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Nixon in China
Opéra Bastille - from 25 March to 16 April 2023
Nixon in China
John Adams
Opéra Bastille - from 25 March to 16 April 2023
3h10 with 1 interval
Language : English
Surtitle : French / English
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Pre‑opening for the young : 22 March 2023
Opening night : 25 March 2023
About
In few words:
In February 1972, the American president Richard Nixon went to China to meet Mao Zedong. In the context of the war in Vietnam and the cold war, this encounter marked a turning point in Chinese‑ American relations. John Adams, a major musical figure of the last forty years, made this event of contemporary history the subject of his first opera. Nixon in China tackles the political thaw instigated by ping-pong diplomacy, begun by the invitation of the American table tennis players by their Chinese counterparts, one year before the presidential visit. A mesmerising work in which the pulsations and repetitions typical of minimalism are combined with melodic lines of great lyricism. For its entry into the Paris Opera repertoire, this work has been entrusted to the director Valentina Carrasco, who underlines the importance and the mediating power of Chinese national sport in history.
Characters
Richard Nixon: President of the United States
Mao Tse-tung: Chairman of the Chinese
Communist Party
Pat Nixon: First Lady of the United States
Chiang Ch’ing: Mao’s wife
Henry Kissinger: US National Security Advisor
Chou En-lai: Chinese Prime Minister
- Opening
- First part 65 mn
- Intermission 30 mn
- Second part 95 mn
- End
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Nixon in China
Opera in three acts (1987)
Watch on Paris Opera Play, the Paris Opera's streaming platform
Performances
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Available in audiodescription
Advantages
Full
Book your tickets today with the Season Pass
Available in audiodescription
Advantages
Full
Gallery
Videos clips
Audio clips
Nixon in China (saison 22/23) - Acte 1 - Thomas Hampson (Nixon)
Nixon in China (saison 22/23) - Acte 1 (Orchestre)
Nixon in China (saison 22/23) - Acte 2 - Yajie Zhang, Ning Liang, Emanuela Pascu
Nixon in China (saison 22/23) - Acte 2
Backstage
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Video
Nixon's true trip to China
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Video
Adams in Paris
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Video
A modern mythology
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Video
A presidential couple at the Opera
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Podcast
Podcast Nixon in China
07:52’
Video
Nixon's true trip to China
Behind the scenes of the story
John Adams' opera, Nixon in China, is based on a genuine historical fact: the trip taken by US President Richard Nixon and his wife to Mao Zedong's communist China in February 1972, during the Cold War. What were the aims and the outcome? This documentary deciphers the story in just 8 minutes, using archive footage.
04:41’
Video
Adams in Paris
Interview with John Adams
Present for the premiere of Nixon in China at the Opéra Bastille, the composer John Adams granted us an exclusive interview a few minutes before the performance. An opportunity to discuss the relevance of his opera in the current international context as well as the two main performers, Renée Fleming and Thomas Hampson, conducted by Gustavo Dudamel.
© Elena Bauer / OnP
08:50’
Video
A modern mythology
Interview with Valentina Carrasco and Alexander Neef
Why has John Adams' score become a classic? How can it be staged today? The Paris Opera's General Director and the director of Nixon in China discuss the entry of this major score into the repertoire and the artistic choices of the new production presented at the Opéra Bastille.
Video
A presidential couple at the Opera
Interview with Renée Fleming and Thomas Hampson
As Nixon in China enters the repertoire, Renée Fleming and Thomas Hampson, both playing Richard and Pat Nixon for the first time, talk about their roles, the challenges and the importance of John Adams' score.
© Everett Collection/Bridgeman Images
Podcast
Podcast Nixon in China
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