The opera “Marco Polo” landed at the Guangzhou Opera House from May 3rd to 4th. Nearly 200 Chinese and foreign friends spectated the performance. This three-act opera, sung in Chinese, allows the audience to learn the history and carry forward the friendship between China and Italy.
Born in Italy in the 13th century, Marco Polo came once to China. His travel book, The Travels of Marco Polo, detailed what he saw and heard in China, setting off the first “China fever” in history in the West. The opera Marco Polo is the result of East-West cooperation and the fusion of Chinese and Western cultures. The leading creative team of the play came from all over the world. The scriptwriter is Chinese contemporary poet Wei Jin and the composer is Enjott Schneider President of German Composers Association DKV. It premiered at the Guangzhou Opera House in 2018, was directed by Kasper Holten, former Director of Opera at Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London. After that, it has visited Quanzhou and returned to its “hometown” Italy for performing, which attracted great attention from all over the world.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the China-Italy Comprehensive Strategic Partnership as well as the 700th death anniversary of Marco Polo. The opera Marco Polo was revived by Shi Jingfu, director of the China National Opera House. Gianluca Zoppa, an Italian scriptwriter, producer, director, and actor who has lived in Guangdong for a long time, said after watching the performance, “This play not only conforms to the aesthetics of Western audiences, but also opens up their imagination of the East.” A Chinese spectator Tracy and her Venezuelan boyfriend Rei felt particularly touched after watching the performance, she said: “The opera tells the story of the replacement of the two dynasties based on the love story of Mark Polo and Chuan Yun, but actually represents the collision of different cultures. The opera also reflects the love story of her relationship with her boyfriend, which is very intense, so it also triggers deeper thinking and resonance.”
Before the opening of the opera on the evening of May 4th, the “Sharing Salon to An
Encounter with Marco Polo” hosted by the GDToday was held at the Guangzhou Opera House. As a supporting activity for the revival of the opera Marco Polo, nearly 200 representatives of the Consulates General and Chambers of Commerce from 29 countries, Chinese and foreign friends were invited to talk about Sino-foreign cultural exchanges and learn from each other’s civilizations.
The Salon exhibited the famous painting “Marco Polo’s Reverie” by the famous Italian painter Sandro Trotti and the work of Guangdong artist Wang Shaoqiang, who is participating in La Biennale di Venezia in Italy. A number of representatives from China and Italy shared their views on Marco Polo as well as China-Italy exchanges and cooperation.
“Both China and Italy have a long history and cultural heritage. The exchanges and cooperation in the cultural aspect will surely enhance the friendship between the two peoples.” Italian Consul General in Guangzhou, Mr. Valerio De Parolis, said in an interview with the reporter of GDToday.
Guangdong is one of the important starting points of the Maritime Silk Road, and has been a major center of East-West trade and cultural exchanges since ancient times.