Yam Bing-yee, born in Nanhai, Guangdong on 20 September 1931 and nicknamed Sai-neui, was honoured in the trade as Sister Sai-neui; her husband was the Cantonese opera actor Sek Yin-ji and her cousin was the renowned actress Yam Kim-fai, and she was celebrated as the 'king of second leads'. Moving from Guangzhou to Macau at five, she studied under Siu Man-ha and first stepped on stage at eleven, beginning at the lowliest rank of maidservant and advancing to principal second female lead. In the mid-1940s she joined the Sun Sing Opera Troupe in Macau, where Tang Bik-wan's employment helped her rise, and, after the war, moved with it to Hong Kong, appearing thereafter with troupes such as Ng Wong, Hing Hung Kai, Chor Fung Ming, Sun Ma, Tai Lung Fung, Sin Fung Ming, Chun Fung Ming and Kam Tim Fa. When Yam Kim-fai and Pak Suet-sin founded Sin Fung Ming in 1956 she became its principal second female lead, her first role being in The Peony Pavilion, and until the troupe disbanded she appeared in such celebrated works as The Flower-Patterned Shoes, The Dream of the West Chamber, Princess Cheung Ping and The Purple Hairpin. She was one of the 'Nine Sisters', a sisterhood of nine leading second female leads. Her only two appearances as leading lady were abroad, in Southeast Asia with Wong Chiu-mo in 1952 and in America with Tang Bik-wan in 1971. She entered films in 1948 and acted in works including The Merciful Sword and the Sentimental Heaven (1964), whose complex heroine became her signature role. In 2012 she received the Hong Kong Arts Development Council's Award for Outstanding Contribution in Arts, and she died peacefully in her sleep at home on 21 May 2022, aged 90.
Honoured as the 'king of second leads', Yam served as principal second female lead with troupes such as Sin Fung Ming and Chun Fung Ming for over half a century, her stagecraft admired throughout the Cantonese opera world. Best known for maid roles and celebrated for a cart-pushing technique worthy of a leading lady, she was among the most respected supporting artists of Cantonese opera's golden age.
Achievements
- 1948 · Entered the film industry with her debut A Girl Deceives Two Men
- 1956 · Became the principal second female lead of the Sin Fung Ming troupe
- 2012 · Received the Hong Kong Arts Development Council's Award for Outstanding Contribution in Arts