Abstract
The list of Cantonese operas created in the past is a long one, including thousands of titles. But only a handful of them stand the test of time. Amongst these gems are Tang Disheng's plays. His Princess Chang Ping(Di Nü Hua)is a particularly successful one. The work is far more than entertainment, with its cultural influence growing rather than waning over time. The story has its origin in historical record: In the Ming dynasty during the reign of the Emperor Chong Zhen, a bandit named Li Zicheng captured the palace. The imperial wives and concubines committed suicide on the order of the Emperor. Princess Chang Ping lost one arm, but escaped. Later, she was ordered by the new Qing Emperor to marry her past fiancée. The Princess lived in grief until she passed away. Inspired by the story, dramatist Huang Xieqing of the Dao Guang period(1821-1850)wrote Princess Chang Ping, as one of the works in his Seven Types of Songs in Yiqing Lou (Yiqing lou qizhong qu). In 1957, Tang Disheng adapted Huang's work into a Cantonese opera, which would later become an important work in Hong Kong literary and cultural history. Tang created a world where politics and ethics, patriotism and romantic love intertwine. Mixing facts with imagination, he let the Princess and her fiancée commit suicide for love and for the country in the opera. This has an effect of provoking readers and audience to ponder the relationship between politics and human feelings. Tang's use of language is another attraction. The well-developed and tight script highlights the power of language, and the lyrics and dialogues are beautifully written. The beauty and elegance in the language is an important reason of the opera's unceasing popularity. This article compares Huang's Kunqu and Tang's Cantonese opera. It first examines the links and variations between the two texts. The discussion moves on to politics and lyricism in Tang's Princess Chang Ping, showing how the entanglement and interaction of the two creates artistic attraction in the work.