In his preface to The Peony Pavilion, Ming dynasty playwright Tang Xianzu wrote, "We know not whence feelings arise, but love runs ever deeper; it may cause the living to die, and bring the dead to life."
「情不知所起，一往情深，生者可以死，死者可以生。」四百年前明朝劇作家湯顯祖《牡丹亭》的題詞，正可以形容作家白先勇對於崑曲的痴迷。