Since the beginning of this year, in addition to the costume drama "Shangyang Fu" at the beginning of the year, the number of times the audience has seen Zhou Wei on TV has been much less. Just when everyone was speculating whether he was going to rest, Monday Wei appeared as one of the main actors in the lineup of the 2021 star version of the "Pillow Man" national tour of Gulou West Theater. In late May, Zhou Wei and his drama team appeared at the Guangzhou Opera House to prepare for the upcoming two consecutive nights of "Pillow Man". After the two performances, Monday Wei was interviewed by this magazine to discuss the drama "Pillow Man", the "Shangyang Fu" that he and Zhang Ziyi first co-produced, and the relationship between actors and works.
Reporter He Haizhu
The drama stage was brutally abused
"I want to make the audience feel real"
The drama "Pillow Man" is the work of the genius screenwriter Martin McDona, the Most widely circulated work of the Tony Award and Oliver Award winner in addition to "Pillow Man", as well as "Three Billboards", "Killer No Holiday" and so on. Before taking over the play "Pillow Man", Monday Wei had already seen Martin McDonaer's "Killer No Holiday" and "Three Billboards", and he liked Martin and martin's two works. This time, I took over "Pillow Man", Monday Wai said, also because I like this script. What's so special about this script? Monday Wei did not elaborate, but the audience who went to see "Pillow Man" afterwards posted their feelings on the Internet, saying that they were shocked by the script, "fairy tales, suffering, pain, a big drama that can't tell whether it is illusory or realistic takes people into the abyss of human nature." Before entering the theater, you are advised to bring the hardest armor and one or two of the softest tissues. Because this show will hurt you, but it's not just about hurting. ”
On the evening of May 25, a 150-minute non-stop Western drama was staged at the Guangzhou Opera House. Inside the theater, the seats on the upper and lower floors were full of people. Everyone looked intently at the stage installation in front of them that resembled a TV box, and the stage played the fairy tale writer Catullan was surrounded by the interrogation room of the police station on Monday, and was violently treated by the policeman named Eril, who tied his hands, strangled his neck, was electrified, and his head was pressed into a bucket, and the Monday circle on the stage continued to experience all kinds of realistic "inhuman treatment", and the audience who watched all this also constantly felt distressed about Monday, and even some viewers could not help but whisper, whether it is so real. In this regard, Monday Wei thanked the audience for their heartache, while saying that if everyone felt that Catullan was miserable and painful after watching it, then their performance had meaning, "This is what I proposed, although everything on the stage is fake." However, I want to be able to make the audience feel real. ”
From mid-April to the end of the Guangzhou show in late May, Monday Wei, as one of the main actors, has traveled through eight cities and performed more than a dozen times with the 2021 "Pillow Man" team. After the second session in Guangzhou, in an exclusive interview with this magazine, Monday Wei said that he was "a little tired.". 150 minutes a play, the whole process does not rest, more than a month to perform more than a dozen, after several more, such a large volume, many actors can not eat. "Pillow Man" is The Second Play of Monday Wai, and although he says he enjoys it, physically and psychologically, after such a long tour, he does need to take a break. But Monday Wei is not sure if he has time to rest, because whether the second half of "Pillow Man" will be added has not yet been determined, and outside of the play, his next work has been scheduled.
The performance concept fits
Monday Wei is looking forward to the next cooperation with Zhang Ziyi
What is the next job, Monday Wei did not say, in recent years his film and television works continue, I think it is also related to it. So far this year, the only work that Monday Wei has appeared in the film and television field is the costume drama "Shangyang Fu", which was launched at the beginning of the year, and he and Zhang Ziyi cooperated for the first time to play the male and female protagonists in the play, presenting the audience with a story of an ancient empress who is strong in men and women. This drama was very much expected before it was broadcast, because this is a strong combination of two powerful actors, and it is also the "next fan" work of international film Zhang Ziyi. The audience's expectations are full, but combined with previous experience, such results are often unsatisfactory.
