馮潔
又到了中國農(nóng)歷年辭舊迎新的時節(jié)。古今中外,世間儀式千千萬,對我們而言,唯春節(jié)儀式不可亦無法辜負。春節(jié)儀式中哪怕是最不起眼的微小細節(jié),也如此牽動我們心靈深處的縷縷情絲。
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無需問“我”在哪里過年,過年就要以大團聚、大熱鬧、大歡喜的方式安放各自內(nèi)心已經(jīng)實現(xiàn)或尚未實現(xiàn)的種種期盼。每年春運之所以年復一年為媒體高度關(guān)注,它內(nèi)涵就在于春運關(guān)乎的不僅僅是一張車票或一張機票,其已成為揭開中國年盛大儀式的民間序幕?!按哼\到,紅紅火火過年了”可以是歌詞,可以是戲詞,可以是色彩,當然更可以是心境。
一
在劇團工作多年至退休,逢年過節(jié),公眾放假休閑的日子通常是劇團的忙碌時光。我們把適合節(jié)慶假日上演的各類戲碼,連同自己的洗漱用品和衣物裝進旅行袋,輾轉(zhuǎn)城市與鄉(xiāng)村建筑風格迥異的舞臺。毋庸置疑,即便在互聯(lián)網(wǎng)時代,現(xiàn)場演出依然是無法替代的傳遞和感受真善美的重要方式。無論中外,與現(xiàn)場演戲和看戲相比,影視的歷史委實有點短。當然,正因沒有成長包袱,年輕的影視花樣迭出、活力無限,唯有比它們更年輕的互聯(lián)網(wǎng)似可抗衡。有人認為互聯(lián)網(wǎng)消解了儀式感的存在,且慢下此定論,就像兒時的我們迫不及待盼除夕降臨,那桌出自爺爺奶奶或外公外婆或爸爸媽媽之手的年夜飯想想就流口水;期待大年初一一睜眼就到來,可以穿上大人們提前備好的新衣蹦蹦跳跳去左鄰右舍拜年……不知不覺中我們被人生轉(zhuǎn)換了角色,自己成了過節(jié)時忙忙綠綠為晚輩準備年夜飯、新衣物的那位長者。年輕的影視藝術(shù)和更年輕的互聯(lián)網(wǎng)終究也會擁有回望過往的時刻,到那時,它們會告訴未來的自己,曾經(jīng)的選擇有多么自豪與光鮮,又有哪些淺淺的追悔……
二
春節(jié)看大戲的風俗由來已久。經(jīng)濟發(fā)達的江浙一帶素有逢年過節(jié)各鄉(xiāng)各鎮(zhèn)各村攀比誰有能耐請到大名角之“嗜好”。而在溫州地區(qū)此風尤盛。
記得某年春節(jié)期間,團里舞美隊大年初一就出發(fā)了。正式演出是初二晚上。為滿足廣大村民的“好勝心”,組織那場演出的相關(guān)人員再三誠邀被國務院授予中國非遺越劇代表性項目傳承人,時任浙江小百花越劇團團長的茅威濤前往“站臺”,她的任務是在開演前或開演后給村民拜年。有大角兒站臺拜年,該村村民倍感風光!于是那個春節(jié)的某個上午茅威濤搭乘火車趕往演出地,我恰好與她同行。
一進村,我倆就驚呆了:鋪著防水布的地上攤放著樣式各異的鍋碗瓢盆,已褪毛的雞、鴨和開膛去鱗的大魚,未切成塊的各種肉類以及青白紅黃的蔬菜!那是當下在微信等虛擬空間成長的一代人無法想象的景象。那種天然熱度與時下人們熱衷的“流量”無丁點關(guān)系,那些生機盎然,讓人情不自禁地被打動,甚而雙眼濕潤。
那個春節(jié)的夜晚,無風無雨,無寒冬之冰冷。事先聽說晚上方圓四處有多臺越劇演出。果真,那夜相鄰的村子有上海越劇院、南京越劇團、紹興小百花越劇團、寧波小百花越劇團以及民間戲班,在同一片夜空下“你方唱罷我登場”,抑或同時開演同時結(jié)束,與以前上海、天津等京劇重鎮(zhèn)盛行一時的大角兒“打擂臺”的熱鬧相差無幾,作為主要娛樂方式的戲曲,在春節(jié)里一時風光無兩。
三
相傳,我國古代有種叫“年”的怪獸生性兇殘,每年冬春之交常出來毀壞田園傷害人畜,鬧得人人懼怕。當時有聰明且勇敢者想出一招妙計,在大院里架起木柴堆,在大院外擺開桌子,桌上擺放豬頭、牛頭、羊頭等食物。當那只名叫“年”的怪獸看到食物張開血盆大口欲飽餐的那一刻,眾人點燃柴堆,敲響鑼鼓,大放鞭炮。一時火光沖天,鑼鼓聲加鞭炮聲震耳欲聾,怪獸便嚇得落荒而逃,于是人們互道平安。
