2006年12月30日晚上，雪后的北京空氣清新，中南海懷仁堂暖意融融。胡錦濤等黨和國家領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人與首都近千名群眾，在這里共同觀看盛大的新年京劇晚會(huì)，喜迎2007新年到來。這場名為《騰飛華夏》的專場演出，集中了當(dāng)今京劇界老中青少各路精英，其中來自天津青年京劇團(tuán)的國家一級(jí)演員劉桂娟與她的老師李世濟(jì)一起，表演了程派名劇《鎖麟囊》片斷，人們從這位馳名已久的年輕人的舞臺(tái)表演，再次領(lǐng)略到程派藝術(shù)的博大精深和無窮魅力。

深得李世濟(jì)真?zhèn)?/p>

劉桂娟是1975年考進(jìn)天津戲校的，她在這屆同學(xué)里年紀(jì)最小，入學(xué)時(shí)只有l(wèi)0歲。她入學(xué)之初喜歡上文戲課，一提武功課就擔(dān)憂。所以從她歷年的學(xué)習(xí)成績單上看，唱腔課總是名列前茅，而武功課則不理想。她的唱腔課成績所以好，是因?yàn)樗歼M(jìn)戲校之前跟人學(xué)揚(yáng)琴時(shí)順便學(xué)會(huì)了識(shí)簡譜，這為她在戲校上文戲課學(xué)唱腔打下了基礎(chǔ)。桂娟從小就靈性過人，幾年時(shí)間，她兼容并蓄青衣、花旦、刀馬旦，不同的風(fēng)格流派都駕輕就熟。1980年天津市文化局舉辦全市青少年演員基本功匯報(bào)演出，她以尚派《昭君出塞》和梅派《貴妃醉酒》兩出戲參演，順利地拿了演員一等獎(jiǎng)；1982年文化局再次舉辦全市青少年演員基本功匯演，她以程派《六月雪》參演，又獲得表演一等獎(jiǎng)。

1983年，文化部、全國劇協(xié)等單位在北京舉辦紀(jì)念京劇大師程硯秋逝世25周年專場演出，劉桂娟應(yīng)邀在《六月雪》“探監(jiān)”一折中扮演竇娥，她那濃郁的程派聲腔備受首都戲曲界矚目，時(shí)任國家主席的李先念、國務(wù)院副總理萬里等領(lǐng)導(dǎo)同志也看了她的演出，都對(duì)劇壇上的這位新秀稱贊不已。

1984年天津市青年京劇團(tuán)建立，劉桂娟成為主演之一。當(dāng)時(shí)李瑞環(huán)市長倡導(dǎo)青年京劇團(tuán)實(shí)施封閉式百日集訓(xùn)，著名京劇表演藝術(shù)家李世濟(jì)被請(qǐng)到天津，為劉桂娟加工《陳三兩爬堂》和《紅鬃烈馬》這兩出戲，爾后她在第一屆全國青年京劇演員電視大獎(jiǎng)賽上，以甜潤的嗓音、聲情并茂的演唱和準(zhǔn)確表達(dá)人物思想感情的表演功力，獲得大獎(jiǎng)賽的最佳表演獎(jiǎng)，在全國劇壇一舉成名。

劉桂娟經(jīng)多次向李世濟(jì)提出正式拜其為師，李世濟(jì)則暗中對(duì)桂娟從多方面觀察和考驗(yàn)，到了1987年8月1日，天津中國大戲院舉辦了一場意義特殊的京劇演出，先由天津青年京劇團(tuán)的劉桂娟與張克合演《武家坡》，后由中國京劇院的李世濟(jì)與馮志孝合演《三娘教子》。戲終，李世濟(jì)偕劉桂娟站到臺(tái)前，當(dāng)眾宣布：“從本日起，李世濟(jì)與劉桂娟建立正式師生關(guān)系?！痹瓉恚@場演出竟是以師徒同臺(tái)獻(xiàn)藝的特殊形式替代劉桂娟的“拜師宴”，觀眾對(duì)此報(bào)以雷鳴般掌聲，此時(shí)李瑞環(huán)市長也登上舞臺(tái)，向這對(duì)師徒表示祝賀。

李世濟(jì)要求桂娟學(xué)戲不求多而求精，必須學(xué)一出落實(shí)一出，每一出戲都應(yīng)該是拳頭產(chǎn)品，質(zhì)量第一才對(duì)得起觀眾。桂娟遵照老師教導(dǎo)，對(duì)自己所演劇目不敢有絲毫馬虎，總是精益求精。