Surprise did not come, "Shangyang Fu" has a poor reputation, the score on Douban is fixed at 5.8, although some places are still remarkable, but with Zhang Ziyi and Monday's drama, word of mouth should not be like this now. The reasons for the failure of a drama are always manifold, but some viewers believe that the two leading actors are inseparable from the failure of this drama. The reporter asked Monday Wei's views on this matter, and Monday Wei admitted that he could not influence this matter. "I've been acting for almost 20 years, seventeen or eight years. Good, sometimes it has nothing to do with me; bad, sometimes it has nothing to do with me. ”
Some people may say that actors can pick scripts, and actors like Zhou Zhouwei who have both acting skills and popularity must have a lot to choose from. This may be true, but Zhou Wei said that he has no standards for taking over the role, all depending on whether he likes the play or not, whether he likes the role or not. The reason why he chose to star in "Shangyang Fu" was because he knew Zhang Ziyi on Monday. As you can see in the variety show "The Birth of an Actor", Zhang Ziyi greatly appreciates Zhou Wei's acting skills, and she invites Zhou Wei to cooperate in a play, and "Shangyang Fu" is the play they cooperate with.
Although "Shangyang Fu" has a poor reputation, this does not affect Zhou Wei's belief that this is a pleasant cooperation between him and Zhang Ziyi. The two people whose acting philosophy fit have relatively similar views on many things, and when they are on the set, the two often communicate a lot in terms of performance. Asked if they would work together next time, Monday replied: "That's for sure, wait for the right opportunity." ”
Nandu Entertainment × Monday around
"Theater is not a place to please the audience"
"Very painful performance,
It doesn't seem like a thing for me."
Nandu Entertainment: How does it feel to rotate these days?
Monday Wai: Also a little tired, indeed.
Nandu Entertainment: You have two consecutive games in Guangzhou, each 150 minutes, with no rest in between, and everyone says that you are very good.
Monday: (Laughs) Hold on.
Nandu Entertainment: Is a 150-minute non-stop drama performance like "Pillow Man" a challenge for you?
Monday: I don't know, I have no idea about this kind of thing. Because a very painful performance, or a long time of performance, for me, it seems that it is not a thing. It is because I have acted in a bitter play, and there are many, and I don't think the performance should have been relaxed and pleasant, as if it was never.
Nandu Entertainment: "Pillow Man" This drama is watched throughout the whole process, there are many people who are very impressed by the word "dark fairy tale", in your past life, what is your understanding of the word "fairy tale"?
Zhou Wei: About 10 years ago, if I remember correctly, it should have been sung by Guang Liang, a very famous lyric: "Fairy tales are all lies." Regarding these lyrics, Westerners are actually in "Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales", in "Grimm's Fairy Tales" and so on, after fairy tales tell fairy tales, it does not take many years for everyone to have a rebellious psychology, and they will use this form like fairy tales to tell this kind of story that is not for children. This tradition has actually been in the West for many, many years, because we have slowly accepted Western culture over the years, and then naturally have a process of understanding and liking "anti-fairy tales". In the West, in fact, "anti-fairy tales" and "dark fairy tales" have always been popular.
Nandu Entertainment: Some of the lines in this script are relatively dark, such as "Apple Man who swallowed a long blade", such as "Cut off the fingers of the foot", such as "Nail the little girl's hand to the wooden cross with nails", similar to this line, have you ever worried that the audience's acceptance may not be so high when presented on stage?
Monday Wai: Why worry? Disturbing the audience's habitual cognition, whether it is a painting, a musical work, or another form of work, this is originally a basic support point for the existence of art. Theater is not a place to please the audience. The theater should be a place that seeks empathy from the audience, and resonance is not about providing the audience with a perception that is already familiar. It is to take out some things that the audience is not familiar with and share them with the audience. If this thing resonates with the audience, it's too valuable. We are now more and more accustomed to satisfying the audience, because the life of modern people is getting more and more tired, and everyone is less and less accustomed to thinking and reflecting, and the rarity of this script lies in this.
Nandu Entertainment: Why do you think Catullan, played by you, killed his brother?
Monday: My understanding is this. First of all, my brother does not have the ability to survive independently, then I am doomed to die, and sooner or later my brother will die. Instead of letting him be brutally killed by strangers in unfamiliar places. Better to come, this is the first. Second, my brother's IQ stopped at eight years old. Whether it's because he was abused by his parents, or Whether I saved him from his parents. Then, after decades of living conditions for marginalized people, he tortured or killed two children for whatever reason. Obviously, he should not continue to exist in this world in a living way. At this time, I also played the role of a punisher, murdering him was something I thought I should do. The last reason is that, in addition to the above and the reasons that are not included, I think I have another reason for Western religion. My brother is destined to go to hell, so I will kill him and I will go to hell. I can continue to be with him, protect him and protect him, simply for three reasons.
