Wei Hai-Ming

An internationally renowned performing artist, Wei Hai-Min is an heir of the Mei School established by Mei Lanfang and the lead actor of GuoGuang Opera Company.

Wei studied with Zhou Ming-xin in her childhood, with Qin Hui-fen in later years, and with Chen Yongling and Tong Zhiling after graduating from school. In 1991, Wei became Mei Baojiu’s first official disciple. She has solid training in the Mei School and excels in interpreting and impersonating diverse roles, both ancient and modern, in Mei School and other performing styles. Her performance is acclaimed by global audiences and art critics. Her repertoire includes Mu Guiying Takes Command, The Drunken Concubine, The White Snake, Return of the Phoenix, and Farewell, My Concubine.

Beyond classical jingju titles, Wei Hai-Min amazes the audience with the diverse roles she has created, be they noble, shrewish, or melancholic, Wei impersonates them vividly with grace, flair, and artistic excellence. She not only masters but even redefines the art of jingju performance, bestowing the stage with numerous unforgettable characters. Her masterpieces include The Kingdom of Desire and Medea with the Contemporary Legend Theatre, Wang Shi-fong, The Golden Cangue, Sunlight after Snow, Meng Xiaodong, The Painting of 18 Lohans, and other titles with GuoGuang Opera Company. In 2009, she collaborated with the American experimental playwright-director Robert Wilson on a solo performance of Orlando. In 2011, she led in Wandering in the Garden, Waking from a Dream, a play adapted from Pai Hsien-yung’s famous short story. In 2021, she worked with the Singaporean director Ong Keng Sen for a solo performance of A Thousand Stages, Yet I Have Never Quite Lived, a groundbreaking, autobiographical piece presenting the interactions between the actor Wei and the characters she creates.

A bright star on stage, Wei has won numerous awards, including the Golden Melody Award (2008), the National Award for Arts (2007), the Plum Blossom Award of Chinese Theatre (1996), the Outstanding Young Person of the World Award (1996), the Best Artist in Asia Award (1993), among others.  She is currently the leading actress of GuoGuang Opera Company and the Contemporary Legend Theatre, and the director of the Wei Hai-Min Chinese Opera Foundation. For many years she has given talks in grade schools and colleges and was recently appointed Visiting Professor at Shanghai Theatre Academy. Her endeavors to promote traditional theatre art never wavered.