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“We are constantly trying to improve our show. We aim to make all our audiences shed tears, while laughing at the fox and mountain scene of Zhangjiajie.”

For Tan Dun, ensuring these heritages are passed down from one generation to another is a core issue since this is the fundamental purpose of protecting these heritages.

Tan helps the traditional Huagu Opera successfully pass their craft down to younger generations. Most of the audiences have been greatly moved by New Woodcutter Liu Hai. As a musician, the most horrible thing for Tan is to hear audiences rustling their plastic bags in search for food or drinks, in the middle of a performance. However, at this musical, he found the audience to be so focused, falling into perfect silence, which makes Tan Dun surprisingly happy.

As Tan points out, the heritage protection process calls for exchanges with the outside world. He noticed that the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York attaches great importance to cultural exchanges. On its top floor visitors could find an indoor Suzhou Garden, a gift from the Chinese government. “I think the Chinese government is farsighted. The Garden doesn’t cost very much but attracts numerous visitors. It also helps that visitors are able to compare it with Japanese garden built next to it.”

Learning from the Metropolitan Museum, Tan stresses the importance of cultural exchange. The indoor version for New Woodcutter Liu Hai will be produced and performed around the globe, with Broadway included. English, Korean, and Japanese subtitles have since been created.

Tan Dun also emphasizes that it is necessary to learn from the world. “We have a saying which goes: if we want to be famous in the world, and be well accepted on the international stage, we’ll have to keep our national identity, as this is something foreigners don’t have. But this is not absolutely right, because you have to accept an international viewpoint in order to learn. We’ve to be able to challenge new ideas posed by the world, and at the same time, come up with our own new ideas.”