Seeking good fortune and avoiding misfortune, I became a legend in the entertainment industry by avo

Chapter 127 Xu Fan's Astonishment

The next day at 2 PM, in the rehearsal hall.

The actors arrived one after another.

The reading session begins.

When it was Jin Murong's turn to act, Zhang Qilin said, "Yu Pu, come and lend a hand."

I'll say the same thing as yesterday.

As the person who had the most scenes with the character Jin Murong, Song Dandan clearly felt that Zhang Qilin's delivery of lines, emotions, and rhythm were even better today than yesterday.

She herself is one of the most talented actresses in the Beijing People's Art Theatre over the decades, and her intuition for acting is faster than her brain.

Zhang Qilin's performance yesterday had already impressed her, and she never expected that only one day later...

Listening to Zhang Qilin's lines, a thought suddenly popped into her mind: "Could he really be a natural talent?"

As this thought popped into her head, she subconsciously took a deep breath, and when she delivered the words, she was a few times more serious than before.

"I'm not in a hurry, so you shouldn't be either, Sister Mu Rong—"

"It wouldn't matter if your intestines fell to the ground—"

Everyone in the rehearsal hall could hear Song Dandan and Zhang Qilin arguing fiercely.

It wasn't the kind of noise you hear in a play.

It really felt like neighbors living in the same courtyard in old Beijing, getting into a heated argument over trivial matters.

Song Dandan spoke so fast it was like popping beans, raining down on her.

Zhang Qilin didn't dodge or evade, but retorted with each and every one of his own words.

The two of them went back and forth, creating an indescribable sense of rhythm, like two drummers striking each other, each strike hitting the mark perfectly.

He Bing, who had been half-closing his eyes, opened them now.

He leaned back in his chair, his smile growing wider.

Pu Cunxin's face remained expressionless.

He saw that Zhang Qilin, in his exchange of lines with Song Dandan, was not only not overwhelmed in terms of momentum, but was able to go back and forth with her.

I couldn't help but exchange a glance with Yang Lixin next to me.

Lin Zhaohua sat to the side, a gratified smile on his face.

He knew that such genuine interaction and brilliant scenes between actors were crucial for the rehearsal of a play.

This not only demonstrates the actors' deep understanding and grasp of their roles, but also inspires the entire crew's creative enthusiasm.

He has directed too many films and seen too many great actors.

Some things are learned through perseverance, while others are learned through enlightenment.

But he had never seen a newcomer who had only been in the industry for a few months change so much every day.

He began to understand director Gu Wei's feelings.

Such rapid progress is something that only a production team with a star-studded cast could manage.

He wondered if he should give him more responsibilities.

The younger actors on set couldn't help but exchange glances, their eyes filled with amazement.

While the veteran actors didn't show much change in their facial expressions, they were all secretly weighing the situation in their hearts.

This young man is something else.

They have witnessed countless newcomers come and go, and many have gradually disappeared from this fiercely competitive industry.

Some people, through their own efforts, reach even greater heights.

4:30 pm

The reading session has ended.

Lin Zhaohua stood up and clapped his hands: "Alright, that's enough for today. We'll start practicing tomorrow."

The actors got up one after another and tidied up their scripts and water glasses.

Some people were whispering about the scene they had just witnessed, while others stretched and walked towards the door.

Zhang Qilin was also packing his things. Song Dandan took her things and walked out. As she passed by him, she said with a smile, "Qilin, you delivered the lyrics really well today. You gave me the feeling of Tian Cuilan."

Zhang Qilin smiled shyly and said, "Teacher Song, you flatter me. I still have a lot to learn from you."

"You're a good kid, that's good enough. Sometimes you shouldn't be so modest."

"Kid, listen to me, you won't regret it," He Bing chimed in from the side, "Your progress is almost as fast as a rocket, have you taken some kind of magic pill?"

Zhang Qilin quickly waved his hand: "Teacher He, I just went back and read the script repeatedly, combining it with the character's background and experiences—"

The three of them walked out, chatting and laughing.

That evening, Zhang Qilin returned home and continued writing biographies of the other characters.

The following afternoon at 1:30

Most people have already arrived at the rehearsal hall.

After two days, Zhang Qilin had become quite familiar with the actors. He was chatting with a few of them about their roles when he suddenly heard a commotion at the door.

Then, a figure rushed into the rehearsal hall.

She clasped her hands together and bowed slightly to everyone: "I'm sorry for delaying everyone's rehearsal."

Several veteran actors nearby smiled and replied, "Sister Fan, it's nothing."

Immediately afterwards, Xu Fan saw Song Dandan, opened his arms and walked over to hug her: "Sister, I'm so sorry, I rushed here as fast as I could, and I'm sorry to have delayed your getting into the swing of things."

Song Dandan patted Xu Fan on the back with a smile: "Oh, what are you saying? It's good that you came. We're like sisters."

Xu Fan released his grip and turned to director Lin Zhaohua with a sincere expression: "Director Lin, I thoroughly read the script in the car and kept trying to get a feel for it on the way. I'll catch up on the readings I missed and make sure I don't hold anyone back."

Lin Zhaohua nodded, his face as gentle as ever: "It's good that you've arrived. Fanzi, now that you've found your rhythm, you don't need to do the reading anymore. Start moving around right away."

