The yellow brocade curtain slowly opens to reveal the stage. It has been transformed into a wonderland. Hand painted panels of silk depicting a magical mountain landscape hang from the back of it. Fantastic trees with bowing branches covered in white blossoms ring the base of the mountains, while clouds and cranes soar through the blue silk sky. Portions of the panels have been embroidered with silver and gold threads, which impart an ethereal shimmer to them. This place is the magical Mount Emi, which is home to many immortal spirits, including the heroine of the story and her younger sister. Those sitting closest to the stage might hear the faint squeak of a pulley over the sounds of the music, as down from the top of the stage come representations of pagodas, all covered in flowers and ringed by gossamer wisps of cotton and spun silver thread, mixed with finely carded wool, which represent the clouds.
From stage right and stage left come two enormous snakes, undulating and weaving in time to the lively tune that the musicians are playing. One snake is white and one is green. In reality, the snakes are nothing more than members of the cast lined up beneath a silken shroud, moving in unison in the same fashion as a dragon is recreated at a parade. But, when seen under the magical combination of flickering lantern light and the gentle relaxation afforded by a good cup of tea or three, the audience might swear that they really were seeing two enchanted snakes, instead of a group of dancers!
The snakes spin and dance in a dizzying display; their motions grow faster and faster and the tempo of the music keeps pace with them, until everything builds into a dramatic crescendo that culminates in a loud clash of gongs and a blinding flash of theatrical pyrotechnics and smoke, which obscures the stage for a few moments.
When the smoke dissipates gone are the snakes, and in their places stand two women. One is dressed in a beautiful white gown. Her face is painted and powdered and her cheeks are tinted with a touch of delicate pink; expressive eyes are outlined with cosmetics. Dark hair is piled high upon her head and crowned with a lotus flower. The most distinctive feature of her costume is her long flowing sleeves. These are the famous Shui Hsiu, or water sleeves. All of the elements of her costume come together to give the audience information about her place in the story. Clearly, she is a lady of refinement, bedewed with beauty and grace. This is our heroine, Lady White Snake, or Bai Su as she is called in Chinese.
The other woman is wearing a simpler outfit of green and blue. Her hair is pulled back into twin buns on either side of her head, wrapped round with green ribbons and pearls; this is how serving girls in China wear their hair. She’s wearing a very coquettish, almost sly, expression as she looks out over the audience. This is Lady Green Snake, or Xiao Quin as she is called in Chinese. She is the younger sister of Bai Su.
The women spin and turn in time to the music. The little one in green admires her hands and feet, as if she’s never seen them before, and in truth she hasn’t. Snakes don’t have appendages, after all!
“Sister!” Xiao Quin says, breathless with delight. “Just look at us! How wonderful! Isn’t it amazing? So this is what it is like to be a human…”
“I agree, it does feel most peculiar,” replies Bai Su. “Peculiar and wonderful! I have meditated and studied for a thousand years. Things grow and change. That is the way of life. A tall tree grows from a tiny seed and a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. And both you and I have changed as well.”
“What does it mean?” Xiao Quin wants to know, screwing up her face into a thoughtful expression.
“I cannot say,” Bai Su continues as she moves to the edge of the stage and looks out into the audience. “I think it is a wonderful thing. For, you see, although our home here is a beautiful place, I find it very lonely at times. I want to go down there.” She points out at the audience. “I want to walk among the humans. I want to do what they do and see what they see. I have heard of a beautiful place called Xi Hu. I want to see it, if only for a little while.”
“It could be dangerous,” Xiao Quin minds her. “We don’t know anything about the human world. If we go there, why they might catch us and devour us! I have heard stories that they eat snakes!” She crosses her arms over her chest and nods knowingly.
But Bai Su merely laughs. “You’re so silly! No one will eat us, I promise. Now do you want to come with me or not?”
“Of course I want to come with you! After all, someone has to come with you and look after you. What kind of a sister would I be, if I let you wander all alone through strange, snake eating lands? I’ll pretend to be your maid. It will be a grand adventure!”
“Look after me, you say? Like as not, I’ll end up looking after you! After all, you’ve only been meditating and studying for five hundred years!” Bai Su favors her younger sister with an indulgent smile before moving away. Thinking Xiao Quin is following she almost exits the stage, before she turns. She is surprised to find her maid-to-be still standing there, looking for all the world like someone who finds herself in the middle of an icy lake and is fearful to take a step, lest she invite disaster.
“What’s the matter?”
“How does one walk on these things called feet?”
Act One, Scene One -- Mount Emi
By The Shores of the Lake
(- threads, 400 posts)
The Zhulong Teahouse
(398 posts)
Beauty quietly enters and takes a back seat
