DUBAI, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- Thundering applause lingered for quite a moment in Dubai Opera Thursday night when Chinese performers from China's Shanghai Opera House answered the curtain call, in a sign showing that the group's Dubai tour not only mesmerized local audience, but also promoted cultural exchanges between China and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Shanghai Opera House, during its week-long Dubai tour from Sept. 5-12, had three performances of Giacomo Puccini's famous opera Turandot and two performances of Chinese dance drama Early Spring. Its performances started the new show season in Dubai Opera as the weather in the desert country begins cooling down.
Xu Zhong, general director of Shanghai Opera House, was thankful to Dubai Opera, one of the best-equipped world class arts centers, for inviting his group to inaugurate the show season.
"This (invitation) shows not only Dubai Opera's full trust in our artistic quality and great attention paid by the UAE host to our cooperation, but also the attraction and influence of Shanghai Opera House," Xu said.
Jasper Hope, the CEO of Dubai Opera who was the driving force behind Shanghai Opera House's Dubai tour, said he expected to continue cooperation with the Chinese performing group in future.
For this tour, the two sides agreed to co-share the costs, risks and box office, in the first trial of a new cooperation model between Chinese performing arts groups with mainstream foreign theaters.
"This cooperation availed me the opportunity to know the artistic standard and comprehensive capabilities of Shanghai Opera House," Hope said.
Wu Jie, deputy director of Shanghai Opera House, was excited by the Dubai tour. "Art knows no boundaries, as high-quality productions are set to thrill the audience," Wu said following Thursday night's performance of Early Spring, which was so well-received by the audience.
"We prepared very hard for the performances here, with an aim to show the highest standard of Chinese musicals," Wu said, explaining that the artists in musicals usually convey their feelings through actions, emotions and dramatic storyline, so the audience can understand the story more easily despite cultural differences and language barriers.
The Chinese artists' performance of Turandot, which tells an Oriental legend created through the imagination of a Western writer, brought about a completely fresh enjoyment for the Dubai audience.
"The key to a successful performance of Turandot is the conductor's controlling capabilities and set design. Shanghai Opera House did it perfectly, with Xu Zhong's commanding conducting and the dreamlike magical stage design," commented columnist Rupert Hawksley.
For the Chinese artists from Shanghai, this tour represented a unique experience, as it was their second performing tour in the countries along the Belt and Road, following their participation in the Saaremaa Opera Festival held in Estonia in July 2018.
The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), proposed by China in 2013, aims to build a trade and infrastructure network to connect Asia with Africa and Europe along the trade routes of the ancient Silk Road.
"This performance is unforgettable, because it's very meaningful to share with the audience in the Middle East, which is situated on the Belt and Road, the story written by a Western writer but told by Chinese artists," said He Hui, who played the role of Princess Turandot in the opera.
Wu said that, against the background of BRI implementation, Chinese artists took it as a responsibility to help foreign audiences to learn more about China's great achievements in development through their performances.
Ni Jian, the Chinese ambassador to UAE, praised Shanghai Opera House for its active contribution to deepening the China-UAE cultural exchanges and cooperation, noting its Dubai tour came at a special occasion when China celebrates the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the 35th anniversary of the establishment of China-UAE diplomatic ties, while the UAE is preparing for hosting the Expo 2020 Dubai.
