Li Yugang
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
July 23, 1978
Li Yugang 李玉刚 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Yang Guifei in "Portrait of Four Beauties.(2011) | |||||||
| Background information | |||||||
| Also known as | Mr. Yu (玉先生) | ||||||
| Born | Li Gang (李刚) July 23, 1978 Gongzhuling, Jilin, China | ||||||
| Genres | |||||||
| Occupations | Singer, stage actor | ||||||
| Instrument | Vocals | ||||||
| Years active | 2006–present | ||||||
| Labels | Jade (玉泽东方) | ||||||
| Website | https://weibo.com/n/李玉刚 | ||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 李玉剛 | ||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 李玉刚 | ||||||
| |||||||
Li Yugang (Chinese: 李玉刚; pinyin: Lǐ Yùgāng; born July 23, 1978) is a Chinese singer, artist, and soloist with the China National Opera & Dance Drama Theater. A National First-Class Actor, he specialises in nándàn (男旦) roles, male performances of female parts, in Peking opera.
Born into a farming family in Jilin province, Li was unable to attend college and worked various jobs before becoming a club singer in Xi'an. It was there that his ability to sing in both male and female registers was discovered when he filled in for an absent colleague. Li rose to prominence in 2006 after placing third on the talent show Star Boulevard and has since released music, performed internationally, and expanded into writing, cultural promotion, and filmmaking.
Born in 1978 to a farming family in Jilin, Li was accepted into the provincial Art College but could not attend due to financial constraints. Following high school, he held various jobs in Changchun before moving to Xi'an to work as a waiter in an entertainment club.[1]
Soon, he was allowed to sing a few songs and became a club singer. His breakthrough came when a female colleague didn't show up and he had to take her place, singing in a female voice.[1] "That's how I started with female roles," recalled Li Yugang.[citation needed] The ability to perform in both male and female vocal ranges led to a full-time position. From 1998 to 2006, Li trained professionally to develop skills in nándàn, the traditional Peking opera practice of men portraying female characters.[2]
Career
Early years
In 2006, Li rose to prominence after placing third on Star Boulevard (星光大道), a national talent competition on CCTV.[3] His performances of "Farewell My Concubine" (霸王别姬) and "The Drunken Beauty" (贵妃醉酒), both from the Peking Opera repertoire, gained him significant public attention.[citation needed]
The following year, Li gave his first solo performance in Beijing, titled "Where Flowers are Unbounded" (凡花无界). In April 2008, he performed at the "2008 United Nations Spring Cultural Festival" at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.[4] In 2009, he joined the China National Opera & Dance Drama Theater[2] and was awarded the title of National First-Class Actor.[5] That same year, Li performed at the Sydney Opera House,[6] becoming the second Chinese artist to do so, and was awarded the Southern Cross Gold Prize for Culture by the Australian Government.[citation needed]
Stage
In 2010 and 2011, Li developed the stage productions "Flower in Mirror, Moon in Water" (镜花水月) and "The Painting of Four Beauties" (四美图), respectively, performing over 100 shows domestically and internationally. In 2015, he directed and starred in "Lady Zhaojun" (昭君出塞), an Oriental Poetic Stage production that took three years to prepare.[7] It premiered in Beijing from 16–19 April 2015.
A new musical adaptation of "Lady Zhaojun" premiered at the Beijing Tianqiao Performing Arts Center on 26 April 2019, followed by a global tour in June. By 8 December 2019, the production had completed 46 performances.[8] Following a hiatus, the tour was scheduled to resume in 2023.[9]
Music
In 2010, Li Yugang released his debut album "The New Drunken Beauty" (新贵妃醉酒), and then released "Dream-chasing Chant" (逐梦令) and "Lotus" (莲花). In 2014, the Rhymoi Music company released Li Yugang's "Once Upon a Time in Shanghai" (民国旧梦) CD album.
On 10 November 2016, the single "Happened to meet you" (剛好遇見你) was released for the 10th anniversary of his debut and the self-titled album was released in 2017. "Happened to meet you" stayed on the music charts for 10 weeks, and the music video for the song reached over 100 million views on YouTube. After that, he started the tour of "Li Yugang's 10-year Classic Concert" (李玉剛十年經典演唱會) on 17 Dec. 2016.[10]
By now(2023), Li Yugang has released nearly a hundred singles, mainly in Chinese style. He has also blended variety styles like R&B, rap and electronic elements into his music.
Cross-Border
In addition to being a stage actor and singer, Li Yugang has also branched out into writing, planning and holding cultural gatherings, promotion of ceramic culture, and film director.
In November 2016, his first literary work "The beauty I met" (玉見之美) which recorded his pilgrimage to China's intangible cultural heritage with words and pictures was published.[11] At the end of 2016, Li 's art space "Jade Space" (玉空間) was completed in Beijing, extending his love and obsession with traditional culture from stage art to life aesthetics.[12] In May 2021, after the "Jade Space" in Beijing and Suzhou, Li Yugang's porcelain culture-themed art space - "Jade Workshop" (玉工坊) was unveiled in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province.[13]
In 2019, the short film "A Date After Twilight", Li directed and starred, was set as the opening film of the 86358 Short Film Exchange Week hosted by Jia Zhangke Art Center.[14] On 30 March 2023, Li has begun filming his feature directorial debut "Nostalgia in the Cloud" (雲上的雲).[15]
Stage works
Director's works
| Year | Title | English Title | Credited as | Type |
| 2023 | 雲上的雲 | Nostalgia In The Clouds | Director, Writer, Actor | Feature film |
| 2019 | 人約黃昏後 | A Date After Twilight | Director, Actor | Short film |
| 2017 | 般若號角 | Prajna Horn | Director, Actor | Musical |
| 2015 | 昭君出塞 | Lady Zhaojun | Director, Actor | Musical |
