Four Dan actresses explained

The Four Dan actresses (四旦 or 四大名旦 or 四小名旦 or 四大花旦 or 四小花旦) are four most bankable actresses in China. Guangzhou Daily first used the term to reference Zhang Ziyi, Zhao Wei, Zhou Xun, and Xu Jinglei in July 2000, when they were all in their 20s.[1] It gained widespread use in China following a series of interviews with them by Southern Metropolis Daily from December 2001 to January 2002.[2] [3] [4] [5] The media have made repeated efforts to elect the "New Four Dan actresses" thereafter, but the acceptance and recognition of these new lists have not matched that of the original Four Dan actresses.

Originally, a dan was a male actor who portrayed a leading female character in Peking opera. The term "Four Dan" was first coined in the 1920s to refer to four popular dan actors: Mei Lanfang, Cheng Yanqiu, Shang Xiaoyun, and Xun Huisheng.

The Four Dan actresses

The group was originally known in Chinese as "The Little Four Dan actresses" (四小花旦), in comparison to the Four Dan actresses of Peking opera in the 1920s. With the passing of time, the group is now known in Chinese as "The Big Four Dan actresses" (四大花旦), in comparison to the younger actresses elected as new Four Dan later.

Li Bingbing (born 1973) and Fan Bingbing (born 1981), two graduates of the Shanghai Theatre Academy who gained fame soon after the quartet in the early 2000s, were sometimes mentioned together as "Four Dan and Two Bing" (四旦双冰).[6] [7] Shu Qi (born 1974), a Taiwanese-Hong Kong actress who gained fame in late '90s Hong Kong cinema, and Tang Wei (born 1979), a graduate of the Central Academy of Drama who gained fame through Lust, Caution (2007), were sometimes mentioned together as "Four Dan Two Bing One Shu One Tang" (四旦双冰一舒一汤).[8]

New Four Dan actresses and '85 flowers

From 2005, the media have made repeated efforts to elect "New Four Dan actresses" (新四小花旦).

2009 version by Tencent:[9]

2013 version by Southern Metropolis Entertainment Weekly:[10]

Tiffany Tang (born 1983), a graduate of the Central Academy of Drama, and Zhao Liying (born 1987) had similar levels of success post 2013. Along with Liu Yifei, they are now usually associated with the new Four Dan actresses of the 2013 list, together known as the "'85 flowers" (85花).[11] [12]

New Four Dan actresses of the "post-'90s" generation

In August 2016, Southern Metropolis Daily conducted a survey among 173 million netizens and 110 professional media and industry insiders. After a series of voting, four actresses who were born after 1990 (90后四小花旦) were picked.[13]

New Four Dan actresses of the "post-'95s" generation

Since 2018, the media have made efforts to elect "New Four Dan actresses" among those were born after 1995 (95后四小花旦).

2018 version by Sohu Entertainment:[14]

2018 version by CCTV-6:[17]

2022 version by Sina Entertainment:[18]

Similar titles

The Chinese media have made similar efforts to elect the "Four Sheng actors" (四大小生), but the acceptance and recognition of these lists have not matched that of the Four Dan actresses. The most popular version of the "Four Sheng actors" includes Chen Kun, Deng Chao, Liu Ye, and Huang Xiaoming, who are now known in Chinese as "Four Middle(-aged) Sheng actors" (四大中生).

In addition, in the early 1990s, Hong Kong's most popular male stars were collectively referred to as the "Four Heavenly Kings" (Andy Lau, Jacky Cheung, Aaron Kwok and Leon Lai). Later, Taiwan also introduced four male idols labelled "Four Younger Heavenly Kings" (Alec Su, Nicky Wu, Jimmy Lin and Takeshi Kaneshiro).

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 综述：谁是中国影视界新"四大名旦"？(附图) . Chinese. July 18, 2000 . 27 March 2024. 27 March 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240327092208/https://ent.sina.com.cn/c_star/2000-07-18/10951.shtml. live.
  2. News: "四大名旦"访谈之章子怡：就是一个小女孩(图) . Sina . 2000-12-19 . Chinese . 2014-06-13.
  3. News: "四大名旦"之周迅：这张俏脸让人一见难忘(图) . Sina . 2000-12-27 . Chinese . 2014-06-13.
  4. News: 四大名旦之徐静蕾：像邻家女孩 自信很漂亮(图) . Sina . 2001-01-02 . Chinese . 2014-06-13.
  5. News: 四大名旦访谈之赵薇：比小燕子更真实更可爱(图) . Sina . 2001-01-17 . Chinese . 2014-06-13.
  6. Web site: 从“四旦双冰”到“四杨双丽”，娱乐圈的女明星越来越差！. zh . Sohu . October 8, 2022 . August 9, 2023.
  7. Web site: “四旦双冰”才是女演员的正确打开方式 . November 8, 2016 . Sina . August 9, 2023 . zh.
  8. Web site: 娱乐圈大花重新洗牌！四旦双冰落幕，巩俐两连扑，汤唯发展好. January 6, 2022. Superpyq. May 5, 2024. zh. May 5, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240505101212/https://superpyq.com/topic/62980a723fed665142931c3a. live.
  9. Web site: 内地新“四小花旦”、“四大小生”出炉（图). zh . April 27, 2009 . China News . Zhang . Zailin . August 9, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110212152651/http://www.chinanews.com/yl/kong/news/2009/04-27/1664455.shtml . February 12, 2011 . live.
  10. Web site: https://web.archive.org/web/20170729103750/http://www.smweekly.com/news/cover/201301/32220.aspx . July 29, 2017 . 10年之后再评花旦 . zh . January 21, 2013 . August 9, 2023 . SM Weekly.
  11. Web site: 娱乐圈四小花旦，现状是怎样的？赵丽颖要复出，杨幂很努力 . zh . Sohu . June 19, 2023 . August 9, 2023.
  12. Web site: 虎嗅网 . 2020-12-29 . 成于流量败于流量，85花女明星为什么不努力？ . 2024-05-11 . 虎嗅网.
  13. Web site: 郑爽周冬雨杨紫关晓彤 90后四小花旦新鲜出炉！_太平洋时尚网图库. zhangweijian_gz. duqihong_gz. photo.pclady.com.cn.
  14. Web site: 95后四小花旦出炉！她们是：关晓彤、张子枫、文淇、欧阳娜娜_娱乐 . 2024-05-11 . www.sohu.com.
  15. Web site: 陸媒評比「新四小花旦」出爐！歐陽娜娜第四名被酸憑什麼，一同上榜的還有她們..... . zh . . Eva . Lee . Tina . Liu . January 14, 2019 . August 9, 2023.
  16. Web site: 95后新四小花旦杂志硬照，关晓彤表现力强，欧阳娜娜发展潜力强 . Sohu . zh . May 27, 2023 . August 9, 2023.
  17. Web site: January 5, 2019 . 央视评选新生代四小花旦 张雪迎上榜关晓彤遭质疑 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240505101635/https://www.163.com/ent/article/E4OHPO8300038FO9.html . May 5, 2024 . Netease . zh.
  18. Web site: Sina Visitor System . 2024-05-11 . passport.weibo.com.

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