Lin Yingshi
23-year-old Lin Yingshi is a member of The Young Academy Cantonese Opera Troupe, and has won several awards for her work in the genre. The rising star finds time in her busy training schedule to speak to Winkei Lee about life as a Cantonese opera singer and what the traditional art has taught her.
HK Magazine: How did you become a Cantonese opera singer?
Lin Yingshi: My parents liked to watch Chinese opera and they always brought me with them, so that built up an interest. I’ve liked singing Cantonese opera from a young age, but I officially began training when I was 13 and got into the Guangdong Cantonese Opera Academy.
HK: Has being in an environment where everyone is focused on Cantonese opera influenced you at all?
LY: Actually, I think I influenced the people around me! There aren’t many people my age who share my passion for Cantonese opera, so I feel that my love for Cantonese opera has been quite infectious. Having said that, learning and training Cantonese opera isn’t easy; it’s actually pretty tough. Many other kids studied Cantonese opera with me when I was younger, but out of all of them, I am the only one still doing this now.
HK: What have you learned through being a Cantonese opera singer?
LY: I think there are so many virtues you can learn through Cantonese opera—the lyrics are so cultured and beautiful. I guess being surrounded by Cantonese opera and having my parents teach me traditional Chinese values all my life have made me appreciate the deep values behind our tradition. Also, it’s taught me a lot about the importance of family and loyalty.
HK: Tell us a bit about your training.
LY: We have something called “four skills, five laws” that we train by—the four skills being sing, train, do and fight, and the five laws being hand, eye, body, laws and steps. You have to train step-by-step every day, and it’s really an all-rounded art. There are no holidays in this art—if you don’t practice for a day, you will feel it. If you don’t practice for two days, your audience will know. By the third day, there is pretty much no need to perform. Your audience will be able to see how stiff your acting is.
HK: What has been the most memorable experience in your career?
LY: I grew up in a very homely environment and I have always been very close to my family, so when my father passed away a day before The Young Academy Cantonese Opera Troupe’s first full-length performance, it was a huge shock to me. I wanted to take leave from that performance, but I was the lead actress, and I knew that my father would want me to be a useful person and become accomplished in the field. I returned to Hong Kong on the day of the show to perform, and then rushed back to Guangzhou the next day. It was a very tough experience.
HK: Do you feel that there is enough appreciation for Cantonese opera?
LY: I feel that people do appreciate Cantonese opera and Chinese tradition. I went to the UK to perform a play called “Detention,” representing Hong Kong at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where there was a section involving Cantonese opera. My fellow performers were all keen to learn about it. I think it would be good if the government could place more resources into the art to encourage a younger audience to appreciate Cantonese opera.