Italian debut for Chinese opera

To celebrate the 115th birthday of Chinese author Lao She, Rickshaw Boy, an opera based on Lao's novel of the same name, was staged at Liaoning Grand Theatre in Shenyang, northeastern China's Liaoning province on March 13, 2014. [Photo/IC]

An original Chinese opera which has been touring the country for a year is to undertake a 13-day tour of Italy.

Rickshaw Boy, or Camel Xiangzi, will be staged at the Teatro Regio in Turin, Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa and Teatro Comunale in Florence between Sep 23 and Oct 5.

"Rickshaw Boy has been well received since its debut in Beijing," said Deng Yijiang, associate director of China's National Grand Theatre. The opera is very Chinese and reveals a lot about the old Beijing, he added.

Deng said Rickshaw Boy was chosen from eight original operas produced by China's National Grand Theatre in the past seven years, not only because it characterizes Chinese culture and the standard of the country's contemporary musicals but also because it is likely to strike a chord with western audiences.

"Rickshaw Boy is a very good illustration of grassroots Chinese people in the 1930s, their lives have been portrayed vividly in the novel," said Yi Liming, director of the opera. Yi said that in order to make it adapt better to western audiences, he rearranged the original in terms of staging and content.