Newsletter No. 341

16 No. 341, 19.8.2009 白先勇 1 可以說一下你跟中大的淵源嗎？ How are you related to CUHK? 七十年代，中大建校沒多久，這地方還叫馬料水的時候，我就 來看了。八十年代，我曾來中文系演講。金聖華教授創辦的新紀 元全球華文青年文學獎，我當了三屆的決審評判。此外，中大 出版社在2000年替我出版了中英雙語版的《台北人》。 I first visited CUHK in the 1970s, gave a talk at the Chinese Department in the 1980s, and thrice sat on the adjudicating panel of the Global Youth Chinese Literary Award founded by Prof. Serena Jin. The Chinese University Press published a bilingual version of my book Taipei People in 2000. 2 中文小說要翻譯為英文，最難的地方在哪裏？ What is the greatest challenge in translating a Chinese novel into English? 人名最難。中文單字都有意思，名字變成了拼音，就索然無味。 當時的編輯喬志高先生在這方面很厲害。此外，每個人的語氣 不同，有時候翻成英文就不見了。沒有翻譯可以做到百分之一 百，能夠近一點已經很不錯。 Names. Chinese is monosyllabic and each character carries meaning. Simply transliterating the names into pinyin can be dry. The unique tone of voice of the different characters also easily gets lost in translation. 3 你推廣崑曲多年，在多地掀起轟動，該怎樣把這熱 潮承繼下去？ Your efforts at promoting kunqu has made it extremely popular in many places. What should be done to maintain that popularity? 政府和民間應該雙管齊下。既然聯合國把崑曲定為人類文化 遺產，中國政府就有責任給予保護承傳，更應該如保護青銅 器、宋五窯瓷、秦俑般嚴肅，在國宴或國外作最高規格的文化 展示，把崑劇推出去。港台多個基金支持我們的推廣工作已好 幾年，只是中國大陸的企業還沒有很強的支持文化觀念。 Now that UNESCO has named kunqu one of the master- pieces of the heritage of humanity, the Chinese government should conserve and promote it with the same seriousness as it does ancient bronze artifacts and the Qin terra cotta warriors. It should be presented at national banquets and on cultural occasions with the highest order of protocol. Our work has received much support from private sectors in Hong Kong and Taiwan. It seems that enterprises on the mainland are not as keen on supporting cultural promotion. 4 大學應該擔當怎樣的角色？ What is the role of universities in this respect? 每個人都應該對藝術有起碼的接觸和認識，教育很重要。我們 把大陸所有的名校由北到南通通去過了。廈門大學、武漢大學 學生都瘋掉了，在港台也是場場滿座，那麼就應該立刻留下來 開崑曲欣賞課，可以給兩個學分。假如全中國二十所名校都這 樣做，就會生根。 Education is crucial. We paid visits to famous universities all over China. Students of Xiamen and Wuhan universities flocked to our performances by the thousands; they went crazy. We should have stayed to offer credit bearing courses in kunqu appreciation. If all 20 key universities in China did the same, kunqu would find its place. 5 崑曲何以要「青春化」？ Why is there a youthful edition of kunqu ? 演員年輕化是為了接班。《牡丹亭》等愛情故事的主人翁都 是十來歲的，找個六十多歲的演員扮演小姑娘，年輕人不會接 受，不利推廣。即使是「青春版」，我們也非常認真保存優美 的傳統，主角是跟名宿一招一式地把老功夫學下來的。 To pass on the torch, we must groom young actors. The protagonists of romances like The Peony Pavilion are all teenagers. If played by actors over 60, they would not strike a chord with young viewers. We have been very serious about upholding tradition. Our young actors learn the art from great masters word by word, step by step. 6 「現代化」的具體革新如何？ How can one modernize kunqu ? 把傳統跟現代結合是最大的挑戰。二十一世紀的觀眾的視覺 審美不可能跟幾百年前一樣，怎樣改得好而不至於傷它的筋 骨，這就是功夫。《玉簪記》的佈景用了書法、水墨畫、觀音、 佛像等古老元素，但是奇怪，合起來卻帶來很強的現代感。 To combine tradition and modernity is the biggest challenge. The aesthetic standards of 21st-century audiences are very different from centuries ago. The trickiest part is to reform kunqu without hurting its essential structure. For the stage set of The Jade Hairpin , we incorporated classical elements such as Chinese calligraphy, water ink painting, and images of Guanyin Bodhisattva and the Buddha. Strangely enough, they conveyed a strong sense of modernity. 7 西洋歌劇在歐美社會地位重要且普及，崑曲將來也 可以達到這個地步嗎？ Will kunqu attain the same popularity and status as opera in the west? 希望可以，崑曲本來是「雅部」，在明清時代，也曾走進民間。 我們在台北演出，中學生看得跳起來，因為教育發達，中學以 上的程度都可以看懂了，曲是高，但「和」可是「眾」。