HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn is an acknowledged scholar of China, having studied the Chinese language for over 30 years. She first visited China in 1981, a trip which resulted in her first book on China called Yam Dan Mungkorn (Travels Through The Land Of The Dragon). She has made a total of 38 trips to China, visiting all 22 provinces and five autonomous regions. She has written 13 travelogues on China, translated Chinese poetry compiled in two books, translated several novels as well as other articles on China.
Most recently, the Princess presided over the launch of her latest book, a translation of Tea House: A Play In Three Acts by Lao She (1899-1966). The book launch coincided with the opening of an exhibition on "HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn's Studies Of China" and "The Teahouse And The Chinese Way Of Life" complete with a full scale model of a traditional tea house, at the Lifestyle Hall, 2nd floor, Siam Paragon. The book launch culminated with a performance of Act 1 of the play, with the audience, including the Princess, seated at various tables in the tea house.
The Princess also regaled guests with an insight into the background of the play, which provides a historical and social account of the changes in China's history through half a decade, from 1898 at the end of the Qing empire, to the Chinese Civil War after the end of the war against the Japanese. Each of the three acts traces the changes in politics and society through the exchanges within the little Yu Tai teahouse in Beijing, a microcosm of society at large in China.
Act One shows the decline in morals and political unrest towards the end of the Qing dynasty.
The Princess twirls a rattle drum at the opening of exhibitions 'HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn's Studies Of China' and 'The Teahouse And The Chinese Way Of Life'.
"The traditional Chinese tea house was like the modern cafe society," explained the Princess. "People would sit and chat about anything except politics, because there would be signs saying 'No talking politics' in the tea house.
"There were all sorts of unscrupulous characters in the tea house and new forms of business such as selling opium, impoverished farmers selling their young daughters, middle men buying them for eunuchs and sellers of new Western products such as pocket watches and tobacco. There was the Imperial secret police spying on radical reformists, and fights between gangsters. The play also shows how the Chinese loved walking their birds and the tea house would have hooks to hang bird cages. A rich young entrepreneur plans to build a factory in an attempt to bring prosperity to the country."
Act Two takes place 20 years later. Although the country is now a republic, lawlessness abounds. There are signs of unrest, with students planning protests. "Cai Shen [God of Fortune] has made way for a poster of a pretty girl selling cigarettes," noted the princess. "There are now rooms to rent out to earn extra income. Gangsters demand protection money."
The final act takes place 30 years after that, when the war against the Japanese is over, and civil war involving the Kuomintang ravages the country. Corruption and oppression is even worse than before.
"All the posters have gone now, except 'No talking politics' and 'Pay before eating'. Human trafficking is now an enterprise. The play ends with the desolation of the owner of Yu Tai teahouse and his eventual suicide."
In the foreward, the Princess writes, "Tea House: A Play In Three Acts covers the changes in China's social environment that evolves from a traditional society to a contemporary one. These changes have far-reaching effects on the people and the whole country, but the playwright has managed to condense these events and create a 'historical chronicle' in the form of literature. This play is an important 'historical chronicle' that truly touches the reader. The reader will understand the suffering, happiness and despair of people in different social ranks that do not appear in other historical records."
Lao She was the pen name of Shu Qingchun, a famous Chinese novelist and dramatist of 20th century Chinese literature. He was greatly influenced by the May Protest in 1919 during which students protested against the government's weak stand against the Treaty of Versailles which allowed Japan to receive China territories that were surrendered by Germany after the war. This sparked Chinese nationalism, and gave Lao She a voice through literature. He was highly educated and well-travelled. He taught at the London School of Oriental and African Studies, in Singapore and also in China. He read voraciously, including the works of Charles Darwin, Joseph Conrad, Mark Twain, Tolstoy, Checkhov, all of whom added to his perspective towards his own country and work.
Lao She was abused by the Red Guards of the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s, and, like many intellectuals of the time, took his own life.
Tea House: A Play In Three Acts, translated by HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn and published by Nanmeebooks Co Ltd, is available at all leading bookshops for 165 baht.
Cover of Tea House: A Play In Three Acts by Lao She.
Lao She.
