Bulletin Spring‧Summer 2001

Gao X i ng j i an The 12th of October 2000 was a memorable day. This day broke a century-old spell that seemed to put the Nobel Prize for Literature beyond the reach of Chinese writers, an d the w o r l d resounded w i t h the news of the award being bestowed on the Chinese-born Gao Xingjian. The news took the literary w o r l d by storm, t o the tremor of many expectant hearts. Mr. Gao Xingjian was b o r n i n 1940 i n Ganzhou, Jiangxi Province, his f am i ly being originally f r om Taizhou, Jiangsu Province. H i s father w o r k ed i n a bank and his mother was an actress u n t il her marriage. The y o u ng Gao Xingjian, under family influence, began his artistic pursuits at a very y o u ng age. H e took to the stage at age five and began w r i t i n g his diaries at eight , w h e n he developed a n enthusiasm for the theatre and an interest i n u s i n g his o w n experience i n dramatic scripts. I n 1957 he was a dm i t t ed to the French Department of the Beijing Institute of Foreign Languages. H e organized amateur drama groups wh i le an undergraduate and, i n taking o n the multipl e roles of playwright, director and actor, gave the first indication of hi s artistic versatility. He graduated i n 1962 and was assigned translation w o r k at the Foreign Languages Press. I n 1978, he paid his first visit to Paris as an interpreter for a delegation of Chinese writers. Juedui xinhao (Absolute Signal), an experimental play by Mr. Gao, was premiered at the Beijing People's A r t Theatre i n 1982. This wa s f o l l owed b y productions b y 10 art troupes t h r o u g h o u t the country w h i c h attracted considerable attention a t the time. I n 1983 he travelled extensively i n the southwest region of China on a route covering some 15,000 kilometers. I t was on this l ong j ou r ney that the idea for his epic n o v el Ling Shan (Soul Mountain) began to take shape. He pub l i s hed a collection of m e d i um and short stories called You zhi gezi jiao hongchuner (A Pigeon Called Little Red Beak) i n 1984, and i n the same year his play Chezhan (Bus Stop) was performed i n Yugoslavia. I n 1985, his large-scale w o r k for the stage, Yeran (Wilderness Man), h ad its premiere i n Beijing. I n 1986 he published his experimental play Bi'an (The Other Shore) i n Shiyue (October), a Beijing-based literary journal. H e was i n v i t ed to visit Ge rma ny to exhibit his p a i n t i ng the f o l l o w i n g year, a nd f r om Germany he went t o France. I n 1988, he published his Dui yizhong xiandai xiju de zuiqiu (In Search of a Modem Form of Drama). I n the same year Yeran was performed i n H amb u rg i n Germany and Chezhan i n Britain. I n 1989 the play Mingcheng (Nether City) was staged as a dance d r ama i n H o n g Kong. Since th e 1980s Ga o Xingjian has w r i t t en 18 plays for the 40