Chang’an Grand Theater, May 24, 2016.

Zhang Huoding, Professor of the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts (NACTA), is one of the most renowned Peking Opera performing artists in contemporary times. Following her initial learning under Wang Lanxiang, she enteredthe Tianjin Opera School and studied after Li Jinqiu, Qu Tianhuang, Zhang Zhilan, Xu Shiguang, Liu Yuntong and MengXianrong, etc. Upon graduation, she was admitted into the ZHANYOU Peking Opera Troupe in Beijing Military Region, where she was taught by Li Wenmin. In 1993, she became the last disciple of Professor Zhao Rongchen whois a proud descendent of Master Cheng Yanqiu (the founder of Cheng School of Peking Opera), and inherited his performing arts, making herself the new generation of Cheng School inheritor deeply welcomed by the audience.

In 1995, she was transferred to the National Peking Opera Company. In 1999, she won the top prize in the field of Chinese theater arts - Plum Performance Award. In 2001, she graduated from the China Peking Opera Excellent Youth Performer Postgraduate Class in the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts, where she was taught by Professor Li Jinhong and Xin Yanqiu. In the project of “Descendent Image Matching with Master Voice”, guided by Li Qianghua, Wang Yinqiu, Li Danlin, Li Shiji and other famous Cheng School artists, she finished the matching recording for many Cheng School performances. In 2007, she held her solo concert of symphonic opera in the Great Hall of the People, becoming the first opera performer there. In 2008, she was transferred into the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts to work as a teacher.

Zhang Huoding inherits and develops the performing arts of Cheng School of Peking Opera in a creative way. She is not only skilled in the classics of Cheng School like The Jewelry Pouch, Tears of Wasted Mountain, Reunion in the Dream, Grave of A Couple and The Hero Conquering the Violent-tempered Horse with Red Mane. Meanwhile, she initiated and created many new productions with graceful bearing of Cheng School like River in the Fall, Cry to Heaven on the Road to Ruin,The Legend of the White Snake, Sister Jiang (Jiangjie) and The Butterfly Lovers. All her singing, reciting and dancing possess the demeanors of great masters, which could highlight the demure, authentic, profound, and dignified features of Cheng School. In addition, she is adept in her singing skills, forming the remarkable style of “Cheng (Cheng Yanqiu) Tune and Zhang (Zhang Huoding) Charm” with unique glamour in the realm of Dan (refers to female role) art of Peking Opera.

Legend of the White Snake

Legend of the White Snake is a long lived tale in China. Two snake spirits, Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing live out their immortality atop E’mei Mountain. Together as mistress and maidservant, they set off on a tour to West Lake, on the southern Yangtze River, where they encounter Xu Xian. Bai falls in love with Xu at the first sight, after which they marry and begin to live a life of contentment and well-being. However, Fa Hai, a monk of Jinshan Temple arrives to tell Xu that Bai is a thousand year old snake demon. With mixed suspicion and trust, during the Dragon Boat festival, Xu manages to slip her some Xionghuang wine, in order to reveal her true identity. The wine transforms Bai into her real body, literally scaring Xu to death. Bai flies to heaven to steal an immortal herb, saving his life. Later, the monk tricks Xu in to coming to Jinshan Temple, and imprisons him. To save Xu, Bai uses magic to flood to the temple, but fails to defeat the monk because of a lack of strength caused by pregnancy. Xu escapes and meets with his wife on a broken bridge. Bai tells Xu all the details of her origins. Xu apologizes, and they return to the good terms they shared before. After the birth of their child, Fa Hai incarcerates Bai with his magical alms bowl, burying it under Leifeng Pagoda.

Zhang Huoding initially performed the white snake in the Qingyi style (Rich or poor, young or middle age, married or not, the characters of Qingyi are mature and elegant. With little movements, they sing in high pitched voices) at the Cheng vocal school. With a nuanced comprehension of this character, she builds a unique Cheng-school-Bai Suzhen, expanding the reach of Cheng performing arts and showcasing Huoding’s literary grace and warlike exploits. Her singing technique is masterful, her renditions of Liushui and Kuaiban (Running water, and Allegro - two types of Chinese Opera rhythms which are fast and fluid) have been described as “large and small jewelry falling on a jade plate”, and her singing of Fan Er-huang (Chinese Opera rhythm, used to express desolate and sad emotions) is heralded as “three thousand long gossamer hanging down the heaven”. The Legend of White Snake is the representative opus of “Huoding’s interpretation of the Cheng vocal school style”.

National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts

The National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts (NACTA) was founded in 1950 on the base of the Experimental School of Chinese Theatre Arts under the Ministry of Culture of the People's Central Government. It was formally named the School of Chinese Theatre Arts in 1955. Under the approval of State Council, it was transformed into the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts in October 1978. In April 2000, its supervisorship was transferred from the Ministry of Culture to the Central Government and the Beijing Municipal Government, with the latter taking the leading role.

NACTA is divided into ten teaching sections: the Peking Opera Department, the Performing Arts Department, the Drama Writing Department, the Directing Department, the Music Department, the Stage Arts Department, the New Media Arts Department, the General Education Department, the Continuing Education Department, the High School of Chinese Theatre Arts Attached to NACTA. NACTA is entitled to confer master’s degrees for three second-rate disciplines of dramaturgy, musicology and art theory. NACTA provides ten programs for undergraduates with twenty-five orientations.

The State considers NACTA as the most important base for Chinese theatre arts education. The State leaders of Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao have been concerned with the growth of NACTA. At the 45th Anniversary of NACTA, President Jiang Zemin gave as a present to NACTA the inscription of “Prospering in Morality & Arts, Carrying Forward the Tradition.” After sixty years of construction and development, a complete educational system in Chinese theatre arts has been established, including secondary education, undergraduate education, postgraduate education and continuing education. A large number of professionals in Chinese theatre arts have been educated here and they make a great contribution to the growth of Chinese theatre arts and to the prosperity of Chinese culture.

In recent years, the Party Committee of NACTA takes the responsibility of promoting the national culture and developing Chinese theatre arts. Under its leadership, the teaching staff and students try to further reform the current teaching model and advance the development of NACTA by calmly meeting the challenges and actively solving the problems. The overall level of education has been elevated to a new level. NACTA is now aiming at the goal of “building a Chinese theatre arts university with unique national characteristics, first-rate nationally and influential internationally.”

The National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts possesses two key disciplines at the ministerial level, one key discipline of Beijing, four municipal excellent teaching teams, five municipal teaching masters, four municipal specialties and 30 municipal teaching construction projects. It was rewarded with two national outstanding teaching achievement prizes, and seven municipal outstanding teaching achievements. The academy has achieved 240 scientific research projects since 2006, provided with the funding of 89,000,000 RMB. The academy has been honored at the national level with more than 230 awards on significant scientific research and art creation. "White Snake", "Du Shiniang", "Les Miserables", "The Red Detachment of Women", "Mei Lanfangetc, created and adapted by the academy, were awarded with many national and international awards.