劉桂娟得李世濟(jì)真?zhèn)鳎莩饺找嫣岣?。十多年前北京《戲劇電影?bào)》面向全國評(píng)選最受群眾歡迎的五小程旦，她是當(dāng)選者之一。2001年她以《六月雪》參加文化部在北京舉辦的首屆全國優(yōu)秀京劇演員展演，獲表演一等獎(jiǎng)。隨后她應(yīng)第五屆中國藝術(shù)節(jié)組委會(huì)邀請(qǐng)，在閉幕式上演出《鎖麟囊》，2004年她參加第四屆全國青年京劇演員電視大獎(jiǎng)賽，再次榮獲最佳演員獎(jiǎng)。這些年來她經(jīng)常在中央電視臺(tái)的“九州戲苑”、“空中大舞臺(tái)”、“跟我學(xué)”等一些欄目出演，在同代戲曲演員隊(duì)伍中她是出鏡率非常高的一位。更令人稱羨的是她有幸參加了“中國京劇音配像”工程，先在程硯秋與馬連良合演的《桑園會(huì)》里為程先生的錄音配像，之后又在譚富英與李世濟(jì)合演的《武家坡》實(shí)況錄音里為老師李世濟(jì)配像，任務(wù)完成得相當(dāng)出色。

涉足電視與歌曲

劉桂娟在努力鉆研傳統(tǒng)京劇的同時(shí)，還十分注重拓寬自己的藝路。十多年前她開始涉足戲曲電視，先在《包龍圖》的《訪陰鍘判》里扮演柳金蟬。京劇電視片的臺(tái)詞、唱腔、化妝、表演不同于舞臺(tái)演出，一切得從頭嘗試，她不怕挫折，認(rèn)真體會(huì)導(dǎo)演的創(chuàng)作意圖，調(diào)動(dòng)自己多年的藝術(shù)積累，按照電視藝術(shù)片的規(guī)律去塑造所扮演的角色，電視片播出后獲得了各界的肯定；此后，她又在京劇電視片《玉蓮之死》里扮演王玉蓮。這部京劇電視片是根據(jù)傳統(tǒng)戲《斬經(jīng)堂》改編的，在改編后的《斬經(jīng)堂》中，她是個(gè)舉足輕重的主角，光是唱腔就占去全片二分之一，劇中的一段“反二黃慢板”唱段長達(dá)12分鐘，且每個(gè)鏡頭都要淚流滿面，以致這個(gè)單元的戲拍了兩天桂娟就哭了兩天。

劉桂娟不光戲演得好，歌也唱得相當(dāng)不錯(cuò)。1985年《天津日?qǐng)?bào)》舉辦“希望杯”流行歌曲大獎(jiǎng)賽，她是獲獎(jiǎng)的前12名歌手之一，天津、齊魯、中旅、內(nèi)蒙古、香港等音像出版社都為她出版了歌曲磁帶。1987年她隨天津青年京劇團(tuán)赴香港演出，在那里她遇到歌壇明星鄧麗君，兩人一見如故，很快便成為好朋友。近年來她還在一些電視臺(tái)的娛樂節(jié)目里當(dāng)主持人。劉桂娟還在《天津日?qǐng)?bào)》上經(jīng)常發(fā)表演出心得、周游世界見聞、校園生活經(jīng)歷之類的散文、隨筆。多年來她一直保持著寫日記的習(xí)慣。2005年12月她隨中央電視臺(tái)手拉手藝術(shù)團(tuán)赴阿根廷參加央視在那里開播新聞?lì)l道的慶祝演出。盡管她演出、參觀等活動(dòng)繁忙，但仍舊堅(jiān)持寫日記，常將行程中的所見所聞、演出反響以及當(dāng)?shù)氐娘L(fēng)土人情等等詳細(xì)地記錄下來，日記的字里行間常常閃爍著這位程派名旦的灑脫情懷。

名聞津門的才女

劉桂娟十歲開始學(xué)戲，沒有進(jìn)過中學(xué)、大學(xué)的課堂，但她喜歡讀書看報(bào)，加強(qiáng)自己的文化和文藝修養(yǎng)。1996年中國戲曲學(xué)院開設(shè)中國京劇優(yōu)秀青年演員研究班，桂娟聞?dòng)嵑罅⒓聪蚪M織申請(qǐng)報(bào)考，成為該研究班的第一屆學(xué)員。她在研究班除繼續(xù)跟李世濟(jì)老師磨練程派藝術(shù)外，最重要的課程是系統(tǒng)學(xué)習(xí)中國文化史、戲劇史以及其他文藝?yán)碚摚@使她的藝術(shù)視野頓時(shí)開闊起來。文化素養(yǎng)的加深，使她的精神世界得到了提升。

