Brief introduction：

Against the backdrop of the period from 1935 to 1948 when the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was headquartered in Yan’an， the book depicts the great events， important figures and various aspects of life that occurred in 1938， a year full of great difficulties during the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. Based on simple language， historical facts， valuable documents， and the memories of the witnesses and the persons involved， the book gives a vivid picture of Yan’an in 1938 utilizing first-person narration on the part of revolutionaries， veterans and witnesses living， working and fighting against enemies in Yan’an during that period.

Wang Jigang

Wang Jigang works as a researcher for China Executive Leadership Academy Yan’an. He has had many articles published in newspapers and journals such as Guangming Daily， Journalism amp; Communication and Study on Mao Zedong Thought in recent years， which mainly include his works like Yan’an： A Big Furnace of Revolution and A Style of Yan’an Reactionaries.

A conference was attended by worker representatives in Yan’an in the spring of 1938， during which a big party was organized and the traditional Shaanxi Operas A Tale of Official Promotion and Wujiapo were being performed. So many local people rushed to see the performance that the theatre was jam-packed with spectators. Many young lads were so excited at the sight of the performance’s climax that they kept clapping and whistling， breaking into loud cheers！ Among the audience， Qi Huazheng， who worked as the leader in the Trade Union of the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia Border Region， accompanied Mao Zedong to enjoy the performance， and at the same time， introduced him to Ke Zhongping， deputy director of the Cultural Association of Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia Border Region. Lots of performances， including the operas that were arranged that night， were rehearsed under the support of Ke and his colleagues.

Mao murmured to Ke while watching the show： “The masses are fascinated with Shaanxi Opera， so it will turn to a revolutionary show if the theme is changed into something about resistance against Japanese aggression. Do you think we should take it into action？” Hearing this， Ke was inspired instantly. As the pioneer of the “wild poets”， after his arrival to Yan’an， Ke had been changing his writing style on purpose. With plainer language in the works related to the resistance against Japanese aggression， Ke aimed to create more works that could be better understood by the masses.

Ke sprang into action. First， he invited Ma Jianling， a Chinese teacher working at Yan’an Normal University and the leader of the students’ amateur “l(fā)ocal theatrical group”， to join him. Next， Ke spent a long period looking for actors and raising funds. With good preparation， the Public Theatrical Group of Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia Border Region was officially established based on the Masses’ Entertainment Improvement Association on July 4， 1938. Two revolutionary modern plays of Shaanxi Opera， My Hero and One Road that were created by Ma were performed for the first time. Before the debut， Ke addressed to the exultant audience in high spirit： “The debut of our public theatrical group will be on stage tonight！”

Ke was excited and thrilled at this moment. Mao Zedong donated 300 yuan （legal tender） for the establishment of the public theatrical group， which was used to purchase gas lamps and donkeys for carrying stage properties. He Long donated 20 yuan after his return from the front line in the northwest of Shanxi. What’s more， Zhou Enlai and Bo Gu （also known as Qin Bangxian） each contributed 50 yuan. Later， He Long particularly took the trophies captured from the Japanese army in the front line， such as helmets， leather shoes， sabers， and military coats， and entrusted Liu Baiyu， Lin Shan and others to bring them to the group as stage proprieties.

The characteristic of the public theatrical croup was that it was a real public one， so all the members were artists among ordinary people. They took advantage of and transformed various old forms of entertainment （mainly Shaanxi Opera in northern Shaanxi）. With the artistic creation， the new content reflecting the War of Resistance and the lives of ordinary people in the border areas brought entertainment to life. Their performance was warmly welcomed by the locals wherever they went. Also， they composed songs concerning the War of Resistance and the founding of the nation， and at the same time， organized “public chorus” in many public groups to learn to sing songs of the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. The words meaning “Public Art Field Operations Corps” were written on the flag of the public theatrical group. Whenever there were performances， the couplets were usually on both sides of the stage. The right scroll read “With Chinese style and ethnic form， the masses are delighted to watch the scene;” while the left scroll read “Being sensible and reasonable， we are talking and laughing under the exciting atmosphere.” The top scroll read “Unity in the War of Resistance.”

On October 25， 1938， Ke Zhongping’s article entitled “The Growing Public Theatrical Group” was published in Yan’an New China News. In it he described the popularity of the public theatrical group among ordinary people： “The play My Hero， created by Ma Jianling， was performed on the 16th of this month， and it was greatly enjoyed by the masses.” On the following day， after the performance was given to the Northwest Youth Association， one commented： “I have never expected to watch such a brilliant Shaanxi Opera！” On October 19， the public theatrical group performed in the Hall of Mass Education to commemorate Lu Xun; there were so many people who came to watch the performance that they almost knocked the stage down！ Regardless of the freezing weather， the performers of the group still wore thin garments and slept in a space only one foot in width， without even a gas lamp or any curtains. They were indomitable， creative， and dauntless indeed.

Yan’an in 1938

Wang Jigang

Taibai Literature and Art Publishing House

September 2018

36.00 （CNY）