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原文在这里，人家的标题和最后一句quote都是“first lady"（见下文红字），有人译成了“国母”，说得不好听一点：译得牛头不对马嘴
China’s First Lady Strikes Glamorous Note
Ivan Sekretarev/Associated Press
Peng Liyuan in Moscow for her first visit abroad as first lady. She has cut back on her singing as her husband’s political star has risen.
By JANE PERLEZ and BREE FENG
Published: March 24, 2013
BEIJING — Peng Liyuan, China’s new first lady, is glamorous, fashionable and one of her nation’s best-known singers, a startling contrast to her dour-looking predecessors. As she accompanies her husband, President Xi Jinping, on his first trip abroad as China’s leader, Ms. Peng appears ready to carve out a new role for herself.
China’s fashion editors were scrutinizing the first sightings of her wardrobe — a dark trench coat and a handsome handbag — as she descended onto the tarmac at the Moscow airport on the first stop of the couple’s trip, which also includes visits to Tanzania and South Africa. Music aficionados are waiting to see whether she offers any performances. (Unlikely.) Policy advisers hope she gives a speech on AIDS on the sidelines of a summit meeting Mr. Xi is attending in South Africa. (Possible, because she is a United Nations ambassador for health.)
At a time when China’s Foreign Ministry is struggling to improve China’s international image, Ms. Peng, 50, who has dazzled audiences at home and abroad with her bravura soprano voice, comes as a welcome gift.
“Because of her performer’s background and presence, I think she will definitely add points for her husband,” said Tian Yimiao, an associate professor at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. “It could make her into a diplomatic idol.”
Concerned about China’s difficulties in projecting a global soft power presence, the government recently established a Public Diplomacy Association made up of former ambassadors and other notable figures.
The association’s task is to make the “voice of China and the story of China more engaging and more convincing,” said Yang Jiechi, the new state councilor in charge of foreign affairs. Officials now talk publicly about the need for Chinese companies, especially mining and construction conglomerates, to be more sensitive to local needs in Africa and Asia.
It could be that Ms. Peng’s star power will push the diplomats into the background. Although Mr. Xi may not like the comparison, some see her as a figure akin to Raisa Gorbachev, the wife of Mikhail S. Gorbachev, who helped humanize the Soviet leader as the Soviet Union fell apart. Mr. Xi has singled out Mr. Gorbachev as a man who let down the cause of Communism.
Others see her as roughly equivalent to Michelle Obama: modern, outgoing, intrigued by fashion. They await the moment when Ms. Peng and Mrs. Obama stand with their husbands at a state visit, either in Washington or Beijing, a lineup that is likely to happen in the next four years. The couples share some common ground. The Obamas have two daughters; Mr. Xi and Ms. Peng have one daughter, Xi Mingze, who is registered under a pseudonym as an undergraduate at Harvard.
Ms. Peng became a household name in China well before her husband. She joined the People’s Liberation Army as a civilian when she was 18.
She soon emerged as a talented singer with a voice suited to folk tales and operatic scores that heralded the bravery of China’s soldiers. For several decades, she starred in the nation’s annual New Year’s television extravaganza, where she wore boldly hued gowns with well-fitted bodices and flouncy skirts.
In 2004, Ms. Peng took the role of Mulan, the heroine of a Chinese folk tale depicted in “Mulan Psalm,” an opera about a young woman who disguises herself as a man to take the place of her ailing father in the army. The virtues of peace, the hard times of war and the glory of victory, assured by Mulan, make for a stirring spectacle.
The work combines musical theater, drama and dance with elements of Western opera, according to the composer of the score, Guan Xia. Ms. Peng performed the central role with a full orchestra at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center in New York in 2005, and at the Vienna State Opera House in 2008.
“She has deep technical roots, and very good technique,” Ms. Tian said. “In the folk singer category, no one can surpass her.”
When Mr. Xi became vice president in 2007, Ms. Peng began cutting back her performances, in step with the traditional secondary role played by the wives of Chinese leaders. Still, the Chinese news media have reported that she remains the leader of the Chinese Song and Dance Ensemble in the General Political Department of the People’s Liberation Army.
In 2011, the World Health Organization selected her as a good-will ambassador for AIDS and tuberculosis, a position that lasts for two years.
Ms. Peng will join Mr. Xi at the annual meeting of the emerging markets group, known as the BRICS, in Durban, South Africa, an appropriate place for her to talk about health, according to speculation in the Chinese news media.
As for her fashion taste, a Chinese fashion blog, Jing Daily, reported that the trench coat Ms. Peng wore for her arrival in Moscow was from Exception de Mixmind, a domestic ready-to-wear brand that she favors. The clothes sell for $300 to $400. In brand-crazy China, her handbag, a Tod lookalike, stood out for being “no brand,” the blog said.
“Many people online are saying, ‘Finally we have a beautiful first lady,’ ” Ms. Tian said.
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楼主: 程咬金
发表于 2013年4月2日 16:31
