(China Daily) |
A young woman in ancient China disguises herself as a man so that she can be enrolled in school. She meets a classmate and falls in love with him, but cannot bring herself to divulge her secret. In Mao's retelling, the shift of the male lead's friendship into romantic love has been made less sudden and more logical.
"If we had followed the original production, today's young audiences would read his feelings for her as homosexual sentiments as, for a long time, he did not know her true gender," Mao notes.
While retaining the best-known arias, Mao tinkered with many musical passages to find the best expression for the drama. She even borrowed the theme from the violin concerto version, which was inspired by Yue Opera in the first place, for a heart-achingly lyrical moment.