"You are 61 years old, and you are also a celebrity in the Henan Henan opera industry, why do you have to go to the teahouse to sing, it's not a shame!"
A national first-class actor in his 60s, after retirement, actually went to the teahouse to "sing" for more than ten years, such a thing sounds incredible.
But for Henan Opera actor Wang Kuan, it is the real second half of his life.
He was originally a national first-class actor and the head of the Henan Yu Opera Troupe, and after retirement, he bent his knees to the teahouse to "perform" and perform everywhere.
After 10 years of singing, he stood on the CCTV stage, and his original intention of singing was completely exposed on the stage, but the audience was moved to tears.
From the famous artist of Henan Opera to the teahouse "showman", Wang Kuan is famous for his play, passed on his love to the world, and his drama life interprets all kinds of life, Wang Kuan's life is a warm drama in the world interpreted with great love.
A first-class actor who "sells and sings" in a teahouse
In March 2003, this was the first time that 61-year-old Wang Kuan stepped into the opera teahouse to "perform".
As a national first-class actor, Wang Kuan has been working in the Henan Opera industry for decades, and he can take it all in his life, and he is a high-profile Henan Opera artist before his retirement.
However, who would have thought that at that time, he would be "reduced" to sing in a teahouse.
Not only that, in the era of rapid renewal, the audience's taste for opera has changed greatly, and orthodox performances like Wang Kuan do not meet the appetite of tea drinkers.
Information source: Xinhuanet, link at the end of the attached article
Wang Kuan never expected that he would sit on the "cold bench" at the beginning, and it was even more common to sit backstage all night, while other young actors and actresses were very popular.
Such a lifelong famous artist was frustrated, and in the early days of singing in the teahouse, Wang Kuan lost sleep almost every night because he couldn't make money.
He never imagined that he was the head of the Yu Opera Troupe, and his reputation was no less than that of some young juniors.
Wang Kuan's heart was sour, but thinking of his unfinished business, he could only grit his teeth and insist.
The big red curtain is opened, the huqin, gongs and drums, the sound is sonorous and flowing slowly, for Henan and even the whole country Henan Opera fans, Wang Kuan has already become famous.
Wang Kuan was born in a poor family in Huaiyang County, Zhoukou, Henan Province, Huaiyang is the "theater nest" of Henan Opera, and many local troupes in Huaiyang went to the countryside to perform decades ago.
In such an environment, Wang Kuan was full of strong interest in Henan Opera since he was a child, and when he was 14 years old, Wang Kuan unexpectedly learned that the Tibetan Yu Opera Troupe had come to Huaiyang to recruit students.
This was a rare opportunity for Wang Kuan, who had been trained in the Kaifeng system for a year, and in 1956, without telling his parents, he came to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau from the Central Plains of Pingchuan and successfully entered the Tibetan Yu Opera Troupe.
This was the first turning point in Wang Kuan's life.
Information source: Henan Satellite TV, the link is attached at the end of the article
Henan opera inheritance
Here he met Wang Shurong, who was five years younger, and the two married in 1965, and the husband and wife duo sang all over the Tibetan opera world and became famous.
In 1982, Wang Kuan and his wife returned to their hometown after many years of absence, and were transferred back to Zhengzhou Yu Theater as the deputy director.
After more than 20 years of absence, Wang Kuan returned to his hometown, Wang Kuan could not express his thoughts about his hometown in words, all he could do was to sing on stage again and again, and give back to his hometown and relatives with excellent singing skills.
In 1998, Wang Kuan officially retired from the position of head of the Yu Opera Troupe, and it was from this moment that Wang Kuan lived another life.
In the past, the career of Henan Opera was the whole of his life, and now he will dedicate most of his life's career and love to support a group of more important "family members" - 6 orphans.
The pear orchard is busy with righteousness, and the red dust and sideburns are frosted.
When he first retired, Wang Kuan met several orphans when he returned to his hometown to visit his parents.
Looking at these ragged and unkempt children, Wang Kuan had mixed feelings, and he couldn't bear it, so he decided to take these orphans to Zhengzhou to live.
In this way, Wang Haibo, who lost his husband, Wang Wensheng, who died of his parents, and Yuan Qianliang, the three brothers and sisters, and Yuan Qianliang all became the objects of the couple's rescue and the "Wang family".
