An aria of contemporary familiarity

That quality makes Papageno a natural bridge between Mozart's fantastical world and contemporary audiences. He is not a philosopher or a hero in the traditional sense. He wants food, companionship and love. His desires are uncomplicated, but deeply human.

For Chest, that may be precisely why the character has remained so accessible across centuries and cultures.

"I think Papageno's lesson for us all is that we can and should be content with the simple pleasures of life," he says.

The production's international character extends well beyond language. It brings together singers and creative artists from different countries, including the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Chinese choirs.

For conductor Dane Lam, the mixture of musical traditions is one of the production's greatest attractions.

"Every musician arrives with their own training and sound," says Lam, who has worked extensively with Chinese orchestras and has served as principal conductor of the Xi'an Symphony Orchestra in Shaanxi province since 2014.

He sees the different backgrounds not as something to be ironed out, but as a source of color. A London orchestra brings its own Mozart tradition, Chinese choruses contribute a sound and discipline he has admired for years, and international soloists bring the experience of performing in opera houses around the world.

The task during rehearsals, he says, is to find a shared musical language: how the artists phrase a passage, breathe together, and shape a pause.

"Once that's in place, the different backgrounds become an asset," Lam says.

Listening, he believes, is fundamental.

"Opera is a living conversation between the stage and the pit, and it changes every night." A singer may breathe a moment later, or a chorus may find new energy in a scene, requiring the orchestra to hear and respond.

"The best performances happen when every musician is paying attention to everyone else."

That principle seems particularly appropriate for a production whose very subject is encounters.