The White-Haired Girl

thumb|200px|The White-Haired Girl with The White-Haired Kid in the opera.

The White-Haired Girl () is a Chinese contemporary classical opera by Yan Jinxuan to a Chinese libretto by He Jingzhi and Ding Yi. It was later adapted to a ballet, a Peking opera, and films. The ballet adaptation was regarded as a revolutionary opera and promoted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) as a model revolutionary work.

The plot centers on a young peasant woman who flees persecution by an evil landlord and lives in a dark cave until CCP forces brings her back to the sunlit world (with some of the plot elements being revised over time and in different adaptations). The central theme of the story, in the words of the opera, is that "the Old Society changed people into ghosts, while the New Society changes ghosts into people."

The opera is drew inspiration from stories circulating in the border region of Shanxi, Chahar and Hebei, describing the misery suffered by local peasantry (especially women and girls), particularly a folk story called The White-Haired Fairy Maiden.

Along with Red Detachment of Women, the ballet is regarded as one of the classics in the People's Republic of China, and its music is familiar to almost everyone who grew up during the 1960s. It is one of the Eight Model Operas approved by Jiang Qing during the Cultural Revolution.

History and development

In the 1942 Yan'an Talks, Mao Zedong stated that literature and art should better serve the revolutionary causes and to assist the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to "overthrow our national enemy and accomplish our task of national liberation". In Mao's view, revolutionary literature and art should serve the masses (primarily workers, peasants and soldiers) by telling their stories in languages they can understand and relate to. For example, writers and artists were encouraged to positively approach the budding literature and art of the masses, including wall newspapers, folk songs and folk tales.

The opera was first performed in April 1945 in Yan'an as a tribute to the Seventh National Congress of the CCP.

The Japanese Matsuyama Ballet company performed the opera in 1955. The China National Opera has periodically featured the revival thereafter, including in 2021 for the 100th Anniversary of the CCP.

As one of the revolutionary model operas during the Cultural Revolution, The White-Haired Girl was revised into a color film in 1972.

The White-Haired Girl

History and development

Initial opera version

Track listing

References

External links