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Kathy Hall in Mei style Peking Opera scene ‘Feigning Madness at Home’ from ‘The Cosmic Blade’ , Yuzhoufeng 《宇宙锋-家中装疯》, Nov 1993, Hong Kong.

Kathy’s co-actors were Yip Oi Lin 叶爱莲 , as the mute maid, Yanu 哑奴, and Cheung Chi Lik 张志力 as her tyrannical father and evil Prime Minister Zhao Gao赵高. Kathy took the part of Zhao’s daughter, Zhao Yanrong赵艳容. Mei Lanfang wrote in his 3-volume auto-biography ‘Forty Years on Stage’ 《舞台生活四十年》that he was most fond of this opera and that he spent the longest time refining it for his own performances. Kathy was instructed in the singing by Mr Bao Youdie包幼蝶老师, a Mei specialist. This was the first Chinese opera Kathy learnt from Mr Bao. Miss Yee Ping Lok (Le Yiping乐漪萍老师) advised Kathy on movements. (Acknowledgement: Hong Kong Peking Opera Club for the video)

Kunqu Opera ‘The Foolish Dream’ 昆曲〈痴梦〉

Kathy Hall as Cui in ‘The Foolish Dream’ from ‘The Broken Axe Mountain’ with lead actors Kevin Zhang and Kwong Loke, and lead musicians Jack Footitt, Paul Kendall, Ying Wan and Ruard Absaroka at Rudolf Steiner Theatre, London, 2012.

Vignette from Kunqu opera “The Startling Dream”, with Kevin Zhang as Liu Mengmei

Performed at London Book Fair 2016.

Extract from lecture recital by Kathy Hall, ‘Experiencing Xiqu The Chinese Opera’

Courtesy of Institute of Ethnomusicology, University of the Arts, Graz, Austria, April 2024.

Kathy Hall practising Hand Movements Set 1 Part 1

A short clip of Kunqu Opera hand movement exercise.

Kathy and pupil Tom in ‘The Peony Pavilion’ at House of Phoenix

Kathy Hall and pupil, Thomas Stell, in ‘The Stroll in the Garden’ from Kunqu Opera, ‘The Peony Pavilion’ performed at the opening ceremony of The House of Phoenix, London

Kunqu Opera Folding Fan Movements (videography: the bridge of beauty_Yq Jia and Dj Wang)-a short demonstration clip by Kathy Hall

Chinese Kunqu Opera Folding Fan Movement Set for training the ‘Dan’ (Lady’s Role), taught by Madam Le Yiping (蒙乐漪萍老师传授)

Kathy Hall in Kunqu Opera scene, ‘In Pursuit of the Dream’ from ‘The Peony Pavilion’, taught by Madam Wang Fengmei, Zhejiang Kunju Opera Company         (蒙浙江昆剧院王奉梅老师传授)

Kathy Hall in Kunqu Opera scene, ‘In Pursuit of the Dream’ from ‘The Peony Pavilion’ at The British Museum, filmed by Jessica Hall

Kathy Hall -Opera Movements with the ‘cloud-sweeper’

The ‘cloud-sweeper’ (yunzhou 云帚) is made from horse-hair. It is used by nuns, celestial beings and eunuchs to cleanse the earthly or heavenly air.

Kathy Hall in Peking Opera scene from ‘Snow in Mid-Summer’ (Acknowledgements: Hong Kong Peking Opera Club, Hong Kong, 11.1995)

Kathy in Peking Opera, ‘Snow in Mid-Summer’, in Mei Lanfang style, with guest appearance by Mr Xiao Renqin, great-grandson of Mr Xiao Changhua, renowned Master of the Clown Role. This opera performed in the Mei Lanfang style of music and singing is rare. Kathy is deeply indebted to her Peking Opera teacher of nine years, the Mei specialist, the late Mr Bao Youdie (蒙梅派专家前包幼蝶老师九年熏陶)

Kathy Hall in Mei Lanfang style Peking Opera, ‘Guifei Zuijiu’, Clip 1

Kathy Hall in Peking Opera scene, ‘The Hundred Flowers Pavilion’ from ‘The Imperial Concubine Intoxicated’, filmed by Yingping Yu and Sam Ngai Hung Tang, postgraduate students of the London Film School in the John Soane’s Museum, London, October 2018 (Clip 1)

Kathy Hall in Mei Lanfang style Peking Opera, ‘Guifei Zuijiu’, Clip 2

Kathy Hall in Mei Lanfang style Peking Opera scene, ‘The Hundred Flowers Pavilion’ from ‘The Imperial Concubine Intoxicated’. This was filmed by Yingping Yu and Sam Ngai Hung Tang, postgraduates from the London Film School, London, in October 2018 at the John Soane’s Museum, London. (Clip 2)

Kathy Hall in rehearsal of Mei style Peking Opera scene ‘Feigning Madness at Home’ from ‘The Cosmic Blade’ , Yuzhoufeng 《宇宙锋-家中装疯》, in 1992/93, filmed at Sacred Heart Canossian College, Hong Kong, where Kathy was teaching English and English Literature.

Kathy’s co-actors were Yip Oi Lin 叶爱莲 , as the mute maid, Yanu 哑奴, and Cheung Chi Lik 张志力 as the tyrannical father, Prime Minister, Zhao Gao赵高. Kathy took the part of Zhao’s daughter, Zhao Yanrong赵艳容. Mei Lanfang wrote in his 3-volume auto-biography ‘Forty Years on Stage’ 《舞台生活四十年》that he was most fond of this opera and that he spent the longest time refining it for his own performances. Kathy was instructed in the singing by Mr Bao Youdie包幼蝶老师, a Mei specialist. Miss Yee Ping Lok (Le Yiping乐漪萍老师) instructed Kathy on movements.

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