operalab
In May, the Guangzhou Opera House celebrated its 50th performance of its series of immersive comic operas begun just three years ago in 2022 with Gaetano Donizetti’s Rita. This was followed by Jacques Offenbach’s Pomme d’Api and the current run of George Bizet’s Le docteur Miracle. According to producer Jenny Liang Lizhen, “This series of productions combines the art of Western opera with Chinese local culture, successfully exploring a new model of cross-border fusion opera.”
Carmen Wong, the new localised version reduced to the four principles debuted at the 2025 French May at Felix in the Peninsula Hong Kong on 31 May, featuring Ashley Chui and Etta Fung as the two bar hostesses Carmen and Micaëla, Chen Yong as José and Isaac Droscha as the colonial policeman Escamillo.
It will be performed twice more on 21 July and 20 September.
2025 is the 150th anniversary of Georges Bizet’s iconic “Carmen”. In celebration, this multimedia presentation offers a new rendition of the timeless story. Centred on selections from the opera sung by some of Hong Kong’s most acclaimed vocalists, infused with narrative from the original novel by Prosper Mérimée (itself celebrating its 180th anniversary!) – it brings to life one of Europe’s most fascinating literary characters.
Sung in French with English surtitles and English narration, this “Europe Day” event is the first major performance of “Carmen 2025”, a year-long programme of opera, literature, music and dance, commemorating the dual anniversaries of the novel and opera.
The Guangzhou Opera House closed out 2024 and welcomed in 2025 with four special performances of world-premiere production in modern-day Laurette travels to a French fairy-tale where all her dreams come true. Marco Iannelli conducted his new score which includes original music featuring resettings of familiar French children’s songs, and additional music by Bizet from his other operas “Don Procopio” and “Carmen”.
This four performances bring the total to 10 so far in the 2024-2025 season, almost certainly the longest run of Le docteur Miracle since its debut run of 11 performances in 1857. A further 13 performances are scheduled.
In this world-premiere production, modern-day Laurette travels to a French fairy-tale where all her dreams come true. It has a new world-premiere arrangement by Marco Iannelli that includes original music featuring resettings of familiar French children’s songs, and additional music by Bizet from his other operas “Don Procopio” and “Carmen”.
Iannelli will conduct four special performances on 31 December 2024 and 1 January 2025.
This new adaptation aims to capture the origins of the novel in the semi-autobiographical novel Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henri Murger in an intimate dramatic adaptation of Giacomo Puccini’s classic opera. Reduced to the four principal roles, this new version is designed to focus on the emotional ties between the two couples.
The production, adapted by Peter Gordon and with a new musical arrangement by Marco Iannelli, keeps all the major music, arias and ensembles as well as the original, beloved story line, by moving Musetta’s Act II music to Scene 1 and reassigning some lines. The Star Ferry performances were reset in contemporary Hong Kong. It runs approximately 60 minutes.
Scene 1 opens with the writer Murger witnessing a death in hospital (as Mimì does in the original book), and then sitting down to write, stepping into the scene as Rodolfo. Scene 2 also open with Murger writing and again stepping into the scene for Rodolfo’s entrance.
The performances featured Etta Fung as Mimì, Ashley Chui as Musetta, Chen Yong as Rodolfo and Isaac Droscha as Marcello, with Jaclyn Chiu on piano.
For the Guangzhou Opera House, operalab reset Dr Miracle as a “fairy-tale opera”. Modern-day Laurette travels to a French fairy-tale where all her dreams come true. It has a new world-premiere arrangement by Marco Iannelli that includes original music featuring resettings of familiar French children’s songs, and additional music by Bizet from his other operas “Don Procopio” and “Carmen”.
According to Christophe Bagonneau, cultural attaché at the French Consulate in Guangzhou, “This year, Festival Croisements is celebrating in its own way the 60 years of diplomatic exchange between our two countries, and for this occasion it is taking the name ‘Croisements 60’. Born during the years of cross-fertilization between France and China, 2003 and 2004, what festival could, better than Croisements, commemorate these 60 years of cultural exchanges that have mutually enriched us.
