Gao Ming (; 13051370), also known as Kao Ming, Gao Zecheng, and the Cabbage Root Taoist, was a Chinese poet and playwright during the

Yuan Dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fifth ...

. Gao was born and grew up in

Wenzhou Wenzhou (pronounced ; Wenzhounese: Yuziou �y33–11 tɕiɤu33–32 ), historically known as Wenchow is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Zhejiang province in the People's Republic of China. Wenzhou is located at the extreme south east o ...

. In 1345, needing to find a way to support his widowed mother, he sat and passed the

Imperial Examinations The imperial examination (; lit. "subject recommendation") refers to a civil-service examination system in Imperial China, administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureaucrats by ...

and was given a post in

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiang ...

(Chouzhou) as a minor district official. In this capacity he served under the writer Su Tianjue, and helped edit some of Su's work. From 1348 to 1351, Gao was involved in suppressing the

Red Turban Rebellion The Red Turban Rebellions () were uprisings against the Yuan dynasty between 1351 and 1368, eventually leading to its collapse. Remnants of the Yuan imperial court retreated northwards and is thereafter known as the Northern Yuan in historiogr ...

, taking military action against the early

Han Han may refer to: Ethnic groups * Han Chinese, or Han People (): the name for the largest ethnic group in China, which also constitutes the world's largest ethnic group. ** Han Taiwanese (): the name for the ethnic group of the Taiwanese p ...

rebel Fang Guozhen. After Fang's defeat, Gao was given a post as assessor of

Shaoxing Shaoxing (; ) is a prefecture-level city on the southern shore of Hangzhou Bay in northeastern Zhejiang province, China. It was formerly known as Kuaiji and Shanyin and abbreviated in Chinese as (''Yuè'') from the area's former inhabitants. ...

. Fang later attempted to employ Gao as a teacher, an offer which Gao politely declined. Dissatisfied with the civil service, he retired in 1356 and moved to

Ningbo Ningbo (; Ningbonese: ''gnin² poq⁷'' , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly romanized as Ningpo, is a major sub-provincial city in northeast Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China. It comprises 6 urban districts, 2 sate ...

(Yinxian) to write for the theatre, focussing on the '' nanxi'' genre. His friend Liu Ji attempted to draw him out of retirement by persuading the

Hongwu Emperor The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328 – 24 June 1398), personal name Zhu Yuanzhang (), courtesy name Guorui (), was the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty of China, reigning from 1368 to 1398. As famine, plagues and peasant revolts in ...

to involve Gao in the writing of the official history of the Yuan; Gao, however, declined, citing mental illness.

''Tale of the Pipa''

Gao's most famous work, and the only one of his plays still extant, is ''

Tale of the Pipa ''Tale of the Pipa'' ( "Tale of the Pipa" or "The Story of the Lute") is a Chinese '' nanxi'' play written by the playwright Gao Ming during the late Yuan dynasty. There are French, German, English translations of the play, and an English noveliz ...

'' (''Pipa ji'' 琵琶记; also translated as ''The Story of the Lute'' or ''The Lute''). A complete English language translation appeared in 1980. In 1946 an adaptation of ''Tale of the Pipa'', entitled ''

Lute Song The term lute song is given to a music style from the late 16th century to early 17th century, late Renaissance to early Baroque, that was predominantly in England and France. Lute songs were generally in strophic form or verse repeating with a h ...

'', was produced on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

. It starred

Yul Brynner Yuliy Borisovich Briner (russian: link=no, Юлий Борисович Бринер; July 11, 1920 – October 10, 1985), known professionally as Yul Brynner, was a Russian-born actor. He was best known for his portrayal of King Mongkut in the ...

and

Mary Martin Mary Virginia Martin (December 1, 1913 – November 3, 1990) was an American actress and singer. A muse of Rodgers and Hammerstein, she originated many leading roles on stage over her career, including Nellie Forbush in '' South Pacific'' (194 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gao, Ming Yuan dynasty poets Writers from Wenzhou Yuan dynasty dramatists and playwrights 1305 births 1370 deaths Poets from Zhejiang 14th-century Chinese dramatists and playwrights