The child was brought back, and the life was solved, but soon Wang Kuan encountered a new problem, and the retirement salary of Wang Kuan and his wife added up to more than 3,000 yuan.
Information source: CCTV, the link has been attached at the end of the article
5 orphans and his own grandson suffering from "ALS", the salary of more than 3,000 yuan cannot support the life of a family of more than a dozen people.
Besides, the children have to go to school and live, even if the husband and wife are frugal in front of 6 children, it is a drop in the bucket, and in desperation, Wang Kuan decided to go to the teahouse to sing and make money.
Singing to save orphans
But Wang Kuan never thought that after singing all his life, he couldn't even compare to those young actors, they kept turning over the stage and singing all night, but he could only sit backstage and wait.
In one night, young actors can earn hundreds of thousands, but he has no chance to sing on stage, and if he can't make money, the children can't live, Wang Kuan cried secretly on the way home.
But the next day, with the rising sun, all Wang Kuan could do was to persist and continue to perform in the teahouse, and Wang Kuan lasted for 10 years.
In order to earn a little more, Wang Kuan, who is not in good health, rode a bicycle to various teahouses in Zhengzhou, and he was on call, rain or shine.
Sometimes, when Wang Kuan, who had slept in the middle of the night, received a call saying that someone in the teahouse had ordered his play, he would not hesitate to ride a bicycle to rush there, just to earn an extra 60 yuan.
60 yuan can allow the children to eat an extra nutritious meal with meat and vegetables, and 60 yuan is also the reward for Wang Kuan's old age, still standing on the stage and singing sonorously and powerfully.
In order to make his acting path wider and have a higher rate of orders, the 66-year-old began to learn Sichuan opera to change his face.
The daily high-load performance made him physically and mentally exhausted, and on dog days, sweat soaked Wang Kuan's clothes, but he still insisted on standing in front of the mirror and practicing.
He knew that the more he sang about it, the better life his child would have.
In 2007, Wang Kuan fell completely ill because of staying up late for a long time, and the doctor gave him two critical illness notices, and even had a heart bypass.
Information source: Zhoukou Municipal People's Government, link attached at the end of the article
With tears in her eyes, his wife angrily accused him of not caring for his body, and he was still tossing in the teahouse in his 60s. But under the cover of tears, only Wang Kuan knew how distressed his wife was for him.
But even so, after being discharged from the hospital, Wang Kuan still shuttled between various teahouses to perform, and this singing was a full 10 years.
Later, Wang Kuan's deeds of "singing to save orphans" were reported by the media, and more and more people were moved by his spirit and took the initiative to donate.
But Wang Kuan refused all these donations, he said that he could still sing, he did not accept charity, he wanted to make money in a dignified manner, and he would not be ashamed to eat by his own craftsmanship.
Returning to the stage, I can't let go of the joys and sorrows of the world, and then I will be a grandmother, I learned from the sages of the previous generation, in order to save the orphans, you went to sing at an advanced age, in order to save the orphans, you have worked hard for 16 years, 16 years, which year is not 360 days, on the stage, you are desolate and open-minded, off the stage, you have set an example for the world. ”
In 2016, Wang Kuan was named "Moving China 2015 Person of the Year" for his deeds of rescuing orphans, which was the award speech given to Wang Kuan by "Moving China", and it was also the real experience of Wang Kuan in the second half of his life.
Bitter and sweet, bitter and sweet, famous with drama, and passed on with love.
Known as the "Home of Henan Opera", Wang Kuan dedicated the first half of his life to Henan Opera, and performed a warm play in the second half of his life.
The former Henan Opera artist was willing to put down his body and bent his knees to sing in the teahouse for more than 10 years, and Wang Kuan used his life to write the word "righteousness".
Resources:
1. Xinhuanet: "Wang Kuan: A National First-Class Actor in a Teahouse", 2018-8-18
2. CCTV: "Wang Kuan: Singing to Save Orphans", 2021-8-27
3. Zhoukou Municipal People's Government: "Wang Kuan: Selling Art to Adopt Orphans, Great Love "Touches China"", 2017-7-6
4. Henan Satellite TV: "They all sing that only mothers are good in the world, but they sing only grandfathers in the world, this video made many people cry...", 2018-5-8
5. Henan Provincial People's Government: "Henan Opera Master-Wang Kuan was elected as the 2015 Person of the Year Who Moved China", 2016-2-15
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