The Buckteeth Stunt in Wuju Opera

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Zhou Chunrong (1926-2011), a stage artist of Wuju Opera, a regional opera genre popular in the central and southern part of Zhejiang, is probably best known for a tooth stunt he was able to stage. This stunt has been inscribed as a national cultural heritage.

Born into a rural village in August 1926, Zhou Chunrong as a kid did not have the slightest idea that he would become a Wuju Opera artist. His parents died before he was six years old. His big brother and sister-in-law took him under their wings. The couple was Wuju Opera artists and they were members of a theater company that traveled through rural areas in central Zhejiang. Zhou Chunrong tagged along with his big brother and sister-in-law. This way, he watched a great number of performances. The sister-in-law found the kid brother was a brilliant imitator. She recommended Zhou Chunrong to the troupe’s boss. Zhou Chunrong became a member of the troupe and began to learn performance under the guidance of his sister-in-law.

Opportunity came to him when he was sixteen. One day, a clown fell ill and the boss was worried about the performance that evening. Zhou Chunrong recommended himself to the boss saying he could cover for the clown. Though a little bit nervous when he first stepped upon the stage, the young artist soon found himself totally absorbed in the performance. He did pretty well. From then on, the boss assigned a series of characters to him. The young artist worked hard. In those days, rural Wuju Opera artists did not have scripts. They learned essentials of plays from their masters and they needed improvising onstage. How an artist improvised and how he followed the basic storyline and how he coordinated with other artists depended upon his talent and experience. Zhou turned out to be born for this kind of show. In a few years, Zhou Chunrong became a famous star in rural areas around Jinhua and Yiwu counties in central Zhejiang. The versatile artist could play all kinds of roles, but he preferred to be a clown on the stage.

After the founding of the People’s Republic in 1949, Zhou Chunrong entered Jiangshan Wuju Opera troupe. He got married and had children. His career flourished.

Then he met his master Chen Xiemei. From his mouth, the Wuju Opera master could display and hide two or four buckteeth at will in performance. The buckteeth added a dramatic effect to the show when the character expressed his ferocity. Zhou was fascinated by the stunt. The master was willing to teach. A bucktooth usually measures two inches long and as large as a pinkie. Only a boar that weighs more than 350 kilograms has such a big tooth. Of course, the best buckteeth are from wild boars. The tooth play is a fine coordination of a player’s tongue, teeth, lips, and breath. The buckteeth can be displayed pointing upward or downward. Zhou mastered the trick of playing two teeth.

Before he could learn more from his master, Chen fell ill. On his deathbed, the master told his young pupil that the best stunt was to display eight buckteeth. The master estimated that Zhou could learn to master four at least and that it would be enough to sell tickets and win approval in rural road shows. The master also said now the duty to carry the stunt on to next generations was shifted to Zhou.

With the master gone, Zhou explored on his own. After a few years of hard practice, he learned how to play four buckteeth. However, the stunt did not add any more glory to his career, for his career came to end when the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) broke out. Moreover, his family fell apart. He and his wife, two daughters were exiled to a village in Yongkang. The elder daughter was married and moved away. The second daughter went to Inner Mongolia. The wife divorced him. Zhou Chunrong despaired and swore he would never perform again.

He was politically rehabilitated when the ten-year tumult came to end in 1976. He came back to Jiangshan and had a steady job. He got married again. Now and then, he sang some arias happily at home. In 1985, he retired. He resumed his career in 1996 when some retired wuju opera artists organized themselves into a troupe. The troupe went on road shows in rural areas again. In 1997, Zhou joined a road show and performed. He was excited and extremely happy.

Jiangshan Wuju Opera Troupe was entrusted to carry along the traditional operatic genre in general and some stunts such as the buckteeth play and the face changing. In 2006, the troupe director Mao Xiangyang came to visit Zhou Chunrong and engaged Zhou to teach the art of the buckteeth play to the next generation artists. Zhou at last got a chance to pass the stunt on. The 80-year-old veteran artist chose 40-year-old Zheng Chufa, also a clown.

Zheng agreed to Zhou’s two conditions: Zheng would do all he could to master the stunt and would later pass it on to younger artists. Zheng spent two years learning the teeth stunt. Zhou Chunrong also taught his disciple a few more stage tricks. In 2008, Zhou was too ill to go to the troupe anymore. He told Zheng that from then on Zheng was on his own, but Zhou promised to help Zheng in any way possible.

Zhou passed away in 2011 at the age of 85. The buckteeth play is now in the mouth of a younger artist.