摘要：On the evening of January 11th, the upgraded version of the original musical "Hei Feng Li (I Like You)" by the Guangzhou Southern
On the evening of January 11th, the upgraded version of the original musical "Hei Feng Li (I Like You)" by the Guangzhou Southern Song and Dance Troupe will be staged at Guangzhou Grandview Theater. This small-theater work with Chaoshan regional style brings a refreshing experience to audiences. In recent years, the development of small theaters in China has been in the ascendant, and some new trends have emerged. Recently, a reporter from Yangcheng Evening News interviewed experts in this industry, using Guangdong small-theater dramas as examples, to explore the development of small-theater dramas in the new era.
Chen Jianzhong, a first-grade scriptwriter and literary critic at the Guangdong Academy of Arts, explained that compared to large theaters, small-theater dramas highlight the small venues typically accommodating two to three hundred spectators. The small venue forms a closer relation between audiences and actors, as actors perform right beside the audience. In addition, the most important aspect of small-theater dramas is their "novelty," with a stronger emphasis on experimental forms, contemporary content, and modern spirits. "The core competitiveness of small-theater dramas lies in their spiritual orientation towards the contemporary person's spiritual world, portraying their anxieties, pains, struggles, and even hopelessness. Unlike the focus of large theaters and dramas, they follow a different path."
According to data from the China Association of Performing Arts, the overall economic scale of the national performance market in 2023 was 73.994 billion yuan. Among them, small theaters and new performance spaces hosted 186,900 performances in 2023, with box office revenue of 4.803 billion yuan and 24.424 million attendees. The number of performances and box office revenue of small-theater performances have increased rapidly, with outstanding performances in incubating original works, cultivating creative teams, enriching performance formats, and nurturing audience groups.
"In terms of unit measurement, small investments indeed lead to small outputs, but small-theater dramas can achieve steady income," Chen Jianzhong believed. If small-theater dramas can achieve resident performances, they will definitely have a high return rate. Hangzhou's new Chinese-style environmental Yue Opera "New Dragon Gate Inn" is a good example. Media reports showed that the play officially began its resident performances at Hangzhou Butterfly Theater on March 28th, 2023. In just over a year, the play has been staged more than 250 times, with every performance sold out.
Regarding the original aspiration of creating small-theater works, Huang Qian, director of the Southern Song and Dance Troupe, said that creating marketable, easily accessible, and engaging high-quality performing arts projects that integrate culture and tourism meets current performing arts needs and environments. It was revealed that the Southern Song and Dance Troupe is currently renovating the Xinyi Hall at Bai'etan, and it is expected to be open for use and to the public this year. The Xinyi Hall performance space will incorporate new performance projects such as small theaters, immersive theaters, and murder mystery games, allowing closer interaction and communication with audiences.
"Small-theater dramas should step out of the minority of audiences and return to the masses. Nowadays, Chinese small theaters have transitioned from a pure artistic creation system to a commercial production system. It is an irresistible trend to integrate the art works into society and market, with the vigorous development of new performance spaces," Luo Li believed. With the successive introduction of a series of support policies for deepening the development of the cultural industry, stage technology continuously aids artistic innovation, and environmental and immersive performances becomes new hotspots. Small theaters with novel formats and strong interactivity meet the cultural consumption needs of young audiences.
The reporter noticed that in recent years, Guangdong has emerged with a number of well-received small-theater dramas. Works such as the small-theater Cantonese Opera "Jin Lian," the small-theater musical"It Never Snows in Winter Here" and "Hei Feng Li (I Like You)," and the folk art situation comedy "Cantonese Opera & Chao" have brought many surprises to audiences.
Source: lingnan On the Cloud
小剧场不“小”，能做“大”文章
1月11日晚，南方歌舞团原创音乐剧《黑凤梨（喜欢你）》升级版将在广州正佳大剧院上演。这部带有潮汕地域风格的小剧场作品，给观众带来耳目一新的观感。近年来，国内小剧场发展方兴未艾，同时也出现了一些新的动向。近日，羊城晚报记者采访了业界多位大咖，以广东小剧场戏剧为例，探讨小剧场戏剧在新时代的发展。
广东省艺术研究所一级编剧、文艺评论家陈建忠介绍，首先，相比大剧场，小剧场戏剧凸显的是“小”，场地小，一般能容纳两三百名观众。场地小带来的是观演关系的“近”，演员就在观众身边表演。另外，小剧场戏剧最重要的是“新”，更注重形式的实验性、内容的现代性和精神的当代性。“小剧场戏剧的核心竞争力，在于它的精神指向是指向当代人的精神世界，表现当代人的焦虑痛苦、挣扎甚至是无望。不同于大剧场、大剧目的关注点，它走的是另外的轨道。”
中国演出行业协会数据显示，2023年全国演出市场总体经济规模为739.94亿元。其中，小剧场、演艺新空间2023年的演出场次达18.69万场，票房收入48.03亿元，观演人数2442.40万人次。小剧场演出的场次和票房收入都呈现超速增长，并在孵化原创作品、培养创作团队、丰富演出业态、培育观众群体等方面有突出表现。
“从单位计量看，小投入带来的的确是小产出，但不妨碍小剧场戏剧可以‘长’产出，达到‘细水长流’。”陈建忠认为，小剧场戏剧如能做到驻场演出，一定是有高回报率的。杭州的新国风环境式越剧《新龙门客栈》就是做得较好的一个典范。媒体报道显示，该剧于2023年3月28日在杭州蝴蝶剧场正式开启驻场演出。短短一年多时间，该剧已上演了250余场，场场爆满。
针对创演小剧场作品的初衷，南方歌舞团团长黄倩表示，打造“近距离、容易走、演得动”的市场精品、文旅融合的演艺项目，符合现今的艺术演艺需求和环境。据透露，南方歌舞团目前正在白鹅潭信义会馆进行空间改造，预计今年投入使用并对外开放。信义会馆演艺空间将融入演艺小剧场、沉浸式剧场、剧本杀等新空间演艺项目，更近距离地与观众互动交流。
“小剧场戏剧应走出小众，回归大众。如今，中国小剧场已经从单纯艺术创作体制向商品制作体制过渡，艺术性、社会性、商业性的融合势态在新演艺空间蓬勃发展的今天更显势不可挡。”罗丽认为，随着深化文化产业发展的系列扶持政策相继出台，舞台技术不断助力艺术创新，环境式、沉浸式演出成为新的热点，形式新颖、互动性强的小剧场满足了年轻观众的文化消费需求。
记者留意到，近年来，广东涌现了一批口碑不错的小剧场戏剧。小剧场粤剧《金莲》，小剧场音乐剧《这里冬天不下雪》《黑凤梨（喜欢你）》，曲艺情景剧《粤曲·潮》等作品给观众带来不少惊喜。
“大湾区的文化交融，数量庞大的青年观众，让广州、深圳等城市的小剧场戏剧发展大有可为。”陈建忠建议，在小剧场的资源配置方面，政府可以给予引导和倾斜；在人才方面，培养和留住有市场号召力的编剧、导演、演员等人才；在理论评论和市场导向方面，要有意识地、不断地关注小剧场戏剧话题，并将其融入当地的文化旅游发展之中。
文丨记者 黄宙辉
图丨羊城派资料图
翻译丨赵凡
审校丨王枥焓
来源：羊城派