Librettist and director LI Liuyi, as famous for directing traditional operas as for creating avant-garde works, and composer GUO Wenjing – whom some people will already have discovered at the 2007 Ars Musica Festival – have together conceived a scenic and operatic tribute to the warrior women of traditional Chinese culture.

At the heart of these three operas is an original dialogue between a heroine and the men in her life. Young militant MU Guiying, tormented, torn between hatred and desire, evokes bittersweet memories of her late husband and his heroic ancestors. HUA Mulan, wearing men’s clothing, fights in the Imperial Army in the name of her father and her brother. The famous courtesan, LIANG Hongyu, who rejects the honours bestowed by the Emperor, chooses to live as a recluse in her brothel. One night, she is visited by three spirits who have come to raise her spirits. Each of these three operas has its own style and references. They are a magnificent reflection of Chinese culture past and present.

The heroines are superbly represented by Yingzi, an actress from the Beijing opera who has four times won the first prize at the Hebei Drama Festival.

Surtitles FR/ NL

Libretto / direction LI Liuyi Composer GUO Wenjing

Source: www.europalia.eu

HUA Mulan