Today will see the debut overseas performance by a North Korean art troupe of the opera ‘Liangshanbo and Zhuyingtai’ in Dongfang Grand Theatre in Changchun, Jilin, Chinese news agency Xinhua reported on the 24th.
The performance is part of a tour being undertaken by the ‘Sea of Blood Opera Troupe’ at the invitation of the Chinese Ministry of Culture. Around 180 members of the troupe, which is led by Vice Director of the Propaganda and Agitation Department Kwon Hyuk Bong, arrived in Dandong on the 21st by train.
The troupe will go on to perform the opera, a Chinese classic otherwise known as ‘Liang Zhu’ or ‘Butterfly Lovers’ but which has been reinterpreted ‘in the North Korean way’, in Shiji Opera Theatre, Beijing from November 10th to 13th, then nationwide until January next year.
The North Korean interpretation was produced at Kim Jong Il’s instruction, and has been performed around 190 times in Pyongyang since its debut on October 24th, 2010. Chinese staff are to provide the North with costumes and equipment for free, and are assisting North Korean staff with stage management.
The opera is seen as a symbol of friendship between the two countries, with Chinese high officials taken to watch it whenever they visit North Korea.
‘Sea of Blood Opera Troupe’ previously performed ‘Hongloumeng’, an opera based on a Chinese old novel, in 13 cities over two months last year.
