On May 1st, Renyi’s third edition of "Thunderstorm" was officially staged.

Xu Rong and Xiao Zhang sat in the auditorium early, waiting for the performance to start.

Today is the performance of Group A, the group directed by Gu Wei. Tomorrow, it will be his turn to take the stage.

The last time I watched "Thunderstorm", the audience burst into laughter. The main reason was because of the two male actors who played Zhou Ping and Zhou Chong.

During his preparation process, Gu Wei was not idle either. He led Group A to work in small groups for three days and one large group for five days. As for the results, he was not sure.

After queuing for more than two months, I think there should be progress.

He came here today, firstly, to see the rehearsal results of Group A, and secondly, based on the feedback from the audience, to see if there was anything he could improve on in terms of external processing.

The next performances will be ranked second in terms of box office. The two groups will perform cross-over performances, with twenty performances as the limit. After the performances are completed, which group can be retained will be determined based on the overall attendance rate.

A person has a face, and a tree has a skin. As an actor, if his job of making a living is denied, it will be a major blow to his acting career.

After Hu Jun's performance of "The Wilderness" suffered a major failure, it was not until the year before last that he returned to drama at the invitation of the dean.

Self-confidence was shattered.

The bet between Pu Cunxi and Gu Wei sounded quite childish, but when Xu Rong put himself in Pu Cunxi's position and looked at the problem, he realized how wise his decision was.

"Thunderstorm", as a classic play of the People's Arts, was ridiculed by the crowd during the performance. Various reasons and excuses can be found, such as the current young audience who are surrounded by an atmosphere of entertainment to death and no longer know how to appreciate art, etc.

But one thing that cannot be denied is that there are indeed certain problems with the performance of young actors on stage.

After all the hard work, if the performance still fails, then the talent waiting for it is just to be killed at the slightest sign.

As the opening time approached, Xu Rong turned around and glanced back. There was not a single person in the four rows behind.

Classmate Xiao Zhang followed his gaze and looked back. After Xu Rong sat down, he asked in a low voice: "Teacher Xu, what are you looking at?"

"Not many people came today."

Classmate Xiao Zhang said matter-of-factly: "Yes, they have been criticized since they started performing in 2004. Some time ago, many drama critics criticized the young actors' performances for being too stylized."

Seeing that Teacher Xu did not agree and frowned slightly, classmate Xiao Zhang asked: "Teacher Xu, aren't you comparing the attendance rate? Their attendance rate is low. This is a good thing."

Xu Rong shook his head and said: "When the boat is about to capsize, fall into the water first and then fall into the water. It's just a matter of dying early and dying late."

If Renyi's young actors fail to perform in "Thunderstorm", it means that they have lost the inherited job of being a meal guy. When the older generation retires, they will sooner or later become a second-rate theater troupe like Guohua.

After the performance started, Xu Rong noticed something unusual. The actors on the stage seemed to have become accustomed to the empty seats in the back rows.

And the most commendable thing is that in just over two months, Yang Lixin started to learn to laugh.

It's so outrageous.

It took Mr. Zheng twenty-five years from the time he started acting in "Thunderstorm" to learning to laugh. Although there were shackles from the historical background, Mr. Zheng also confessed in his notes that if Gu Wei hadn't reminded him, he would never have realized this. A little bit.

Xu Rong suddenly remembered how he met Yang Lixin when he visited Mr. Zheng a while ago.

There are always some people who are working hard silently.

After all, the director of Group B is Pu Cunxi, the director of "Thunderstorm", so it is impossible for Yang Lixin to be without pressure, especially after being ridiculed by the crowd last time.

But the shortcomings have not changed much. The two young masters, Zhou Ping and Zhou Chong, hardly speak human words.

Zhou Ping seemed to have learned the essence of Peking Opera, especially some scenes with more intense emotions, and she almost completely adapted the performance method of Peking Opera.

As for Zhou Chong, he gave a certain amount of understanding.

For a young man in his late thirties to play a fifteen or sixteen-year-old child, it would be difficult for him to portray the innocence and cuteness that should be expected at that age.

He thought about Zhu Xiaopeng again. It should be okay, right?

After all, Zhu Xiaopeng himself has a baby face.

"Hahaha."

As Fanyi and Zhou Chong talked, sparse chuckles sounded again in the theater, but it was much better than the last time.

After the performance, Xu Rong immediately took his classmate Xiao Zhang back home and watched a performance. He did have some ideas, but they still need to be considered.

The next day, Xu Rong got up early.

This is his second drama performance in his life and his first performance in Renyi.

He didn't set off with his classmate Xiao Zhang and his grandfather. He had to go to the courtyard to prepare first, and it wouldn't be too late for Xiao Zhang and his grandfather to go there an hour later.

