Family background Sun's father,
Sun Bingwen, was recruited by
Zhou Enlai to join the
Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in Germany, and subsequently became a close friend of both
Zhu De and Zhou Enlai. After studying abroad in the Soviet Union, Sun Bingwen returned to China in 1924 and joined the faculty of
Whampoa Academy. In 1926, Sun was appointed the General Secretary of the General Political Department of the
National Revolutionary Army. After the relationship between the KMT and CCP deteriorated Sun Bingwen was arrested on 16 April 1927 and executed four days later, during the
White Terror. When Sun Bingwen died Sun Weishi was only six years old. Following her father's death, Sun Weishi's mother,
Ren Rui, took the family into exile, raising Sun Weishi and her three siblings alone while participating in CCP underground work. Ren Rui died on 11 April 1949, reportedly due to illness from overwork. Sun Weishi had three siblings, one sister and two brothers. One of Sun Weishi's brothers, Sun Yang, was imprisoned with his father in 1927, when he was only twelve. Sun Yang was eventually released, became Zhu De's personal assistant, and became the president of
Renmin University after the founding of the
People's Republic of China. In Yan'an Sun enrolled in the
Counter-Japanese Military and Political University with her mother, and became active in theater.
Jiang Qing, when she was single and new to Yan'an, once auditioned for a play with Sun. Jiang was given a minor role, while Sun was given the lead. In comparison to Jiang, Sun was compared as being a far superior actress, more attractive, and seven years younger. Jiang never went onstage again. Soon after arriving in Yan'an, Jiang began a romantic affair with
Xu Yixin, a senior teacher at
Lu Xun College, and fell in love with him. Xu soon became infatuated with Sun Weishi, and Sun reciprocated this affection. Jiang's jealousy over Sun's acting ability, and Sun's ability to attract men that Jiang was also attracted to, was the beginning of a long-lasting hatred that Jiang held for Sun. After Sun returned to China,
Jiang Qing, who was now Mao's wife, continued her rivalry with Sun. In 1954, on the fiftieth anniversary of
Anton Chekov's death in 1904, Sun produced one of Chekov's plays,
Uncle Vanya, in collaboration with a Soviet expert. From 1954 to 1956, Sun also worked as the principal instructor of directors with the
China Central Drama College.
Marriage Following the production of
How Steel is Made, Sun Weishi began a romantic affair with
Jin Shan, who had played the male lead, Pavel. The affair caused a controversy within CCP circles when it became public, When he was young, Jin was adopted by the Shanghai gangster
Du Yuesheng, and encouraged to join the CCP in order to facilitate collaboration between the CCP and the
Green Gang. In the 1930s Jin became an agent of Zhou Enlai, and gathered information for the CCP. During the
Second Sino-Japanese War Jin toured areas of China not controlled by the Japanese, staging patriotic anti-Japanese plays. Sun and Jin were married on 14 October 1950 at the Beijing Youth Palace. Sun's wedding gift from Zhou Enlai and Deng Yingchao was a copy of ''the Marriage Law of the People's Republic of China''. Jiang Qing gave her a pair of embroidered quilts.
Late artistic career In 1956 Sun became the artistic director and vice-president of the newly created Chinese Experimental Theater. While working with the Experimental Theater, Sun attempted to create a new style of socialist art by combining
Stanislavsky's system with dramatic techniques found in traditional
Chinese opera. In June 1956 Sun produced the play
Joys and Sorrows, a drama about a romantic triangle between a CCP official and two women. The play was warmly received for its verisimilitude, portraying CCP officials as prone to the same weaknesses as other people. Because
Joys and Sorrows focused on the personal life of a CCP leader, both it and Sun were criticized during the
Anti-Rightist Movement of 1957,
The Hatred of Black Slaves. In
the Hatred of Black Slaves Sun experimented with techniques found in Chinese opera (the same which had inspired
Brecht's concept of "
alienation effects") in an effort to break down the "
fourth wall".
The Hatred of Black Slaves was notable for its attempts to expand the play's dramatic action beyond the confines of the stage. In 1963, while directing the play "Azalea Mountain", Jiang Qing approached Sun and asked if she could be involved in the production of the play. Sun rejected Jiang's request, saying that, since the play was being produced by the Youth Theatre, it wouldn't be appropriate.
Political persecution and death When the Cultural Revolution began in 1966, Zhou Enlai's power became circumscribed, while Jiang Qing gained power. Although Zhou still held the formal position of premier, he was not able to prevent the arrest of Sun or even his own brother, and personally signed their arrest warrants in fear of angering Mao. After forcing Zhou to sign Sun's warrant, Jiang ordered officers from the Air Force (loyal to Lin Biao, Jiang's ally) to arrest and secretly imprison Sun, so that Zhou could not intervene to protect her. After being imprisoned, Sun Weishi was tortured for seven months, and eventually died in prison on 15 October 1968. Jin remained in prison until his release in 1975, after the Cultural Revolution ended. Jin was not informed of Sun's death until after his release. After Jin's release,
the Rising Sun was re-staged as part of a larger criticism of the
Gang of Four, who many blamed for Sun's persecution and death. The occasion of the play's first staging after 1975 was reported as being particularly solemn. On 9 June 1977, a statue of Sun Weishi was placed in memory of her at the
Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery in Beijing by the Art Bureau of the
Ministry of Culture of the People's Republic of China. In 2012, on the 91st anniversary of her birth,
Xinhua published a biographical book about her,
Innocent Heart. The book consists of memories and articles of Sun Weishi, from her relatives, people and artists who collaborated with her. On 26 December 2012, the
National Theatre Company of China held a press conference regarding her biography,
Innocent Heart, to memorize Sun Weishi and her 91st birthday. In the press conference the National Theatre Company stated that it considered Sun one of the three greatest directors in the history of People's Republic of China. ==Further reading==