Song Dandan interjected, "These past two days, Xiao Zhang has helped you go through the lyrics, and I've also gotten the hang of it. You don't need to worry."

Xu Fan was taken aback.

She was originally worried that it would delay the crew's rehearsal schedule, but from what Song Dandan said, it seemed that someone had already helped with the work.

She asked instinctively, "Who is Xiao Zhang?"

"Xiao Zhang," Song Dandan waved to Zhang Qilin, who was sitting not far away, "come here, come here."

Zhang Qilin stood up upon hearing the voice, walked to the group, and bowed slightly: "Hello, Teacher Xu."

Xu Fan looked Zhang Qilin up and down. He saw that the young man in front of him was tall and straight, with a humble smile on his face.

This surprised her.

This incredibly handsome boy was able to recite Jin Murong's lyrics for her.

There are many handsome men in the entertainment industry, so she wasn't surprised by Zhang Qilin's appearance.

She played Jin Murong and was well aware of the difficulty of the role.

Because she knew this, when she saw Zhang Qilin again, she subconsciously didn't believe that this boy could understand the character of Jin Murong.

Even if Song Dandan said it, she couldn't believe it in her heart.

Song Dandan saw through Xu Fan's thoughts.

She said to Zhang Qilin, "Xiao Zhang, bring me your notes."

Zhang Qilin nodded in agreement, turned around and quickly walked back to his seat, took out a thick leather notebook from his backpack, and then walked back.

Song Dandan took the notebook and handed it to Xu Fan.

Xu Fan took the notebook and turned to Jin Murong's biography.

At first, she browsed quickly with a professional demeanor, but soon her fingers stopped, and the page-turning speed noticeably slowed down.

From the moment the character first appears, there are countless annotations.

There are several possible analyses of the subtext behind specific lines, and speculations about the subtle psychological activities that characters might have in that situation.

He even used different colored pens to mark the curves of emotional fluctuations and the turning points in his relationship with the opposing character.

Xu Fan flipped through the pages one by one, his expression gradually shifting from initial scrutiny to surprise, and then to solemnity.

Finally, when she flipped to the later part of the notes.

Seeing that Zhang Qilin actually used several pages to trace the roots of Jin Murong's meanness from her youth to middle age, I was amazed.

When she combined the fragmented mentions of her family background and upbringing in the script to construct a logically consistent backstory for the character, she was completely stunned.

She glanced at her notes, then looked up at Zhang Qilin, repeating this several times.

If this were a character biography written by a veteran actor, she would give it a thumbs up and say it's good.

But Zhang Qilin looks to be only in his early twenties.

They've already been able to analyze the character so deeply and construct such a complete and logically consistent backstory.

This truly shocked Xu Fan.

She looked at Zhang Qilin again: "Xiao Zhang, is this really a character biography you wrote yourself?"

Zhang Qilin nodded: "Teacher Xu, I have consulted a lot of materials to sort this out. There may still be many immature parts. Please give me your guidance."

Xu Fan closed his notebook and gently shook his head: "You're too modest. This is already very mature and professional. Your biography is very close to mine, and there are even some parts that I didn't expect."

Song Dandan, who was standing to the side, said with a smile: "Xiao Zhang is a very dedicated actor and has a very high level of comprehension. In the past two days, I have been acting with him and I can feel that his understanding of Jin Murong is constantly deepening."

Xu Fan nodded, then looked at Zhang Qilin again, his eyes filled with emotion: "Xiao Zhang, it's really rare to have achieved this. There are very few young people like you who are both talented and willing to work hard."

At this moment, Lin Zhaohua spoke up: "It's almost time, and we've exchanged pleasantries. Let's begin rehearsing."

Xu Fan handed the notebook back to Zhang Qilin: "Great job, keep up the good work."

Zhang Qilin nodded, put the notebook back in his bag, and took out a new notebook.

Lin Zhaohua sat in the director's seat, pressed the director's bell, and the rehearsal began.

Zhang Qilin sat not far from the director with a notebook in his hand.

He stared intently at the stage, his pen flying across his notebook.

He can slowly research the characters, but he can only memorize their movements by rote.

Only in this way can he quickly memorize everyone's positions.

His eyes followed the actors' every move closely.

From every turn of Jin Murong, played by Xu Fan, to every movement of Tian Cuilan, played by Song Dandan.

As rehearsals progressed, Zhang Qilin's notebook gradually filled with dense handwriting and various markings.

Occasionally, he would look up to observe Lin Zhaohua's reaction.

I wanted to glean more insights and tips about positioning from the director's expressions and instructions.

When the break time came, the actors went offstage to rest.

Lin Zhaohua turned to look at the movement diagrams drawn in Zhang Qilin's notebook, feeling very satisfied. Thinking that he should give him more responsibility, he said to Zhang Qilin, "You only have a little over ten days. You need to memorize everyone's movement patterns."

Zhang Qilin was taken aback upon hearing this.

He asked curiously, "Director Lin, why only ten days or so?"

Lin Zhaohua explained with a smile: "This room is full of big names. Everyone has their own urgent matters. Once the blocking is almost done, some people will have to take leave to do other things, but the rehearsal can't stop. That's when we'll need you to fill in for the blocking."

Hearing this, Zhang Qilin felt immense pressure.