(2002/12/08)

To mark 30th anniversary of normalization of diplomatic relations between China and Japan, the China-Japan co-produced opera The Country of Penglai -- the First Emperor and Xu Fu was staged on December 3rd at Tokyo's Itanashi District Cultural Guild Hall. Director of China Opera and Dance Drama Theater Zhao Baozhi, cultural officials of Chinese Embassy in Japan, and Japanese people in all circles, 1,500 in all, watched the performance.

The opera Country of Penglai -- First Emperor and Xu Fu was co-composed by distinguished Chinese composer Lu Yuan and Japanese composer Ishita. It was co-performed by China Opera and Dance Drama Theater and Tokyo Opera Federation, accompanied by the Traditional Musical Instrument Orchestra of China Opera and Dance Drama Theater. The opera was first staged in Beijing in 1997 to greet the 25th anniversary of normalization of Sino-Japanese diplomatic relations. To date it has given more than 30 performances in different places in China and Japan, well received by the audience.

From December 5 to 10 the opera will go on performing in Fukuoka, Saga, and Nagasaki.

By Ma Xiaochen

(From Cultural Office of Chinese Embassy in Japan)