality. As long as it is reasonable, we need not overly simplify the story structure. This is something that radio dramatists should pay great attention to. "Expectation" is divided into three separate scenes. The first scene only introduces the story and builds its atmosphere, like an introduction to an article or an overture in an opera. Here, the author should introduce the character of Uncle Jim, so that it will not occur to be too sudden when he appears in the second scene, and the explanation of the character will be very clear. In fact, this character plays an important role. Therefore, to simply put, there are only two important scenes remaining. These two scenes are absolutely different and can be said to be opposites. The former is a realistic portrayal of separation about a certain "Uncle" (pardon for the unidentified name). Originally, the author wanted to accentuate the main protagonist through him, but due to the author’s over emphasis on the "uncle" himself, it became counterproductive. The latter is a straightforward narrative description of "Expectation", which is very successful. But when connecting these two scenes, there is a huge gap in the middle that is unconnectable. The author did not provide a bridge, and the structure of the story was therefore out of balance. This is a great pity.
Language is the only way to describe personality, but this author has neglected this. Except for the granddaughter, the other personalities are very vague. Although the author has tried several times to portray the "Master", the overly heavy narrative description obscured everything else. The author's use of language for characters is a bit stiff, and the many insertions of English seems forced.
The excellent performance of "Sister-In-Law" propelled "Expectation" several steps forward on the road to success. She has higher expectations for her husband than anyone else in the family, so the success of her characterization has a great impact on the success of the entire show. In the third and final scene, she takes up the entire scene, so she has ample time and opportunity to express her feelings. She never relaxed the emotions of the audience, and ruthlessly asked the audience to cry with her. It's a pity that at the end, there remained some emotions she had yet to express at that time. Apart from this slight shortcoming, her performance was almost an unqualified success. However, in the first and second scenes, the emotion she employed was too strong, which turned her voice into a sad crying tone that lacked aesthetics. It was also excessive when she was in scenes of sadness. In fact, the change of tone caused by human sadness is only for a moment. Actors should not forget that the ten minutes of performances represent a very long different period of time. This sad tone is most suitably expressed in music. During moments of sorrow, the sound of music is not a bitter noise, but a beautiful and inexplicable clear sound.
The girl's pitch and tone were both successful. This is probably due to the fact that there is no perverse passion that is difficult to perform in this role, but her performance is in line with her character's age, which cannot be denied as a success. "Master" is the protagonist of the second scene. His pitch and tone didn't help convey his expectations for his son. Almost every word in his speech was stressed. This is a very bad habit. (It seems that most actors have this bad habit when they first read a drama script. The reason is probably due to how they too clearly differentiated between acting and life, way too clearly).He expressed very little emotion, and some of it is forced and unnatural. And he doesn't know how to express lamenting interjections often used by the elderly, so it is more difficult to characterize his personality. His pronunciation is often mixed with local accents, and the pronunciation of "Uncle" is even more pronounced in this regard. Although such critique seems a bit too harsh, I wonder whether this is not the author’s overly realistic portrayal.
Since the whole play is based on standardized Guangzhou pronunciation, such mixing of local dialects will cause great distaste. Even in terms of the effects of radio dramas, language education must also be realistic. (There is a difference between drama and life. Drama is a representation of life, so drama is an art. Overly realistic descriptions are detrimental to the value of art.) The emotional expression of "Uncle" is worse than his father's. Due to the drama script, the dialogue between the father and son is a bit abnormal. It's as if the actors needed merely to read it to the end and that's it. It sounds stiff and inevitably loses coherence. The lack of emotion and appropriate tone to say a certain line is the main factor in the failure of their performance. "Uncle" was originally a cover for his missing eldest brother, but he didn't show it. Another example is when he lied in front of his father, it was simply unreasonable. Because the questioning from his father was sudden, in his situation at that time, he would not have told a lie so quickly and in such a calm and plain manner. As for his farewell, it should have been full of emotions, but instead he spoke rapidly and forgot about his situation.
The function of music is not only to segment and blend in the scenes, but also to evoke various unique emotions. This application can complete the mood of the drama. Yet the crew of "Expectation" didn't work hard enough on this, and the volume of the music in many scenes was too low. Especially in the last episode, when "sister-in-law" laments and prays alone, there are many passionate moments where the music needs to be elevated. The theme song chosen for "Expectation" blends well with the atmosphere of the drama, which is commendable. Regarding the huge gap I mentioned earlier, if music can be used to blend in the second and third scenes, perhaps the structure will not fail so much. But it was not, so even time was not distinguished, and it is unclear whether "sister-in-law"’s lonesome lament emerged in the very moment after "Uncle" departed or a few days later. The audience simply had no way of knowing, because after we heard the departure of "Uncle", there was only a moment of silence, and then the third scene began. These parts that have failed the audience to understand is the biggest shortcoming of radio drama. Apart from music, there are very few dubbing sounds, only sounds of door, car horn, a few footsteps and doorbell. Door sounds are overused by beginners. It should be noted that there are doors everywhere, and if there are, they are not always closed. Therefore, a character's entry and exit do not need to be indicated by a door sound every time.
Regardless of whether the director is an individual or a collective, the directing of "Expectation" is the most backward compared to other departments. The director of radio drama is the unified master of the entire performance, and directing is a pure form of art.
His task is to coordinate, balance, smooth out, and adjust the performance of the entire play. So it is a matter of technology and technique. Now I only rely on the afterimages of my own memories, while there are so many disconnects, imbalances and balances in "Expectations", so I don't want to give examples and explain them one by one. But there are two very obvious parts I want to discuss. When "Uncle" was talking to his father, the sound of car horns coming from outside didn't seem to affect "Uncle" at all. He spoke his words without alertness, as if it was the sound of cars passing by on the street and not a signal urging him to leave the family he had just met. This seems to be too far apart from the human situation . He should become silent for a moment, and ideally, he should have paused his words and continue speaking after a while, or to give a clear explanation so that the audience would have some better idea of the context. Another example is the last scene, which was broadcast at the time in this way: after "sister-in-law" lamented alone, the doorbell rang, and she quickly opened the door, took the telegram in her hand and immediately shouted out that her husband would soon come back. I was baffled by such rapid action, because this scene is the climax of the play, and naturally the mood must be elevated to be particularly high. The progression of suspense should also be handled appropriately. It should not be too long, which will disappoint the audience and reduce the intense emotions that arose, but it should not be as short as the performance of "Expectation”, which will terminate the audience’s emotion before reaching the highest point. I thought the development of the plot should be performed like this. When she was lamenting alone, the music began to play. When she spoke more passionately, the music also became more intense; until the end of her story, the music turned even stronger with an intensity that almost covered the human voice. After a while, the music became very low, and only the sad tune was still lingering in the air. Then the doorbell rang, and she was silent for a while before asking who it was with a slightly prolonged sadness filled in her voice. Then she walked a few steps to open the door, because she would not be standing by the door crying. When she received the telegram, the music gradually became louder. She should hold the telegram in her hand for a moment, and then hurriedly open it (expressed by the sound of paper). She should first murmur "ah" in a low voice, and then there would be a moment of silence with only music playing louder. At this point she would probably read it again before calling out loudly. Naturally, music would be raised again.
To sum up, the most successful part of the performance of "Expectation" is the content of the story and the two actresses. The biggest failure is the director. Overall, the results of this performance were very good, and it was able to win the sympathy of the audience. Although skills are still in need of improvement, we have great expectations for it. For the future of drama, we should wish them success in this performance.