Stage art and screen create a "spark" high-definition stage performance films are popular in China

The visualization of stage art is a new measure taken by mainstream theaters in Europe and America to expand their audience in recent years.

The high-definition opera film "The Artist's Career" produced by the Royal Opera House reproduces the Paris market in the 1830s and has a very exquisite design.

The high-definition drama film "Frankenstein" produced by the British National Theater was recently released at the Majestic Theater in Shanghai. British actor Benedict Cumberbatch, who became famous for his role in Holmes, won the British Oliver Award for Best Actor for his play. Therefore, this film has been sought after by many Shanghai audiences, especially young audiences. At the Second International Opera Film Exhibition, which opened on the same day, the National Theater of China announced that 14 well-known classic opera high-definition films at home and abroad will be successively unveiled in art theaters in 10 cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. Among these opera films are not only the Royal Opera version of "Faust" performed by the famous coloratura soprano Angela Georgiou, the Metropolitan Opera version of "The Magic Flute", and Tchaikovsky produced by the Mariinsky Theater in Russia. Rare classics such as the last opera "Princess Yoranta", also include many high-definition opera films produced by the National Center for the Performing Arts of China in recent years.

How to develop and expand more audiences through digital stage images? Can high-definition stage performance films add new sources to future art theaters?

New measures taken by overseas mainstream theaters to expand their audiences

. Imaging stage art is a new measure taken by mainstream theaters in Europe and the United States to expand their audiences in recent years.

Since 2006, the Metropolitan Opera House in the United States has used video films to broadcast more than 100 operas performed in some cinemas and middle schools across the United States, gaining potential audiences for the opera art. The stage art imaging project launched by the Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra has also achieved good results, greatly expanding the orchestra's global influence.

The British National Theater is also one of the earliest pathfinders in the visualization of stage art. The British National Theater began to create high-definition drama films in 2009. However, in just eight years, this project has flourished around the world through branded operations. The image "footprint" has spread across more than 60 countries and more than 2000 screening venues., with an audience of up to 5 million. Following the National Theatre of the United Kingdom, the Royal Shakespeare Company also produced dramatic films in 2013. Brana Theatre in the UK and Almeida Theatre in the UK also joined the ranks in 2015 and 2016 respectively.

Russia has entered this field since last year. "Onegin" and "Anna Karenina" from the Vakhtangov Theater in Russia and "Cherry Orchard" from the Moscow Art Theater are all digitally imaged and broadcast in cinemas.

In recent years, Scala Opera House in Milan has also made many attempts to visualize stage art and achieved success. Many high-definition stage performance films produced have been welcomed by audiences all over the world.

Over the past three years, more than 400 screenings have been shown in 18 cities in China

. According to the reporter, as a niche film type mainly shown in art theaters, high-definition stage performance films have also become very popular in China in recent years. Take "Frankenstein" as an example. Although this release at the Shanghai Majestic Theater is its third round of domestic touring, the attendance rate for each show is still close to 80%.

In the three years since its launch in China, high-definition stage performance films have been screened more than 400 times in 18 cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hangzhou and Chengdu. In Shanghai alone, the "footprints" of these films cover many theaters such as the Shanghai Grand Theater, Shanghai Film Museum, ET Juchang, Shanghai Drama Art Center, Huangpu Theater, and Majestic Theater. Following "Frankenstein", the Majestic Theater will release six high-definition video works of modern and contemporary European and American drama performances in the second half of the year. In addition, Japan's high-definition stage performance films have also entered the eyes of Chinese people. High-definition stage drama films based on popular novels such as "The Rebellion of the Sky" and "The Wild Ghost" produced and produced by Japan's New Sense Theater have gathered high popularity for the newly unveiled Hongqiao Art Center last year.

"Universal viewing angle" and "high-fidelity" are its advantages.

According to relevant experts,"universal viewing angle" and "high-fidelity" are the most direct impressions left by high-definition stage performance films to the audience, and they are also their advantages compared to viewing them in the theater. The experience of watching a high-definition stage performance movie is quite different from the experience of simply watching a performance in a theater. When filming a stage performance film, the film crew, the director and actors need to work in repeatedly to reach a consensus on lighting, stage positioning, etc., and determine the shot script. There are sometimes nearly 20 shooting positions during the shooting, so as to preserve the integrity and rhythm of the performance to the greatest extent in all aspects. For example, the high-definition stage performance film produced by the British National Theatre is deeply loved by the audience for its "clarity of Premier League live broadcast" and "universal perspective". The pictures it presents, especially the partial close-up of the actors 'body movements and expressions on the stage, make up for the limitation of the viewing angle of the scene.

The high-quality performances of the world's top troupes, through careful camera layout, clever editing and various technical treatments by a professional photography team, can restore the audio-visual experience of the stage performance to the greatest extent. For example, music is the core of opera, so when shooting high-definition opera performances, sound becomes the top priority of the filming team in terms of recording and post-editing. In order to better present the sound quality of the live performance of the opera, the high-definition film of Puccini opera "The Artist's Career" produced by the Royal Opera House used a high-density microphone placement plan in the recording and editing of the sound. There are dozens of microphones on site, thus ensuring that the film can realistically restore the unique sound effects of this opera work.

Editor: Mary