Turandot by Zhang Yimou debuts at Bird's Nest

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A new version of Giacomo Puccini's last masterpiece "Turandot" has made its debut in Beijing. Director Zhang Yimou has given it a modern look. The project marks a return to the Bird's Nest for Zhang, one year after he staged the opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympics.

The last masterpiece written, but not finished, by Italian composer Giacomo Puccini before his death, "Turandot" tells the story of a tyrannical Chinese princess who has suitors beheaded when they fail to answer her three riddles. Italian Soprano Raffaella Angeletti plays the merciless Princess Turandot, against the protagonist Prince Calaf played by Chinese tenor Dai Yuqiang. Italian conductor Janos Acs held the baton for the orchestra from China's National Opera House.

Helmed by director Zhang Yimou, and the creative team behind the Beijing Olympic Games Opening Ceremony, the new operatic production promises advanced concepts and modern approaches. Multimedia techniques will be used to create magnificent scenes. The world's largest video images, projected by 32 cine-projectors on a 1,000-square-meter screen is deployed to accommodate the audience at the gigantic venue.

Zhang Yimou said, "Despite the gigantic size, the stage design is simple and powerful. The blocks, lines and dots have comprised a simple and modern setting. The Chinese palace is reduced to a silhouette, one that provides the basic backdrop to the story of love and hate."

The story of "Turandot" originates from a collection of 17th-century Persian stories called "The Book of One Thousand and One Days." It was then adapted into a play by Carlo Gozzi.

Around 1910, Giacomo Puccini heard the Chinese folk song "Jasmine Flower". The tune inspired him to create an opera containing Chinese elements. "Turandot" was the result based on Gozzi's play about a Chinese princess and a Tartary prince.

The Bird's Nest version has toppled down many of its predecessors, replacing the blue and grey hues permeating the western versions with flamboyant, fiery and bright colors.

Zhang Yimou said, "We often joked about the color of the show, saying that it is the color of a seventeen-year-old. The colors of young people's clothes. Fashionable people also call it mix and match. That's what makes it intriguing."

The Bird's Nest version of "Turandot" will embark on a world tour shortly after its Beijing premiere. Shanghai is at the top of itinerary, for the upcoming 2010 World Expo. The production will then be performed in Japan, South Korea, Australia, the United States, and other countries before it moves to London.