“Bizet’s opérette, ‘Le Docteur miracle’, given this year by the Guangzhou Opera House, enriches the festival and is a fine example of this programming and of the cooperation between our two countries.”
According to producer Jenny Liang Lizhen: “‘Dr Miracle’ is the third immersive comic opera created by the Guangzhou Opera House. The production is supported by the French Consulate-General in Guangzhou and has been included in the culture programme celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between China and France. The Alliance Française of Guangzhou has also provided French language coaching.
“In this third iteration of our immersive comic opera programme, we also further explored how to make the opera popular with contemporary audiences and promote the modernization, popularization and popularization of the art of opera. We aim to create an opera suitable for audiences of all ages, incorporating elements such as children’s chorus and ballet to attract family audiences to appreciate it together. However, although we use methods close to contemporary people to create a lifelike opera scene, what we always want to convey is the essence of opera, so that the audience can feel the original and classical ‘no amplification, direct sound’ nature of operatic singing.
“This time, we selected outstanding young opera singers from all over China to provide growth opportunities and a platform for up-and-coming talent interested in engaging in opera careers. 35 actors and musicians have participated in this production.”
The original domestic rom-com “Le docteur Miracle” features everything that might be found in a modern musical or TV sit-com: a pretty teenage girl with a crush, parents that don’t listen, humorous misunderstandings, disguises, plots … and a happy ending.
For this production, “Dr Miracle” has been reset as a “fairy tale opera”. Modern-day Laurette travels to a French fairy-tale where all her dreams come true. It has a new world-premiere arrangement for chamber ensemble by Marco Iannelli that includes original music featuring resettings of familiar French children’s songs (including “Ah! vous dirai-je, maman” — better-known as “Twinkle, twinkle little star”, “Frère Jacques”, “Au claire de la lune” and “Alouette”) for soprano and children’s chorus which, says Iannelli, “add some fairy-tale sparkle”. The new arrangement also interpolates additional music by Bizet from his other operas “Don Procopio” and “Carmen”.
Iannelli continues: “By inserting French traditional tunes, and involving children, we open the gate to a fairy tale story that is quite far from the original ‘old’ opera. In my arrangement, I wanted to link this ‘new’ style (more magical and children-oriented) to the traditional operatic orchestral treatment. The last number, a new finale, is illustrative: starting with a magical lullaby, it melds almost naturally with themes from other arias, summing up not only the story, but the entire musical journey.”
Le toréador (1849) is a opéra-comique by Adolphe Adam, a French composer best known for the ballet Giselle. The story is of a ménage–a–trois between an erstwhile soprano, her oft–absent and unfaithful husband, and a previous lover. The work features famous variations on the folk–song Ah! vous dirai–je, maman (better known as Twinkle, twinkle, little star in the English–speaking world). This semi–staged performance resets the story in contemporary Hong Kong as The Triad, or Three in Accord (retaining the musical pun in the original French title Le toréador, ou L’accord parfait).
The premiere takes place on 6 June 2024 at the Asia Society as part of the French May and will feature Etta Fung as Coraline, Chen Yong as Tracolin and Isaac Droscha as Don Belflor, with Hsu Wei-en on piano. This will be Hong Kong (and likely Greater China) premiere.
The Guangzhou Opera House’s production of Pomme d’Api travels to Shanghai for performances at the Peninsula Hotel 8-9 March 2024 as part of the “Mois de la Francophonie” festival and in association with the French Consulate-General and Alliance Française in Shanghai.
The 20th performance of the Guangzhou Opera House’s Rita took place on 5 October 2023 with Italian Consul-General Valerio de Parolis in attendance. Marco Iannelli composed a medley of highlights that was performed as an encore. Xing Xingyuan starred as Rita, tenor Lin Junliang as Beppe and baritone Zhong Haodong as Gasparo. The production premiered in June 2022.