一個五 百年前的戲，學生幾千幾千地去看，可見它本身就有這個力 量，欠的只是配合和推廣。 I hope so. Kunqu was once considered ‘elitist’. The Jade Hairpin received a standing ovation from secondary students in Taipei. It is no longer elitist and can be appreciated by anyone with secondary school education or above. We just need to do more. 8 推廣崑曲方面的經驗有甚麼可以給香港推動粵劇借 鏡的？ What lessons do you have for the promotion of Cantonese opera in Hong Kong? 任劍輝和白雪仙提升詞曲的優美意境，跟唐滌生合作，把粵劇 推上了革命性的高峰。劇本的改編、服裝的設計是蠻重要的， 香港的設計就很強，而且粵劇比較年輕，生命力強韌，容納性 高，有時候給它稍微大紅大綠的扎進去也沒關係，不像崑曲有 古老嚴格的一套規矩，非常纖巧，碰一點都不行。 Yam Kim-fai and Pak Suet-sin elevated the beauty of the music and the lyrics of Cantonese opera. Together with legendary librettist Tong Dik-sang, they brought this dramatic art to a revolutionary peak. Script adaptation and costume design are important, and Hong Kong is very strong in design. Being relatively young, Cantonese opera is lively and accommodating. It can withstand slightly bold and unconventional treatment. 9 九七前後香港人移居外國的不少，有沒有想過寫到 小說裏？ Many Hong Kongers emigrated to other countries before and after 1997. Have you ever thought of including them in your novels? 有可能的。我現在愈發對描寫人性感興趣；社會變遷日新月 異，可是人最基本的感情——喜怒哀樂——好像還沒變，我只 是以不同的故事來表現這種情。香港是一個題材非常豐富的 地方，作客他鄉的感受本質上都是一樣的。 I won’t rule out the possibility. I’ve become increasingly interested in human nature. The world keeps changing, but human emotions seem to remain unchanged. I want to express these emotions through different stories. Hong Kong is a place full of interesting stories. Diasporic sentiments are basically the same everywhere. 10 為父親白崇禧將軍所寫的傳記《仰不愧天》，進 度如何？ What is the progress of the biography of your father General Pai Chung-hsi? 就是為了崑曲，拖下來很久了。這過程可說是我跟父親精神上 的對話。在我出生之前，父親已完成了北伐，攀過了事業高峰。 在台灣和他相處十一年，礙於年紀還小，父子之間總是有點隔 閡。撰傳的時候，我也通過不同的史料、記載來認識他。傳記 將分為兩部分，一是父親的一生功績，是為人所知的歷史；另 一部分是我所看到的父親，以及他的私生活。希望能為家父重 塑出更為立體的形象。 It’s been delayed because of kunqu . The process is a spiritual dialogue between me and my father. He had completed the Northern Expedition, the prime of his career, long before my birth. During the 11 years I spent with him in Taiwan, I did not feel particularly close to him, perhaps due to my young age. I got to know him better while reading historical documents for the biography. The biography will contain two parts — his achievements as a historical figure known to many, and a father in the eyes of his son. I hope this will paint a more detailed portrait of my father. 1. 本刊每月出版兩期，農曆新年和暑期停刊。截稿日期 載於本刊網頁 （www.cuhk.edu.hk/iso/newslter/） 。 2. 來稿請寄沙田香港中文大學資訊處《中大通訊》編輯部 （電話 2609 8681/2609 8589，傳真 2603 6864，電郵 iso@cuhk.edu.hk ）。 3. 編輯有權刪改及決定是否刊登來稿。 香港中文大學資訊處出版 1. The CUHK Newsletter is published on a fortnightly basis except during the Chinese New Year and the summer vacation. Deadlines for contributions can be found at www.cuhk.edu.hk/iso/newslter/ . 2. All contributions should be sent to the Editor, CUHK Newsletter , Information Services Office, The Chinese University of Hong Kong (tel. 2609 8681/2609 8589; fax. 2603 6864; e-mail iso@cuhk.edu.hk ). 3. The Editor reserves the right to decline contributions and to edit all articles. Published by the Information Services Office, CUHK 為減少大量印刷對環境造成的損害，請與朋友分享本通訊，或上網（ www.cuhk.edu.hk/iso/newslter/ ） 閱覽。謝謝您愛護環境。 This newsletter will increase your carbon footprint. So share a copy with friends or read it online at your own leisure ( www.cuhk.edu . hk/iso/newslter/ ). Thank you for supporting the environment. Prof. Pai Hsien-yung 下回〈十方吐露〉將訪問鄭振耀教授 Prof. Jack Cheng will be featured in the next instalment of ‘TEN QUESTIONS FOR’. 預告 Coming . , . .