另一種版本略不同。相傳名叫“年”的怪獸逢歲末便跑到各村莊為非作歹,孰料某次竟被家家晾出的大紅衣物嚇跑。于是過年大人小孩都穿紅戴紅。還有更溫馨的版本。名叫“年”的怪獸令村人害怕,每年人們會擇日離開避之。某個歲末,一位老人來到空空蕩蕩的村里偶遇一位小男孩。老人問村里何以冷清,小男孩就把眾人怕“年”的事說與老人。老人告知小男孩,今天有他在就不用擔心被“年”吃掉了。老人讓小男孩在門上貼了紅春聯(lián),在屋里點起紅蠟燭。天黑后一老一少放起串串紅鞭炮。脆響的鞭炮聲和在鞭炮照射下格外顯紅的對聯(lián),果然把“年”嚇走了。待等田野恢復寧靜,小男孩發(fā)現(xiàn)老人已悄然消失。這段場景,有氣氛、有人物、有對話,想來是適合作為兒童劇創(chuàng)作素材的。那位和藹可親又像金庸筆下身懷絕技的俠客的老人,似乎還與西方圣誕老人具備些許近似的傳奇色彩。
四
相對各家各戶的爺爺奶奶、外婆外公、爸爸媽媽、夫妻兒女精心營造的樣態(tài)迥異的過年場景,蘊含在公眾娛樂氛圍中的逢年過節(jié)的記憶或許更具被記錄的價值。因其公眾化所賦予的儀式感,“紅紅火火過大年”這簡簡單單的七個漢字,便有了撲面而來的栩栩如生。
行文至此,倏然思及,在關(guān)于過年的古典詩詞中,北宋王安石創(chuàng)作的七言絕句“爆竹聲中一歲除,春風送暖入屠蘇。千門萬戶曈曈日,總把新桃換舊符”中的第一句和最后一句,算得上是公眾集體記憶里印象深也流傳廣的辭舊迎新的佳句?;蛟S,很多人并不知道詩中“曈曈”的確切含義,但這絲毫不影響佳句的詠傳。南宋大家陸游創(chuàng)作的《除夜雪》更顯江南情調(diào):“北風吹雪四更初,嘉瑞天教及歲除。半盞屠蘇猶未舉,燈前小草寫桃符。”同樣,“粘”著網(wǎng)絡、手機成長的年輕人或許也不了解詩中的“屠蘇”在古代是一種酒的別稱,“小草”是指毛筆書寫,這同樣也不妨礙中國年在他們心里所具有的無可替代的位置。
眾所周知,春節(jié)與清明、端午、中秋并稱中國四大傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日。“春節(jié)民俗”(亦不妨理解為春節(jié)儀式)經(jīng)國務院批準列第一批國家級非物質(zhì)文化遺產(chǎn)。在春節(jié)這個特殊的節(jié)日里,始于1983年的央視春晚至今仍是大多數(shù)人年三十晚上感受審美與享受娛樂的重要載體之一。從直播大廳舞美空間、燈光設計到主持人的服飾裝扮,處處體現(xiàn)著“紅紅火火”。從遠古到當下,“紅紅火火”就這樣閃爍在我們的目光里,印刻在我們表情的紋路內(nèi),裹卷在我們聲音的起伏中,粘合著我們的小情感與大情懷,年復一年而面向未來。
又到農(nóng)歷辭舊迎新之時。紅衣服,紅圍巾,紅對聯(lián),紅剪紙,紅燈籠,紅鞭炮,燙金壓歲紙質(zhì)紅包,在微信里嘀嘀嘀轉(zhuǎn)來轉(zhuǎn)去的小紅包……里里外外透著紅的春節(jié)駕著歡悅、馱著生動,正飛奔在與我們相擁的途中。
I was born and brought up in Hangzhou. Now I am a retiree. Spatially, the city has changed a great deal since I was born. Emotionally, however, it remains unchanged. Hangzhou is the anchor, stage and background of my life, my emotion and my memory. What the Spring Festival brings into my heart remains unchanged. No matter where I am, the festival is all about reunion and excitement and happiness. It is a time when I rearrange my realized and unrealized hopes inside my heart.
