大众文化语境下的上海职业话剧（1937—1945）

【作者】 李涛；

【导师】 丁罗男；

【作者基本信息】 上海戏剧学院 ， 戏剧戏曲学， 2006， 博士

【摘要】 在中国话剧发展进程中,上海职业话剧的历史具有典型意义,上世纪三、四十年代上海职业话剧发轫、繁荣、衰落的历史与其说是一个地方某种艺术样式的历史,毋宁说是当时中国大众文化的成长史。1933年,唐槐秋创办的中国旅行剧团在上海横空出世,这是“五四”以后的第一个职业话剧团体。随后,上海又出现了业余剧人协会等职业剧团,职业化成为戏剧界的热门词汇。职业话剧体制的形成,促使话剧在上海空前繁荣,涌现出一批优秀的剧作家、导演、演员,形成一个数量可观的话剧观众群体。1941年,太平洋战争爆发,上海沦陷,政治控制的弱化与商业的强化,使职业化在特殊的境地下超常发展,话剧成为市民阶层一种重要的娱乐样式,名演员、名编剧、名导演,灿若群星,这种局面甚至被一些史家称为“畸形繁荣”。在已有的对上海职业话剧的研究成果中,或者因为囿于时代认识局限,过分强调了政治因素,或是因为简单的“抗战”视角,论述上偏向民族主义,或是因为时代语境下某种趋同的认识定势,视话剧发展中的某些因素(如商业化)而不见。此外,绝大部分研究成果都将话剧作为单一的文本来研究,放弃了对演出活动的观照。本文作者认为,上世纪三、四十年代,话剧在上海更多的是作为大众文化产品存在的,它的消长虽然有社会形态变迁、行政管理的因素,但主要是市场之手在操控。在研究中,作者更多地依赖一手文献,并结合对部分当事人进行的访问,对某些疑点加以廓清,在论述中适度引入西方大众文化、文化研究理论,力图准确揭示上海职业话剧的发展规律,考察其如何成为大众的消费品,如何影响上海的都市生活,重新绘制二十世纪三、四十年代的上海话剧地图。本文除引言和结论外,第一章对上海话剧成为大众文化产品的政治、经济背景进行分析,第二章对上海职业话剧的商业化特征及生产机制进行分析,特别指出传媒在这一进程中的特殊作用,第三章进一步分析了上海职业话剧在审美趣味上对市民心理的迎合,并客观指出其得失,第四章从剧院、剧团、剧评三个方面提出论点,认为上海职业话剧具有公共领域的特征。更多还原

【Abstract】 In the history of Chinese modern drama, the development of the Professional Drama of Shanghai is significantly representative. Its incipience, thriving and decline during the 1930s and 1940s go well beyond the history of a specific theatrical form in a local area. They serve instead as a micro-history of the development of mass culture in China during that period.In 1933, Tang Huaiqiu founded in Shanghai China’s first professional modern drama troupe, the Chinese Traveling Troupe, a new development following in the footsteps of the May Fourth Movement. Shortly after, a batch of other professional drama troupes such as the Amateurs’Drama Society also appeared in Shanghai.“Professionalization”subsequently became the catchphrase for the theatrical circles. The formation of a system of professional drama in Shanghai gave rise to an unprecedented boom in the realm of modern drama in that city, helping to create a brilliant group of playwrights, directors and performers as well as an audience of a remarkable size. After the outbreak of the Pacific War and the fall of Shanghai in 1941, weakened political control and intensified commercialization in the concessions of Shanghai resulted in an unusual acceleration of this professionalization process. Drama became a major form of entertainment for the average urban dweller and many famous artists began to emerge, contributing to what some historians call the drama’s“abnormal boom”under the extraordinary circumstances of the time.Previous studies on the Professional Drama of Shanghai have been rather inadequate. Some published works are affected by the stereotypes of the day and lay excessive emphasis on the political factors involved. Others either deal with the subject merely from the perspective of the War of Resistance and hence adopt a mere nationalist approach in their discussions, or, due to the constraint of a uniform habit of thinking molded in the linguistic environment of past eras, simply overlook certain critical elements in the development of the drama (such as commercialization). Besides, most studies are singularly focused on textual readings of the plays, with little or no attention to the performance-related aspects.The author of this dissertation believes that the modern drama of Shanghai in the 1930s and 1940s existed primarily as a product of mass culture. Its wax and wane, though affected by factors such as change in the social formation and administration, were primarily determined by the hand of the market. The role of the then clandestine organization of the CPC in the theatrical activities of Shanghai can also be analyzed within this large framework. The current study relies heavily on firsthand documentary sources and draws also on interviews with participants and witnesses to past events in an attempt to clarify some unresolved historical issues. The author has also tried to make balanced use of Western cultural theories, including those on mass culture, and aims to accurately depict the patterns of development in the Professional Drama of Shanghai, the ways in which it became a mass consumer product andaffected the Shanghai urban life, and the role it played in the modernization of China. An attempt is made by the author to remap the theatrical landscape of Shanghai in the 1930s and 1940s.Between Introduction and Conclusion, Chapter One discusses the political and economic backgrounds against which modern drama became a product of mass culture in Shanghai. Chapter Two analyzes the commercial features of the Professional Drama of Shanghai and its productive mechanism, with particular emphasis on the role of the media in the course of its evolution. Chapter Three explores the ways in which the Professional Drama of Shanghai catered to the psychology and esthetic tastes of the urban audience, and assesses its gains and losses in doing so. Finally, Chapter Four, through an examination the theaters, troupes and drama reviews, argues that the Professional Drama of Shanghai possessed distinctive qualities of the public sphere.更多还原