Four Dan actresses
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) were regarded as the four most bankable young actresses from Mainland China. Guangzhou Daily editorial first used the term to reference modern Chinese actresses 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 thereafter following a series of interviews on Southern Metropolis Daily from December 2001 to January 2002.[2][3][4][5] As expected, the four actresses dominated Chinese cinema in the following decade with varying degrees of success.
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 Big Four Dan actresses[edit]
- Xu Jinglei (born 1974), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through A Sentimental Story (1998 TV series) and Cherish Our Love Forever (1999 TV series)
- Zhou Xun (born 1974), graduate of the Zhejiang Art School, gained fame through Palace of Desire (2000 TV series) and Suzhou River (2000 film)
- Zhao Wei (born 1976), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through My Fair Princess (1998–1999 TV series)
- Zhang Ziyi (born 1979), graduate of the Central Academy of Drama, gained fame through The Road Home (1999 film) and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000 film)
Sometimes Li Bingbing (born 1973) and Fan Bingbing (born 1981), two graduates of the Shanghai Theatre Academy who had similar levels of success in the first decade of the 2000s, were mentioned along with the group as "Four Dan and Two Bing" (四旦双冰).[6][7] Shu Qi (born 1974), a Taiwanese-Hong Kong actress who also had similar levels of success during that time period, and Tang Wei (born 1979), a graduate of the Central Academy of Drama who gained fame through Lust, Caution (2007), were also mentioned along with the group as "Four Dan Two Bing Qi Wei" (四旦双冰淇唯) or "Eight Big Dan actresses" (八大旦).[8]
New Four Dan actresses[edit]
From 2005, the media has reported efforts to pick four new young actresses as the "New Four Dan actresses" (四小花旦).
2009 version by Tencent QQ:[9]
- Huang Shengyi (born 1983), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through Kung Fu Hustle (2004 film) and Fairy Couple (2007 TV series)
- Wang Luodan (born 1984), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through Struggle (2007 TV series) and My Youthfulness (2009 TV series)
- Yang Mi (born 1986), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through The Return of the Condor Heroes (2006 TV series) and Chinese Paladin 3 (2009 TV series)
- Liu Yifei (born 1987), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through The Return of the Condor Heroes (2006 TV series) and The Forbidden Kingdom (2008 film)
2013 version by Southern Metropolis Daily:[10]
- Yang Mi (born 1986), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through Palace (2011 TV series) and Painted Skin: The Resurrection (2012 film)
- Liu Shishi (born 1987), graduate of the Beijing Dance Academy, gained fame through Scarlet Heart (2011 TV series) and Xuan-Yuan Sword: Scar of Sky (2012 TV series)
- Ni Ni (born 1988), graduate of the Communication University of China, Nanjing, gained fame through The Flowers of War (2011 film)
- Angelababy (born 1989), gained fame through Love in Space (2011 film) and Tai Chi 0 (2012 film)
Tiffany Tang (1983), a graduate of the Central Academy of Drama, and Zhao Liying (1987), had similar levels of success post 2013 and are usually associated with the new Four Dan actresses of the 2013 list.[11]
New Four Dan actresses of the "post-'90s" generation[edit]
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.[12]
- Zheng Shuang (born 1991), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through Meteor Shower (2009 TV series) and Mural (2011 film)
- Zhou Dongyu (born 1992), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through Under the Hawthorn Tree (2010 film) and My Old Classmate (2014 film)
- Yang Zi (born 1992), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through Home with Kids (2004 sitcom) and Battle of Changsha (2014 film)
- Guan Xiaotong (born 1997), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through The Left Ear (2015 film) and To Be a Better Man (2016 TV series)
New Four Dan actresses of the "post-'95s" generation[edit]
In January 2019, four young actresses who were born after 1995 (95后四小花旦) were picked by CCTV-6.[13]
- Zhang Zifeng (born 2001), student at the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through Aftershock (2010 film) and Go Brother! (2018 film)
- Vicky Chen (born 2003), student at the Central Academy of Drama, gained fame through Angels Wear White (2017 film) and The Bold, the Corrupt, and the Beautiful (2017 film)
- Guan Xiaotong (born 1997), graduate of the Beijing Film Academy, gained fame through To Be a Better Man (2016 film)
- Zhang Xueying (born 1997), graduate of the Central Academy of Drama, gained fame through Einstein and Einstein (2013 film)
Ouyang Nana (born 2000), a Taiwanese actress and student at the Berklee College of Music, who had similar levels of success post 2018, is usually associated with the new Four Dan actresses of the 2019 list.[14][15]
Similar titles[edit]
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).
References[edit]
- ^ "综述:谁是中国影视界新"四大名旦"?(附图)" (in Chinese). July 18, 2000. Archived from the original on 27 March 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ ""四大名旦"访谈之章子怡:就是一个小女孩(图)" (in Chinese). Sina. 2000-12-19. Retrieved 2014-06-13.
- ^ ""四大名旦"之周迅:这张俏脸让人一见难忘(图)" (in Chinese). Sina. 2000-12-27. Retrieved 2014-06-13.
- ^ "四大名旦之徐静蕾:像邻家女孩 自信很漂亮(图)" (in Chinese). Sina. 2001-01-02. Retrieved 2014-06-13.
- ^ "四大名旦访谈之赵薇:比小燕子更真实更可爱(图)" (in Chinese). Sina. 2001-01-17. Retrieved 2014-06-13.
- ^ "从"四旦双冰"到"四杨双丽",娱乐圈的女明星越来越差!". Sohu (in Chinese). October 8, 2022. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
- ^ ""四旦双冰"才是女演员的正确打开方式". Sina (in Chinese). November 8, 2016. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
- ^ "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". Superpyq (in Chinese). January 6, 2022. Archived from the original on May 5, 2024. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
- ^ Zhang, Zailin (April 27, 2009). "内地新"四小花旦"、"四大小生"出炉(图)". China News (in Chinese). Archived from the original on February 12, 2011. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
- ^ "10年之后再评花旦". SM Weekly (in Chinese). January 21, 2013. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
- ^ "娱乐圈四小花旦,现状是怎样的?赵丽颖要复出,杨幂很努力". Sohu (in Chinese). June 19, 2023. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
- ^ duqihong_gz, zhangweijian_gz. "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". photo.pclady.com.cn.
- ^ "央视评选新生代四小花旦 张雪迎上榜关晓彤遭质疑". Netease (in Chinese). January 5, 2019. Archived from the original on May 5, 2024.
- ^ Lee, Eva; Liu, Tina (January 14, 2019). "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..." Cosmopolitan (in Chinese). Retrieved August 9, 2023.
- ^ "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 (in Chinese). May 27, 2023. Retrieved August 9, 2023.