近些年劉桂娟作為天津青年京劇團(tuán)的國家一級(jí)演員，多次到美國、阿根廷、韓國、新加坡、新西蘭、澳大利亞、馬來西亞、泰國以及歐洲許多國家演出，把優(yōu)秀的中國傳統(tǒng)文化傳播到世界各地，她在港、澳、臺(tái)地區(qū)也很有影響。2005年她隨全國青聯(lián)“杰出青年訪問團(tuán)”走遍臺(tái)灣全省，在臺(tái)上臺(tái)下、戲里戲外與當(dāng)?shù)赝鲝V泛交流，2005年5月她應(yīng)美國加利福尼亞州中國藝術(shù)學(xué)院邀請(qǐng)，為師生們講授中國京劇，并且表演了《鎖麟囊》《六月雪》等傳統(tǒng)劇目片斷，她的演講和表演得到了師生們的熱烈歡迎。2006年11月5日，從美國林肯藝術(shù)中心傳來喜訊：劉桂娟榮獲本年度亞洲最杰出藝人金獎(jiǎng)，紐約市文化局局長親自為她頒獎(jiǎng)。這一獎(jiǎng)項(xiàng)自1981年由美華藝術(shù)協(xié)會(huì)、美國林肯藝術(shù)中心、紐約市文化局聯(lián)合創(chuàng)辦以來，先后有張君秋、袁世海、梅葆玖、紅線女、傅聰?shù)任覈囆g(shù)家蟾宮折桂，如今年輕的劉桂娟又金榜題名，實(shí)屬難得。

New-Generation Star Carries on Art of Peking Opera

By Zhen Guangjun

Liu Guijuan has been famous as a Cheng-style* Peking Opera artist since 1984 when she attained the best performance award at a national television contest for young Peking Opera artists.

When enrolled into the Tianjin Theater Academy in 1975， the ten-year-old Liu was the youngest pupil in her class. She preferred singing studies to kongfu courses. Her school report cards over these years clearly testified to her preferences. She learned singing with ease because she had acquired the basics of simplified musical notation before she learned how to play the dulcimer. In a few years， she mastered Peking Opera singing for different roles and in different styles.

In 1980 she came out first in the category of performance in a citywide contest of basic skills for promising young Peking Opera artists. The two highlights she performed were respectively in the styles of Mei Lanfang and Shang Changrong. In 1982， she again won the first place in a similar contest in the Cheng style. In 1983， she was invited to appear as the heroine in a major highlight in a performance in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of Master Cheng’s demise sponsored by the Ministry of Culture and All China Federation of Operas. Liu’s performance was highly evaluated. In 1984， Tianjin Troupe of Young Peking Opera Artists came into being and Liu was engaged as a lead artist.In a close training camp， her performance was further fine tuned and polished by Li Shiji， a renowned Peking Opera performing artist. The intensive training paved her way to win the national top prize on television.

On August 1， 1987， Li Shiji and her disciples staged a grand show at the China Opera House in Tianjin. At the end of the show， Li Shiji and Liu Guijuan appeared on the stage together and Li announced that a master-pupil relationship between Li and Liu was formally established. Surprised and delighted， the audience burst into ovation. Instead of holding a celebration banquet as tradition required， the grand show served as an official announcement for the Cheng-style artists to recruit a new outstanding disciple to inherit and carry on this specific style of Peking Opera.

Li Shiji wants Liu to master everything she learns from her. The master’s teaching philosophy is that quality always comes first before quantity. Under the master’s tutelage， Liu has improved a great deal. She continues winning top prizes. Nowadays， she regularly appears in CCTV programs staging Peking Opera shows and teaching the art to amateurs all over the country.

As an outstanding new-generation Peking Opera artist， Liu has successfully adapted herself to the modern media to advance the Peking Opera art. Performing Peking Opera for television and films requires different skills. Liu studied the new media requirements and well adapted to the new media. She has successfully appeared in a number of Peking Opera films.

In the past， many Peking Opera masters never had the opportunity to have their performances filmed though some of their best singings were recorded. Nowadays， many have passed away and others have long been past their prime years. Liu has appeared in a number of Peking Opera films as the characters played once by these past masters while singings are dubbed by their records. Familiar with these arias， she does an excellent image-dubbing work. These new-image old-singing videos are part of the latest effort to preserve the grand legacy of Peking Opera.

In her younger years， Liu Guijuan never received a normal education. But she is an avid reader. In 1996 she enrolled in a study course for young Peking Opera artists at the China Academy of Opera. She studied histories of Chinese culture and theater and art theories. In recent years， she has hosted entertainment programs on televisions. As a celebrity， she is a regular contributor of Tianjin Daily， which publishes her essays about her stage experience， visits to foreign countries， and campus life.

In recent years， she has visited many countries and regions as a member of Chinese cultural delegations. Her performances have successfully demonstrated the fine art of Peking Opera to the world. On November 5， 2006， she received the 2006 Best Asian Artist Gold Award issued at the Lincoln Art Center in New York. Since the award was first issued in 1981 jointly by the America-China Arts Association， the Lincoln Arts Center and New York Cultural Bureau， many celebrated Chinese have received the honor. She is greatly priviledged to be one of them.

* Cheng-style refers to the art of Cheng Yanqiu (1904-1958)， a Peking Opera master. Peking Opera has witnessed many different styles of singing and performing over its long history. Masters of the past interpreted and injected new understanding into the age-old opera in different ways， thus formed different styles.

(Translated by David)