Triple-award-winning actress Zhou Dongyu recently made her debut in theater, but unfortunately, her first performance went terribly wrong. She was slammed by audiences for "not memorizing lines, staring at the teleprompter, and still making mistakes." In response, Zhou Dongyu and director Chen Minghao spoke out recently, clarifying that the play is an "avant-garde experimental theater" and that reading the script on stage was deliberately designed to break the illusion of perfection. The director had even issued a "no lines memorization" order, requesting improvisational performances. Though the quality of the play improved drastically from the second performance onward—with the actors performing without a script—the audience at the premiere was still furious, questioning why they paid high prices just to be treated as "lab rats."
When facing her first stage play, Zhou Dongyu admitted in an interview with VOGUE that she indeed lacked stage experience, and felt very anxious every day when going to the rehearsal room. However, she also revealed that in "Wencheng," there actually wasn't a fixed script and each day's ideas were subject to overhaul and change. She even quoted the director, saying that Chen Minghao explicitly told her several times, "You don't need to memorize the lines," and that she could freely express herself and do anything she wanted because the director valued the actor's understanding of the character over rote memorization of stiff lines. Zhou Dongyu stated that this performance was her bold attempt to step out of her comfort zone, and the play made her realize that one must completely let go in order to grow something new.
The so-called "experimental" approach set off a debate online. Critical netizens spoke harshly, blasting the team for "having lost the baseline of professional standards," emphasizing that memorizing lines is basic actor training, that there are no second chances on the theater stage, and that not memorizing lines is disrespectful to the audience. They mocked the director's explanation, saying "this isn't innovation, it's just sloppiness," and argued that if experimental theater is to be done, it should be clearly disclosed in advance in order to guarantee the audience's right to know. On the other hand, some netizens expressed support, arguing that artistic exploration is worthy of tolerance, emphasizing that avant-garde experimental theater inherently uses special creative methods and shouldn't be held to traditional play standards. They also praised Zhou Dongyu for having the courage to take on an improvisational mode.
Source: Xu! Entertainment News