Huo Yan

Huo Yan’s birthplace and year of birth are not clearly stated in public records. In 1946, while attending middle school in Harbin, Huo Yan acted in his first drama, Shengguan Tu (The Promotion Picture), which launched a theatre career lasting about 50 years. Beginning in 1953, he starred in stage works with the Shenyang Drama Troupe, including The Army at the Gates and the Xi’an Incident, and he trained actors such as Lü Xiaohe. In 1960, Huo Yan accompanied the Shenyang Drama Troupe on a Beijing tour of The Army at the Gates, during which he was received by Premier Zhou Enlai and photographed with him. In 1978, he first portrayed Premier Zhou Enlai in the drama Xi’an Incident. In December 1978, Huo Yan once again played Zhou Enlai in the Liaoning TV Station-produced television series The Last Bus; thereafter, he went on to portray Zhou Enlai in the plays Life and Death and Mission. In 1983, Huo Yan was transferred to the Shenyang Municipal Cultural Bureau, where he held a leadership position.