After entering the theater, Xu Rong went straight to the backstage to change clothes and put on makeup.

Then he looked at the mirror carefully for a while, until his familiar face looked a little strange, and then he slowly closed his eyes.

Based on the feedback from yesterday's scene and after going home and thinking about it, he actually didn't have too much confidence in today's performance. The only thing he was thankful for was that, thanks to the sufficient preparation work in the early stage, his experience was quite complete.

What he is doing now is trying to forget everything that has nothing to do with Zhou Ping, and devote himself wholeheartedly to the role.

"Thunderstorm" is a repertoire in the theater, and it is still led and directed by Pu Cunxi. The theater is located in the central hall, which can accommodate nearly a thousand people.

"Teacher Zhou, get ready, it's time to start."

Xu Rong opened his eyes leisurely and said: "Okay."

The title was something he asked the staff to change some time ago to help him achieve the best experience.

According to the rules of the art industry, a new actor has to work as a bit player for a few years after entering the academy. He is an already famous actor. Like Ren Ming, he skipped the bit player stage and started acting.

If it succeeds, it will certainly be a good story, but if it fails, it will naturally become a joke.

At nine o'clock, the performance officially started.

"Fifeng."

"Fifeng."

Xu Rong stood on the side curtain, stretched out his head slightly, and glanced towards the audience. In the first row, Grandpa, Xiao Zhang, the group leader, and teachers were all here.

But in the back, nearly seven or eight rows of seats were all empty, and the attendance rate was not as good as yesterday.

After all, Group A has two veteran "Thunderstorm" actors, Yang Lixin and Gong Lijun, supporting the scene. Except for Pu Cunxi, who has previous experience playing Zhou Ping, the rest of their group are still jumping between roles and supporting roles.

In addition, there is no photo of him on the poster, but only his name, so it is understandable that the audience is not willing to buy it.

He shifted his gaze and looked towards the stage.

Zhang Wankun's role was highlighted at this time. If Xin Yue, who played the role of Si Feng, was alone on the stage and faced the situation where the back was half empty, she would have panicked. However, with Zhang Wankun helping her steady, she was able to panic after a brief moment.

, immediately followed Zhang Wankun's rhythm as previously discussed.

During the previous rehearsal, the crew had a discussion. During the performance, if an accident occurred, if Pu Cunxi, Xu Rong, or Zhang Wankun were present, the other actors would follow one of them.

This is also to avoid the embarrassing situation of the previous group A performance where the rhythm was chaotic.

Yu Mingjia, who was getting ready to play not far away, saw him, walked over and said softly: "Old Xu."

Although Xu Rong had been deliberately avoiding her in the past half month, she always felt that everything in the past was real and not staged by him.

"Lao Xu, let's talk if you have time?"

"There will be a performance soon, don't think about this, come on." Xu Rong smiled, then pointed behind, "I'm going to put on my makeup."

"Old Xu?"

Xu Rong turned a deaf ear to Yu Mingjia's low voice and went straight to the backstage.

If he was scolded for his performance, he would be the worst offender. Not only was two months of hard work in vain, but he also sacrificed his feelings and money.

When Mingjia came on stage, he came to the side curtains and waited to come on stage.

"Ha ha."

As Zhu Xiaopeng revealed the reason why Sifeng rejected him, laughter inevitably erupted in the audience.

Xu Rong is also quite helpless. Among the many characters with lines, Zhou Chong is neither the one with the most, nor the least, nor the most difficult, but for any adult actor, it is not a small one.

test.

"Come on."

Xu Rong took a slow breath, held it in his mouth, stretched out his hand to push open the middle door, and spit out a yawn.

Zhu Xiaopeng stood by the door and said in a bright and authentic voice: "Brother."

At the same time, Yu Mingjia, who was sitting on the sofa, quietly stopped fanning the fan in his hand.

"Oh, there you are."

Xu Rong smiled gently at first, but after taking two steps, past the cover of Zhou Chong's body, and saw Yu Mingjia sitting on the sofa, the gentleness on his face and the steps under his feet froze at the same time.

For a moment, I stood in front of the door, unable to enter or leave.

Following his silence, Yu Mingjia whispered: "Ping."

Xu Rong's slightly drooped forehead was raised slightly, and he took two steps forward, one big and one small, the big one in front, the small one behind, and then said: "You, you are here too."

Yu Mingjia's voice was quite strange, as if she had been greatly wronged when she said, "I just came downstairs."

Xu Rong clearly heard her grievances. He knew that she hoped that he could continue to "care", but he couldn't ask anymore. He turned his head and looked at Zhou Chong: "Father is not out, is he?"

"No, are you ready to see him?"

"Oh, I want to talk to my father before I leave."
To be continued...