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It is the first original opera produced by National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), which adopts Western opera to interpret the ancient legends about beauty Xi Shi in a brand new way, recreating grand view of the war between the Kingdom of Wu and the Kingdom of Yue, as well as the legendary story of a beauty.
Opera Xi Shi gathers the first-grade domestic creation crew, with famous director Cao Qijing as director and well-known playwright Zou Jingzhi as playwright; meanwhile, Xi Shi is also the first opera work of famous composer, Lei Lei. The classical songs created by Lei Lei for many Chinese TV dramas such as Plainclothes Policeman, Aspiration, The Yellow Storm and etc., have been frequently heard by the Chinese people; stage designer Huang Kaifu, whose representative work is the highly praised Kunqu Opera The Peony Pavilion, is also a first-grade artist in China; as well as a series of magnificent dancing plots for pretty Xi Shi...all of these are going to be the highlights of the opera.
In 494 BC, during the battle in Kuaiji Mountain, the King of Yue, Gou Jian is defeated by the King of Wu; with no other options at hand, he promises that Yue would forever submit to Wu. After having been a slave for three years, he is finally released by the King of Wu, Fu Chai, and returns to Yue.
In order to defend and revive Yue, Gou Jian sends two beauties from Yue, Xi Shi and Zheng Dan into the luxurious palace of Fu Chai. Despite the love, beautiful jewelries and wines from Fu Chai, Xi Shi still misses her country all the time. General Wu Zixu has always opposed Fu Chai in releasing Gou Jian back Yue, and regards Xi Shi and Zheng Dan as Troy's Helen. During a banquet, after another dehortation turns out in vain, he becomes furious and kills Zheng Dan. Xi Shi is so grief that she threatens Fu Chai with death, and makes him had Wu Zixu beheaded.
The death of Wu Zixu increases Yue's faith in conquering Wu. Gou Jian takes the opportunity to declare a war; his troops sweeps Wu and successfully revenges for past humiliation. After Wu's defeat, in Fu Chai's palace, Xi Shi changes into her own country's costume, hoping to return to homeland, but she ended up with facing the queen of Yue whose supremacy was threatened by Xi Shi.
His major works in recent years are as follows: drama "Mother", "Call Me Brother", "Father", "The Secular World"; opera "Wild Field", "Qu Yuan", "Sea", "Du Shiliang", "Farewell My Concubine"; Kunqu Opera "The Peony Pavilion", "Imperial Concubine Goes to the East", "The Palace of Eternal Youth"(full version); Peking opera "A Person through the Ages" and "Princess Turandot", "Beauty Xi Shi Returns to Kingdom Yue"; Yue opera "Li Qingzhao", "Black Clothes & Red Robes", "Autumn Getting Stronger"; Huangmei Opera "Huizhou Woman" and "He Shi Bi"; Yong Opera "A Rented Wife"; Shanghai Opera "Rui Jue"; Zhuang Opera "Vocal King" and "W's Wife"; Qiong Opera "To Southeast Asia"; dance drama "Xinghai Yellow River", etc. Among them, the drama "Wild Field" was selected as "National Stage Design Repertoire" (2002-2003); the stage play "Father" was selected as "National Stage Design Repertoire"(2003-2004); the stage play "Call Me Brother", Huangmei Opera "Huizhou Woman", Peking opera "Princess Turandot", Yong opera "A Rented Wife" are appraised as "Nominated Repertoire of National Stage Design".
In the decades of her opera career, Huang has been music director and artistic director for many operas, collected dozens of classic operas home and abroad, and also cultivated plenty of artists for the development of opera in China. In 1999, she designed and implemented a concert series of "Chinese and Western Art Songs"; in the same year, was Chief Planner and Artistic Director of a grand concert entitled with "Chinese Heart" held at Tiananmen Square for celebrating the return of Macao. In 2001, in order to bid for 2008 Beijing Olympics, she was Chief Planner and Artistic Director of "The Three Tenors' Beijing Concert" held at the Meridian Gate of the Forbidden City, Beijing. Since 2002, she was, four years in a row, one of the judges for CCTV Young Singers Grand Prix Bel Canto Group. She was also Chief Planner for the CCTV grand features To Feel Symphony and About Opera.
His major works are as follows: the Greek tragedy "Bakai BACHAE" performed by the Greece Theatre of New York, USA and China Peking Opera Theatre, the historical drama "Shang Yang", the design drama "Turandot" performed by the Florence Opera House of Italy, drama "Antique" by the Beijing People's Art Theatre, "Peony Pavilion" by the Shanghai Kunqu Opera Theatre, modern Peking opera "Rickshaw Boy", "Prime Minister Humpbacked Liu", drama "Under the Red Flag", Yue Opera "Tianyi Pavilion", musical "Sunrise", Yue Opera "Butterfly Lovers", drama "Scholar & Executioner", etc.
Xing Xin graduated from the Central Academy of Drama. During 1986-1988, he was selected by the Chinese Dramatists Association and studied stage art lighting design and TV lighting in "Tokyo Stage Lighting Co., Ltd." in Japan. He was awarded by government with national "Wenhua Award", "China Drama Festival Award", "China Art Festival Award", "The Best Works Award", "Chinese Opera Institute Award", "Chinese Society Award", etc. He also won awards for many times at performance festivals of various categories and opera types.
