剧情简介the Story……

我们知道在章回小说与传统戏曲中，阎惜姣被刻划成一个不守妇道的淫妇与泼妇，为了与张文远做长久夫妻，不惜陷害待她母女恩重如山的宋江；为了阴间孤寂，不惜勒死心爱的三郎同赴泉台；她的行为，可说是相当自私。但是，在我们这部戏里，她这些极端行为，至少有了相当程度的慰藉。在《卖身葬父》一场里我们知道她出身贫寒，但她却也有个少女的梦想，梦想嫁个玉树临风的穷书生，千辛万苦挣钱供他苦读。最后他得中状元容归故里，与他生儿育女白首偕老，死后葬在一起，来世再为夫妻 ―― 完全是小时戏曲里的浪漫情节。结果为了葬父还债，委身作了比她父亲年纪还大的宋江的外室，这份梦想破灭的苦处，相信很多中国古今妇女均能深深体会。

结果阎惜姣弃宋江爱张文远，离开那个年过半百的糟老头子，爱上了「博采群芳」的花丛浪子，是我们可以理解的。阎惜姣另一弃宋爱张的原因是极端的寂寞。宋江性喜结交江湖弟兄，又爱排难解纷，又有荆妻孟氏，留在乌龙院陪伴惜姣的时间就更少了。相反的，尚未娶妻的张文远风流倜傥，年纪与阎惜姣相近，又有大把时间殷勤陪伴，相信绝大多数女性都会对他动心。

「水浒传」与戏曲中对张文远着墨不多，在我们剧中却加添了许多「劣迹」。他于剧中常申明阎惜姣既非名门闺秀又无嫁妆，贞操又早就给了宋江，不是他成婚的对象；他之与阎惜姣来往，只不过是希望多占一点便宜而已。《遇判申冤》一场，阎惜姣的阴魂巧遇阴曹判官，哭求拘取宋江阴魂抵命。判官一查「生死簿」，发觉宋江阳寿未尽且是星宿下凡，同时翻查张文远的「记录」，才发现他贪淫好色，前后勾引众多女性，判官认为如此登徒浪子，才理当拘魂受审。惜姣当然不肯下此毒手，对张文远的劣迹也是半信半疑；判官乃送她还阳，去到张文远书斋假扮另一美女向他勾引。张文远果然色心大动，阎惜姣至此方才确信判官之言，乃在又恨又妒的心情下将张文远以「拘魂索」勒死，同归阴司受审。

Yan XiJiao in the original novel is always portrayed as a slut and adulteress. In desperate attempts to make the relationship between herself and her lover a lasting one, she frames Song Jiang, the generous man who saves her and her mother from starvation. What is more, she is depicted as a selfish soul who would strangle her lover to death simply because she doesn’t want to be alone in Hades. But in this version of the story, there is a good reason for her behavior. As a poor singsong girl, she dreams that one day she would marry the good-looking scholar she loves. She would support him in his studies, so that he would return home one day with fame and fortune and they would live happily ever after. Her romantic illusions are shattered when she is forced into marrying the old man Song Jiang in order to pay the funeral expenses of her deceased father.

Song, on the traditional stage, is a dashing man, a foil to the scholar-rogue Zhang WenYuan whose nose is painted with a white patch symbolizing his clownish quality. In our play, Song Jiang is portrayed as aging man who is physically unattractive – not very much the ideal lover a young girl would dream of. We have also changed the clownish makeup of Zhang into one closer to that of a young lover; his white patch on the nose has now been replaced with a colorful butterfly symbolizing his philandering quality. Another reason for Yan favoring Zhang instead of Song is that the latter is well known for his preoccupation with his friends and sworn-brothers. And he already has a wife, so he cannot devote much time to his young mistress while, on the other hand, Zhang is younger, and is willing to spend time in her company. It is very hard for her not to fall in love with this young suitor.

Not much is said about Zhang in the original novel and in other theatre versions. We have however added a number of faults to his character. He makes clear that his interest in Yan is nothing other than lust. In the later part of the play, when Yan’ soul wanders in Hades, she meets the Judge Supreme there and begs for justice to be done to Song Jiang her murderer. The Judge looks up the Book of Life and Death and discovers that time is not up yet for Song, but on the other hand, Zhang needs to be brought in for his seductions and ruining of innocent maidens. Yan would not do such a thing to her lover, nor is she fully convinced of his sins and crimes. So the Judge Supreme sends her back to the human world, in the guise of another woman to seduce Zhang. He falls into the trap, and is thus brought in by Yan for judgment in Hell.