Nandu Entertainment: Although the work "Pillow Man" has some abusive and violent horror sections, its core looks sad and warm, and some netizens have put forward an ultimate torture from it, which I think is very interesting, and I also want to ask you, that is, if life is destined to be full of suffering, will you end your life early, or choose to experience suffering? In the play, Catullan's brother makes a choice, how do you think Catullan will make a choice?
Monday: Catullan's choice, judging from the path of this play given by Martin, he once tried to experience suffering and find some meaning.
Nandu Entertainment: So as a Monday wei, if you jump out of this script, how will you choose?
Monday: It's hard to answer that question. Because so far, for me, the suffering has not been great enough to be solved by suicide. Of course, I have always kept this choice.
"As an actor,
There are very few parts that can be controlled."
Nandu Entertainment: After acting in so many plays this year, do you think there is any difference between acting in a drama and making a movie and making a TV?
Zhou Wei: It seems that it is difficult to talk so simply, and different scenes are different.
Nandu Entertainment: What about genre terms? Which way do you prefer a drama with a strong sense of scene or a film and television work that does not face the audience directly?
Monday Wai: Each has its own good. Drama, because it is conflicting, is more obvious, and in some time the actor will be more pleasant. Some of the images are very subtle, although we also have the attention of dozens of people and hundreds of people on the scene. They also watched the actors' performances with bated breath in a place where they didn't wear gangs. However, many times because it is too subtle, so there may only be a dozen or twenty people who can see the monitor, and you can know this small part of the scene in time, bringing yourself a psychological feeling of the collision. Moreover, it needs to understand the whole play very macroscopically, and after understanding this play, it will produce a timely feeling. This feeling can actually be timely feedback with the actors. So for me, it's hard to say which one is better.
Nandu Entertainment: At the beginning of this year, the TV series "Shangyang Fu" starring you starred in was not too good after the word of mouth was broadcast, how do you think about this matter?
Monday: I can't control this matter.
Nandu Entertainment: Do you feel a little disappointed?
Monday Wai: No. I've been acting for almost 20 years, seventeen or eighteen years. Good, sometimes it has nothing to do with me, bad, sometimes it has nothing to do with me. So, it's normal. I will care about the reputation of the work, but it is good, I will be very calm, because it may have nothing to do with me. It's not good, and I won't be too lost. Because I can't control this matter, this is my mentality of looking at the problem.
Nandu Entertainment: What was the most important reason why you took over the work "Shangyang Fu" in the first place?
Monday Wai: Meet Ziyi.
Nandu Entertainment: She invited you to come and act with you, right?
Zhou Wei: Yes, it was at that time that "The Birth of an Actor" we both met. Then she told me that she was going to do a scene like this later. I said okay, I haven't seen the script yet. Even though it wasn't that long, I didn't read the whole script when I was shooting.
Nandu Entertainment: When filming, the script was not complete?
Monday Wai: Well, and it changes while shooting. So in fact, I have not been able to macroscopically know what kind of expression this play is. For me, it's more because the play is her presence. I admired her a lot, and I was on the show at the time and I was hoping to have the opportunity to talk to her about acting, to come and act with partners.
Nandu Entertainment: Some people say that actors can not play all roles, and actors also have their own most suitable types. Do you agree with this view?
Monday Wai: Agreed. Everyone has limitations.
Nandu Entertainment: Have you ever thought about which types of characters you are most suitable for?
Zhou Wei: Then I don't know, I usually play more different types of roles, relatively speaking, the same type of role. No matter what others think, for me, it is almost non-existent.
Nandu Entertainment: You have been acting for almost 20 years, so many years of acting experience, have you ever had a burnout period?
Monday: There is no burnout period, but boredom is frequent.
Nandu Entertainment: Why do you feel bored?
Monday: Just powerless. As an actor, there are very few parts that can be controlled. That is, when I read it, I have an imagination of the outcome in my mind. But often film and television works, when we shoot up, we joke in the industry, boot is the process of subtracting points. What we try to do on the spot is to subtract a fewer points. This is too difficult because it is a collaborative project, which means that for the actors, it is very weak. Even for producers, for directors, it's powerless. Because I can't transform into everyone to work together to do one thing. Therefore, we always shout slogans, saying that we all work together to do a good job in this matter, which shows that this matter must face many difficulties. It doesn't do well or can't do it better.