“Yingshou Hall” was once written on a wooden plaque. It stood before the main gate of Tan Xinpei’s former residence. Today we stand before what is known as the Tan Xinpei Former Residence. It is located in the Xicheng District of Beijing. The address is 1 Da Wailangying Hutong and its side door.
Tan Xinpei was a renowned Peking Opera performer. He specialized in the Laosheng role. His former residence is a cultural heritage site. It offers a glimpse into his life and art.
Let’s step back in time. Tan Xinpei lived here during the Qing Dynasty. The residence covers an area of 40 meters east to west and 21 meters north to south. The layout is rectangular. The house faces east.
Originally a wooden plaque hung over the main gate. The calligraphy was delicate. It was said to be written by Li Bi’an. Li was a good friend of Tan Xinpei.
The residence is a three-courtyard complex. It has 43 and a half rooms. The first courtyard included the main gate. Sadly it was demolished. There were also northern and side rooms. The three-and-a-half-room northern building is well-preserved. It once stored costumes and weapons.
The second courtyard is a complete quadrangle. The northern rooms have three bays. They include a half-bay extension. One bay is exposed within the courtyard. These rooms served as Tan Xinpei and his wife’s living quarters.
A “Three Rams Bring Bliss” picture hung in the main room. It was a gift from a Qing Dynasty prince. Below it sat a set of Zitan furniture. The furniture included tables chairs and cabinets. Paintings by Zhang Daqian and Xu Beihong adorned the walls.
Many famous Peking Opera artists visited Tan Xinpei’s home. Chen Delin Wang Yaoqing and Yang Xiaolou were frequent guests. They discussed opera and enjoyed fighting crickets. Tan Xinpei kept dozens of cricket jars. These were made by Zhao Ziyu a famous potter. They were often gifts from Qing Dynasty nobles. Tan Xinpei sometimes brought his crickets to royal invitations.
The southern rooms mirrored the northern ones. The main room served as a Buddhist hall. The eastern room was an ancestral hall. The western room stored miscellaneous items. Jujube and persimmon trees grew behind the rooms. Each side had two wing rooms. The western room housed the nanny.
The third courtyard included northern and southern rooms. There were also two-story buildings. The northern rooms were brick-and-wood structures. They had tiled roofs. These were the residence of Tan Xinpei’s grandson Tan Fuying and his wife. A large fish tank held various goldfish. Antique porcelain pieces decorated the tables.
The southern rooms were similar to the northern rooms. These housed Tan Xinpei’s great-grandson Tan Yuanshou and his wife. The space between the northern and southern rooms had a purple-red carpet. It was used for practicing skills.
Two two-story buildings stood at the western end of the courtyard. Corridors connected the buildings. These connected to a front corridor. Tan Xinpei built these buildings in 1912. This was to counter the feng shui of the Shun Tian Hospital across the street.
Tan Fuying later married. His new room was upstairs. The wedding ceremony took place here. After Tan Xinpei passed away his son Tan Xiaopei moved into the northern rooms.
Five generations of the Tan family lived here. They included Tan Xinpei Tan Xiaopei Tan Fuying Tan Yuanshou and Tan Xiaozeng. During the Cultural Revolution the family was persecuted. Their calligraphy and paintings were burned. The cricket jars disappeared. In 1968 after 130 years the Tan family was forced to leave. The courtyard became a communal dwelling.
In 2009 the Xuanwu District government declared the residence a cultural heritage site. In 2017 the Xicheng District government planned to renovate it. It will become a Peking Opera museum. This will have both artifact and museum sections.
This residence stands as a testament to Tan Xinpei’s legacy. It is a reminder of his contributions to Peking Opera.