A New Old Play 椒麻堂会
February 25 - 26, 2023
This event is presented to you by STArt Film Studio. STArt Film Studio is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in Seattle. Please visit www.startfilmstudio.org or follow them on WeChat: STArt电影, 小红书: STArt Film Studio and Instagram: @startfilmstudio to learn more about their projects and events.
The leading "clown" role in a renowned theatre troupe passes on, and is welcomed into the Underworld. As he relives his vivid memories one last time before entering the afterlife, fifty years of art, struggle and love play out against the background of 20th-century China’s tumultuous history.
$14
SIFF year-round passes and vouchers are not valid for this screening.
One evening in the 1980s, Qiu Fu, a leading clown-role actor in 20th-century Sichuan opera, departs this world and must reluctantly set off for the Ghost City under the escort of two underworld officials. Along the way, he meets old friends. As they recall the past, earthly scenes creep into the mists of the Netherworld. Qiu Fu’s life in opera unfolds against the backdrop of a secular upheaval. The "New-New" Troupe in which he grows up and learns his trade is affiliated with the military. As power shifts, the troupe is cast loose to wander rootlessly through a broken world. Despite this unsettled destiny, shaped by war, famine and political turmoil, Qiu Fu becomes one of the finest clown-role performers in Sichuan opera. And yet, one day he finds himself clapped in a pigsty as a political revolution rages outside. Outside the Ghost City, sitting among familiar faces, Qiu Fu drinks the mandatory bowl of Forgetfulness Soup to erase his memory. A lifetime of hardship, pain and sorrow, all vanish as if they had never been.
- Director: Jiongjiong Qiu
- Principal Cast: Sicheng Yi, Nan Guan, Zhimin Qiu, Xuchun Xue, Tao Gu
- Country: China, France
- Year: 2021
- Running Time: 179 min.
- Awards: Locarno Film Festival 2021 - Special Jury Prize
- Language: Chinese (Leshan dialect)
- Has Subtitles: Yes