Chinese Name: 陳亞蘭
Date of Birth: 8 November 1965
Place of Birth: Penghu County
Did You Know?
Chen Ya-lan is a well-known xiaosheng (performer of male lead characters) in the Taiwanese opera genre. In 2022, she won Best Male in a Drama at the 57th Golden Bell Awards with her performance in the televised Taiwanese opera "Lord Jiaqing and the Journey to Taiwan (嘉慶君遊臺灣)," setting a new record in Taiwanese television history.
Chen Ya-lan, born Chen Wen-tsui (陳文翠), comes from a family of Taiwanese opera performers. Her father was the leader of a Taiwanese opera troupe in Kaohsiung, while her mother was a leading actor in the same troupe. When she was young, she was very resistant to Taiwanese opera, but at the age of 17, she made up her mind to learn the art. After graduating from junior high school, she joined her father's troupe and started out playing small roles before eventually becoming a lead actor. In 1984, she had a small role in the Minghua Yuan (明華園) Taiwanese opera troupe's performance of "Father and Son (父子情深)." Although her part was small, she caught the eye of famous Taiwanese opera actor Yang Li-hua (楊麗花), who invited her to join the Yang Li-hua Taiwanese Opera Troupe, launching her career. Yang gave her the stage name Chen Ya-lan after French actor Alain Delon. From 1985 to 1997, Chen starred in many Taiwanese opera TV shows, with her handsome appearance and excellent singing and acting skills quickly winning over fans. She was even hailed as Yang Li-hua's successor.
Chen Ya-lan has expanded her career beyond the realm of Taiwanese opera and has taken on other acting and hosting roles. She has released three solo albums of Taiwanese songs and even worked as a news anchor. In 1997, she received the Outstanding Asian Artist Award, becoming the youngest recipient since the award's inception. In 2001, she played a part in the TV drama "An Oxcart for Dowry (嫁妝一牛車)," which won the Best Drama Award at the Asian Television Awards. In 2003, she starred in "Deep Affection Between Ruler and Subject (君臣情深)," a Taiwanese operatic drama which won the Golden Bell Award for Traditional Drama.
In the late 1990s, due to changes in technology and the market, the popularity of Taiwanese opera on television gradually declined. Taiwanese operatic dramas disappeared on TV for 10 years following the release of "Deep Affection Between Ruler and Subject," a TV production featuring both Yang Li-hua and Chen Ya-lan in 2003.
In 2011, Chen Ya-lan founded the Chen Ya-lan Taiwanese Opera Troupe to fulfill her mentor Yang Li-hua's wish to pass on the art of Taiwanese opera. As both the leader and lead actor of the troupe, Chen strives to innovate the genre for television and recruit the best talents from other troupes. In 2013, with the help of government funding, the troupe launched the television opera “Dragon Legend (天龍傳奇)" on Formosa TV, which combines traditional opera with video game special effects and other modern elements.
In 2022, Chen Ya-lan's troupe premiered a TV opera called "Lord Jiaqing and the Journey to Taiwan" on Taiwan Television. Chen Ya-lan cross-dressed as the leading role "Lord Jiaqing" and won the Best Male in a Drama at the 57th Golden Bell Awards, becoming the first female actor in Golden Bell history to win the award. In her acceptance speech, Chen mentioned that while New York has Broadway musicals, Japan has kabuki, and Italy has opera, what does Taiwan have? Answering her question, she said that Taiwanese opera, also known as koa-a-hi in Taiwanese, a local form of drama originating from Yilan, is the traditional drama that best represents Taiwan.
In early Taiwan, koa-a-hi was widely popular as it used the everyday language, Taiwanese, in performances. Taiwanese opera created a shared interest among the public and a tradition of gathering to watch shows together. At one point, there were over 300 theater troupes in Taiwan, and theaters were packed for months on end. From the past to the present, the art of Taiwanese opera has evolved from outdoor stages to radio, theater, and even television, continuing to bring joy to audiences.
Although Taiwanese opera on television was on the decline, Chen Ya-lan's efforts have done much to reinvigorate it. However, due to the absence of koa-a-hi in the film and television industry for a long time, there is a shortage of talent and resources. In order to fill the funding gap, Chen sold her own house and temporarily stayed with Yang Li-hua. To raise money and fund the sequel to “Lord Jiaqing and the Journey to Taiwan," she took on TV drama roles and hosted variety shows. She also launched Taiwan's first-ever online crowdfunding campaign for the TV opera drama, allowing viewers to become co-producers of the second installment of "Lord Jiaqing and the Journey to Taiwan."
Chen Ya-lan hopes to breathe new life into traditional Taiwanese opera and to gain worldwide recognition for the art. She wants to see this art form flourish and continue to be passed down through generations.