As a playwright, I consider the Spring Festival as a drama, as a well decorated backdrop on a theater stage, some poetic lines in a play. Before my retirement, public festivals and holidays were usually my busiest time. I used to pack up things and got ready for the troupes road show. I used to travel from city to city, from town to town, and village to village. Stages differ widely. Even though the internet era has been around for a long time, watching an opera performance in a theater has remained as an irreplaceable experience for many a theatergoer. For many rural residents, theatergoing is still a ceremony. Nowadays, such exciting life seems a little bit far away from me. I am no longer a little girl waiting for the Spring Festival to come back and enjoying all the festivities happily. I am now a woman who fusses busily about preparations for the reunion dinner on the last day of the old year and for new garments for the first day of the New Year.
Though I am no longer so engaged in road shows of Zhejiang Xiaobaihua Yueju Opera Troupe where I worked for a long time, I still remember what I saw and experienced during these Spring Festival festivities. Zhejiang is a province of prosperity. Villages and towns open their deep pockets and vie each other to see who can stage the biggest show and who can get the biggest star to appear in these shows. In a Spring Festival, I remember, our Yueju opera troupe was scheduled to give a performance in a village on the second evening of the New Year. Stage technicians left for the show on the first day of the New Year. Mao Weitao, the biggest star of Yueju Opera in the province, promised to appear after the show. She was to show up in the village and say “Happy New Year” to residents on the morning of the third day of the New Year. I tagged along.
We were astonished to see the preparations made for a banquet on a village square. Dinnerware, chickens, ducks and fishes, pork, beef and mutton, and vegetables in various colors, were heaped on a large waterproof blanket placed on the square. For those who primarily see the world through social media, this is a spectacular sight. I was more than astonished. I was also touched, tears welling up in my eyes. It was the real life I suddenly saw face to face. Then it was the third evening of the Spring Festival. Our troupe was staging the second opera play in the village. I wandered to neighboring villages to see what was going on out there. To my excitement and surprise, I saw Shanghai Yueju Opera House, Nanjing Yueju Opera Troupe, Shaoxing Xiaobaihua Yueju Opera Troupe, Ningbo Xiaobaihua Yueju Opera Troupe and some folk troupes putting up their respective grand shows. It reminded me of the good old times of the Peking Opera. In the past, some Peking Opera stars gave their shows respectively in Tianjin or Shanghai at the same time. Theatergoers would attend shows staged by the stars they championed.
Traditional Chinese operas have been a key part of the Spring Festival festivities since very ancient times. Some folktales about the Spring Festival explain, in a sense, why the hustle and bustle of the festival is necessary: to scare away the monster and keep safe.
China Central Television (CCTV) started a gala on the eve of the Spring Festival in 1983. It has long since become the biggest Spring Festival celebration for the whole nation and overseas Chinese communities. The Spring Festival customs were inscribed onto the first list of the national intangible cultural heritage by the State Council in 2006. For many people, the Spring Festival is all about happiness and excitement and hope. For me, it is a ceremony. Happiness, excitement, hope in life cant happen without a ceremony.