Poetic reflection
As one of the numerous artistic works reflecting Ruan's life, BPAT's version is more poetic compared to other documentary-style works. Before the stage presentation, the version that left a lasting impression with viewers was the 1992 film Ruan Lingyu, directed by Hong Kong legend Stanley Kwan and starring Maggie Cheung.
Thanks to the film, Cheung swept up the best actress award in three influential film festivals including the 42nd Berlin International Film Festival (1992), the 12th Hong Kong Film Awards (1993) and the 28th Golden Horse Award (1991).
The highly recognized film actually adopted a semi-documentary style, citing many researchers' observations on the dispositions of the character, as well as the social environment of that time.
However, in the current stage version, the director chose not to represent those authentic happenings in history, but took a lighter and poetic tone to tell the sad tale of the life of Ruan, and how her social background may have played a part in her death.
Small regrets
Playing Ruan for the second time, Xu is much more relaxed than in her first performance.
"Xu seems more of her own when playing Ruan now, her dance with Pu Cunxin (who played Tang) on stage showed audiences the unsurpassed beauty of that generation," said journalist Tian Wanting from The Mirror.
According to Xu, when she played Ruan 19 years ago, she was too deep into the character, and tried too hard to perform the character's emotional struggle, which Xu didn't quite understand either.
"This time I tried to keep a distance from the character, keeping myself more calm in acting and leaving more space for audiences to review this famous historic actress," said Xu.
And to go with those dramas in the character's life, the method of montage such as dialogue with different person at different times is frequently used on the stage. Meanwhile, the whole stage is designed into a film studio that completes the character's whole life, implicating her dramatic fate.
However, there are also some minor regrets that affect the quality of the play in its entirety. For example, the traditional qipao dress that Xu wears is too simple both in color and style, her short hairstyle is too casual, lacking the due delicacy and radiance to underline the identity of a red-hot female star of that period.
Besides, "The stage design is too simple, like the sofa where Ruan lies on is just a stool covered with a cloth, it's too informal," according to He Lulu, a cultural critic.
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