Lan Chi Pak, real name Lai Chung-pak and also named Lai Chi-pak, was born in Guangzhou in 1904 to a Xinhui, Guangdong family. Ranked fourth at home and respectfully called 'Uncle Fourth' in Cantonese opera circles, he took up the art at sixteen, following his third elder brother Sun Tai Tze Cheuk into the Wan Kau Lok troupe, later studying under Lan Tai Fong while modelling himself on the wenwusheng Chu Chi-pak, from whose combined names he drew his stage name. He first played third wusheng in the Chuk Wa Lin troupe and at nineteen became lead wusheng in the Chung Tai Ping troupe. Joining the Shing Sou Lin troupe and others, he appeared in such popular works as The Impeachment of Yan Song, Judge Bao's Night Trial of the Wicked Guo Huai, The Butterfly Lovers and Romance of Mount Fuji. In 1936 he toured the United States for three years and nine months, and in 1940, while abroad, acted in the film Searching for My Husband. He performed in more than 147 Hong Kong films, including A King Speaks His Heart in the Cuckoo's Song (1951) and The Impeachment of Yim Sung (1952). In 1956, when the Sin Fung Ming troupe was formed, he became its indispensable pillar, appearing in Princess Cheung Ping, The Legend of the Purple Hairpin and other classics. Renowned for his wusheng singing and stagecraft and for the unmatched 'riding the chariot' posture in Prime Minister of Six States, he earned the title 'King of Wusheng'. He was equally admired for his deep, stirring beard-role singing, his powerful dominant mode, his falsetto, and his Southern and dragon-boat songs. In the 1980s he still performed with the Chor Fung Ming troupe, generously supporting younger artists, and took Christopher Choo of Singapore as his disciple. He died in Hong Kong in 1992.
Lan Chi Pak, honoured as the 'King of Wusheng', raised the singing and stagecraft of the Cantonese opera civil-and-military male role to its peak, his unmatched 'riding the chariot' posture in Prime Minister of Six States becoming a model for later performers. From the pre-war Shing Sou Lin troupe to his role as the pillar of the Sin Fung Ming troupe after 1956, he helped fix and pass on such classics as Princess Cheung Ping and The Legend of the Purple Hairpin. Appearing in more than 140 Hong Kong films, he carried operatic movement onto the screen, and in the 1980s still performed with the Chor Fung Ming troupe and taught disciples, deeply influencing the transmission of Cantonese opera.
Achievements
- 1936 · Toured the United States for three years and nine months.
- 1956 · With the founding of the Sin Fung Ming troupe he became its indispensable pillar, appearing in classics such as Princess Cheung Ping and The Legend of the Purple Hairpin.
- 1980年代 · Still performed with the Chor Fung Ming troupe, generously supporting younger artists, and took Christopher Choo of Singapore as his disciple.