Li Guizhen p ''Lǐ Guìzhēn''; 1907–1942), better known by her

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Bai Yushuang ''Yùshuāng'', Jade Frost"), was a Chinese Ping Opera

singer Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define singi ...

and

actress An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

. She was one of "The Four Famous '' Dans''" ''Sì Dàmíng Dàn'') and remains known as the "Queen of

Pingju Pingju or Ping opera () is a form of Chinese opera from North China, northern China. History Pingju originated in Tangshan, Hebei, near the city of Tianjin.. Among all China's regional operas, it was the most famous in the Republic of China (191 ...

" ''Píngjù Huánghòu'').

Life

Li Guizhen was born in Guye, Luan County,

Hebei Hebei is a Provinces of China, province in North China. It is China's List of Chinese administrative divisions by population, sixth-most populous province, with a population of over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. It bor ...

. As a child, she was sold to the wandering entertainer Li Jingchun and his wife Mrs Bian, who renamed her Li Huimin ''Lǐ Huìmǐn''). Her status within the family was reduced when Mrs Bian gave birth to a son, Li Guozhang. She was then forced to earn money on the street by singing stories accompanied by a small drum or other instrument. At fourteen, she began learning

pingju Pingju or Ping opera () is a form of Chinese opera from North China, northern China. History Pingju originated in Tangshan, Hebei, near the city of Tianjin.. Among all China's regional operas, it was the most famous in the Republic of China (191 ...

from Dong Faliang, taking

supporting role A supporting character is a character in a narrative that is not the focus of the primary storyline, but is important to the plot/protagonist, and appears or is mentioned in the story enough to be more than just a minor character or a cameo a ...

s under the stage name "Bai Yushuang". She became celebrated in

Beiping "Beijing" is from pinyin ''Běijīng,'' which is romanized from , the Chinese name for this city. The pinyin system of transliteration was approved by the Chinese government in 1958, but little used until 1979. It was gradually adopted by various ...

(now

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

) and

Tianjin Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...

for her extreme

range Range may refer to: Geography * Range (geographic), a chain of hills or mountains; a somewhat linear, complex mountainous or hilly area (cordillera, sierra) ** Mountain range, a group of mountains bordered by lowlands * Range, a term used to i ...

, from very high notes to lower than lowest note of the ''

erhu The (; ) is a Chinese two-stringed bowed musical instrument, more specifically a spike fiddle, that is sometimes known in the Western world as the ''Chinese violin'' or a ''Chinese two-stringed fiddle''. It is used as a solo instrument as ...

''. Upon Li Jingchun's death, his widow Mrs Bian purchased more girls from poor families. The 4-year-old Xiaodezi was renamed Fuzi and instructed to refer to Li Guizhen as her mother. Bai Yushuang began to perform lead roles for the Yushun Opera Troupe. This company was owned by Mrs Bian, managed by her brother, and accompanied by her son on the ''

'', a situation which led to its being generally known as the Li Troupe (''Lijia Ban''). Bai Yushuang eventually changed its name to the North China Opera Troupe ''Huáběi Xìshè''). She became notorious as a "slutty performer" (, ''yínlíng'') and "contaminant" following her performance as a fly spirit in the 1933 '' Catching Flies'' ''Zhuō Cāngying''), when her costume consisted of a red

dudou A ''dudou'' (; also known by other names) is a traditional Chinese article of clothing that covers the front of the torso, originally worn as an undershirt with medicinal properties. With the opening of China, it is sometimes encountered in ...

and tight white clothes under some long scarves, and was expelled from

by its mayor for performing "obscene lyrics". The Chinese periodical '' Women's Lives'' reported icily that "thousands of square miles of Chinese territory have been occupied by the

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

without any resistance, but if a woman offends public decency, she must be expelled." Relocating to

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

in 1935, Li Guizhen performed

alongside Ai Lianjun, Yu Lingzhi, and Zhao Ruquan to large audiences at the Enpaiya Theater and on tour through

Suzhou Suzhou is a major prefecture-level city in southern Jiangsu province, China. As part of the Yangtze Delta megalopolis, it is a major economic center and focal point of trade and commerce. Founded in 514 BC, Suzhou rapidly grew in size by the ...

Wuxi Wuxi ( zh, s=无锡, p=Wúxī, ) is a city in southern Jiangsu, China. As of the 2024 census, it had a population of 7,495,000. The city lies in the southern Yangtze delta and borders Lake Tai. Notable landmarks include Lihu Park, the Mt. Lings ...

, and

Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...

. The repertoire included '' Pan Jinlian'', '' Spring in the Jade Hall'' (, ''Yù Táng Chūn''), '' The Little Matchmaker'' ''Hóngniáng''), '' Yan Poxi'', and '' The Lioness's Roar'' ''Hédōng Shīhǒu''). She was arrested and accused of murder but Mrs Bian was able to extricate her from the charges. Her character was attacked by conservatives but defended by Zhao Jinshen and A Ying in the press and the

reformers A reformer is someone who works for reform. Reformer may also refer to: * Catalytic reformer, in an oil refinery *Methane reformer, producing hydrogen * Steam reformer * Hydrogen reformer, extracting hydrogen *Methanol reformer, producing hydrogen ...

Tian Han Tian Han ( zh, 田汉; 12 March 1898 – 10 December 1968), formerly romanized as T'ien Han, was a Chinese drama activist, playwright, a leader of revolutionary music and films, as well as a translator and poet. He emerged at the time of the ...

Hong Shen Hong Shen (; 31 December 1894 – 29 August 1955) was a Chinese playwright, film director and screenwriter, film and drama theorist, and educator. He is considered by drama historians as one of the three founders of the modern Chinese spoken dra ...

, and

Ouyang Yuqian Ouyang Yuqian (; May 12, 1889 – September 21, 1962) was a Chinese playwright, Peking opera actor and writer, film screenwriter and director, and drama educator. He is considered by drama historians as one of the three founders of the modern Chi ...

worked with her to work "anti-feudalist" messages into her historical dramas. She became a movie star following her role in

Zhang Shichuan Zhang Shichuan (; 1889–1953 or 1890–1954), also credited as S. C. Chang, was a Chinese entrepreneur, film director, and film producer, who is considered a founding father of Chinese cinema. He and Zheng Zhengqiu made the first Chinese featu ...

's 1936 '' Red Begonia'' ''Hǎitáng Hóng'') and was considered one of "The Four Famous '' Dans''", alongside Liu Cuixia, Ai Lianjun, and Xi Cailian. She fell in love with the cymbal player Li Yongqi, but Mrs Bian prevented their

marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

to protect the profits she was deriving from her "money tree" (''yaoqianshu''). The pair eloped to his hometown in Ba County,

, in February 1937. She dressed and lived as a peasant for six months before Mrs Bian ultimately negotiated for her return and the troupe's return to Tianjin and Beiping. Around the time of the

occupation of the city, Bai Yushuang was diagnosed with

uterine cancer Uterine cancer, also known as womb cancer, includes two types of cancer that develop from the tissues of the uterus. Endometrial cancer forms from the lining of the uterus, and uterine sarcoma forms from the muscles or support tissue of the ute ...

. She received treatment at Beiping's German hospital and her understudy Fuzi—under the name Little Bai Yushuang ''Bái Yùshuāng'')—only replaced her once she was too ill to take the stage. In Spring of 1942, Li Guizhen returned to Tianjin to find that her bank accounts and property had been transferred to Mrs Bian's son. She collapsed on stage during a performance of '' Understanding after Death'' ''Sǐ Hòu Míngbai'') with Li Yifen in July 1942 and subsequently died.

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