Ailing father jogs family memory

The actress shared the experience in Beijing on Wednesday, when the Chinese play, Le Pere, was going to be staged at the National Centre for the Performing Arts on that day with shows running till last Sunday. After 14 consecutive shows in Shanghai from July 28 to Aug 11, the Chinese play, produced by Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre, has launched a nationwide tour.

"I usually can put my personal feelings aside when I perform onstage or in the rehearsal room. However, that day I went through a profound emotional journey that required me to confront a past that I was trying to forget," says Tian, whose acting career spans the past three decades from movies, TV dramas to theatrical productions.

The scenes involving her character's interactions with her father in the Chinese play mirror the raw, unprocessed grief she carries from her own experience. The script's poignant moments about memory loss and the slow erosion of a loved one's identity strike a familiar chord, evoking memories of her mother's decline and eventual death. It's a painful but necessary confrontation.

"It's like opening a wound I thought had healed," Tian admits. "Sometimes it feels overwhelming, but it's also a way to channel that pain into something meaningful. My own experience helped me to interpret the role of Anne."

She also notes that through her portrayal, she hopes to shed light on the profound impact of Alzheimer's disease, both on individuals and their families.

In the Chinese play, Taiwan actor King Shih-chieh plays the role of the father, an aging man who struggles to accept that he is losing his memory and cognitive function.