His major works in recent years are as follows: "La Traviata", "Wild Field", "Macao Bride", "The Dawns Here Are Quiet", "Victors", "Monument", "Father", "Rickshaw Boy", "Mei Lan Fang", "Huizhou Woman","A Rented Wife","Fengyang Love", "Flag of Camel Brother", "Shangri-La", "Sunrise", "Face maker", "Jane love", etc.
His main design works are as follows: dance drama "Dunhuang, My Dreamland", "Love & Hate in Summer Palace"; opera "Farewell My Concubine", "Aida"; musical "Butterfly", "Flowers", etc.
In 2008, he served as chief costume designer for the closing ceremony of the 29th Beijing Olympic Games.
In 2002, she won "The Best Singer Award" at the 10th National Young Singer TV Grand Prix (Shanghai Division). In 2003, she won Outstanding Singer Award at the 10th National Young Singer TV Grand Prix and won the 6th place at the 14th VERVIERS International Opera Vocal Competition in Belgium. In 2004, she was admitted to the Shanghai Opera House as a soloist, and was awarded the 2nd place at The 8th Montreal and Czechoslovakia International Vocal Competition in the next year. In 2006, she starred heroine Lyra in the Bizet opera "Pearl Fishers" in its premiere of China, and won the prize of excellent art talent in Shanghai.
In March 2007, cooperating with France, Xu acted Michella in Bizet opera "Carmen", Chinese original opera "Thunderstorm" and Verdi's opera "Othello".In 2008, she was invited to star Laila in Bizet opera "Pearl Fishers" at St Etienne Opera House and Lance Opera House in France; and "The Yellow River Cantata" - "The Yellow River Indignation" and Verdi's opera "Otello" at Finland and Sweden opera houses; and starred in Puccini opera "Tosca" and "Nun Anjelica" at the Shanghai Grand Theatre, the audience thought highly of her. In January 2009, she starred in Puccini opera "Le villi" at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center.
The world-famous tenor and maestro Pavarotti pleasantly took Mr. Dai as his first student from Asia after heard his singing; and an opera fan from Japan appraised him as "the Pride of Chinese Opera". Mr. Dai, along with Maria Guleghina and Samuel Ramey, has collaborated in Tosca at Royal Opera House, Convent Garden, being showered with praise and hailed by local media as "a dazzling star on the stage."
She was once under the tutelage of female soprano Yin Qiujiang, He Hui, female mezzo-soprano Zhang Hao and vocal music educator Pro. Xu Yi. She was admitted to the Shanghai Opera House in 2002 and studied in Zhou Xiaoyan Opera Center in 2003 under the tutelage of the famous vocal educator Pro. Zhou Xiaoyan.
In 2006, she won the first place in the CCTV Young Singers Competition (Shanghai Division) and won Award for Excellence in the CCTV Young Singers Competition. In 2009, she won the first place in national trial of the Vienna Vocal Competition. She performed repertoires such as "Bet", "Eighteen Springs", "The King of Chu", "Beauty of Beauties", "La Traviata", "The Career of the Artist", "The Marriage of Figaro".
She also participated in opera "Carmen", "The Tales of Hoffmann", "Madame Butterfly", "The Thievish Magpie", "Otello", "La Traviata", "Falstaff ", "Rustic Chivalry", "Don Juan", "The Flying Dutchman", "The Passion & the Love","Song Fairy","Imperial Concubine Yang", Tan Dun’s opera "Tea".
Box officeNorth Gate of NCPA, No. 2 West Chang'an Avenue, Xicheng District, Beijing, China
Tickets collection hours9:30-19:30 (CST) on performance day
9:30-18:00 (CST) for days without performance
Booking line+86 10 6655 0000
Booking hours9:30-18:00 (CST) Monday to Friday
We make every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information, however the hours, prices, and program details may vary due to last minute changes.
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Dedicated to the staging of epic operas, ballets and dance dramas, the golden Opera House is considered the centerpiece of the NCPA. Its main tone is golden color, which looks glamorous and splendid. In the auditorium are the stalls and three higher levels of balconies, which can seat an audience of 2,207, including the venue of SRO. It is equipped with a modern stage that can be moved up/down/backward/forward or rotated, a ballet stage that can slant, and a rising orchestra pit for the triple winds orchestra. All the cutting-edge staging mechanism provides artists with enormous possibilities of creative performance.
Dedicated to the staging of epic operas, ballets and dance dramas, the golden Opera House is considered the centerpiece of the NCPA. Its main tone is golden color, which looks glamorous and splendid. In the auditorium are the stalls and three higher levels of balconies, which can seat an audience of 2,207, including the venue of SRO. It is equipped with a modern stage that can be moved up/down/backward/forward or rotated, a ballet stage that can slant, and a rising orchestra pit for the triple winds orchestra. All the cutting-edge staging mechanism provides artists with enormous possibilities of creative performance.