近代劇評的發生──《順天時報》與辻聽花

The Emergence of Modern Theatre Critique: the Shuntian Daily and Tsuji Chōka

清代中期以後，記錄劇壇逸事與演員的梨園筆記大為盛行，筆記中出現眾多針對戲劇表演之相關評論。然而，這些評論往往流於個人主觀經驗的表現與印象式批評。伴隨著近代報刊興起，刊載戲劇評論的媒體，不再侷限於早期梨園筆記，報刊上的劇評專欄成為全新的評論場域。北京《順天時報》自一九○五年以來，即陸續地刊登眾多戲劇相關評論文章。但這些劇評受到既有評論風格的影響，大多無法脫離傳統窠臼。一九一三年，《順天時報》的專業劇評家辻聽花試圖在劇評內容上進行調整，並嘗試在評論標準方面建立一定的準繩。本論文首先整理梨園筆記與一九○五至一九一二年間《順天時報》的戲劇評論，釐清當時評論的發展狀況。之後將重心放在分析辻聽花一九一三至一九二○年間的劇評，論述他劇評的特點、如何改良原有劇評樣式與帶給劇評界的影響。

Since the mid-Qing dynasty, liyuan biji (“theatre notes”) that reported anecdotes about the theatre and the performers began to circulate widely. Some liyuan biji contained reviews of theatrical performances. Most of the reviews were, however, notes of personal viewing experiences or impressionistic descriptions. Subsequently, as newspapers developed in the late-Qing dynasty, the publication of theatre reviews expanded beyond liyuan biji prints. Newspaper theatre columns became the new medium of theatre commentaries and critiques. One of the most representative examples was the Shuntian Daily (Shuntian Shibao), based in Beijing. Since 1905, the paper continuously published theatre-related articles. But the reviews and critiques followed the descriptive and anecdotal style of liyuan biji. In 1913, Tsuji Chōka, a professional theatre critic of the Shuntian Daily, attempted to rectify the review content and set new standards of critique. To evaluate the influence of Tsuji Chōka on modern theatre critique, this essay will compare the theatre reviews produced by Tsuji Chōka and those by his predecessors. Thus this essay will first present and summarize the theatre reviews in liyuan biji and in Shuntian Daily between 1905 and 1912, and then focus on analyzing the critiques of Tsuji Chōka between 1913 and 1920. Such analyses and contrast shall illustrate the feature of Tsuji’s theatre critiques, his reform of the traditional review style, and the impact he brought to the world of theatre criticism.