13^th May 2004 Carl-Orff-Saal, Gasteig, Munich and  20th May 2004 Hebbel am Ufer, Berlin

The Test

opera in one act by Qu Xiao-song (*1952)

Libretto by Wu Lan and Qu Xiao-song
Based on the Chinese traditional theatrical story "Zhuang Zhou Tests His Wife"

First performance: 2004, München (Commissioned by the City of Munich for the Münchener Biennale)

Musical Director
Stage Director
Set Design

Zhuang Zhou / storyteller (Bass)
Fanning woman / Zhuang Zhou's wife, Madame Tian/ storyteller (Soprano)
Prince of Chu / storyteller (Kunqu young male role)
Shaman (Qin Qiang red-face role)
Yama, King of the nether world 
The skeletons / funeral group

Gong Dong-jian

Wu Bixia
Shi Xiao-mei
Kang Jian-hai
acted by the conductor
acted by the musicians of the orchestra

Orchestra of the Zeitgenössische Oper Berlin

In May, 2001, we produced the chamber opera „Life on a string“ by the Chinese composer Qu Xiao-song. As a result of the overwhelming success of this production the Münchener Biennale, International Festival for new Music Theater, asked Qu Xiao-song to compose a new opera to be produced by the Zeitgenössische Oper Berlin.

In his new opus Qu Xiao-song again has recourse to a classical opera content. The main character in this ancient Chinese parable is Zhuang Zhou, who lived from 369 to 286 B.C. and is, next to Lao Tse, one of the most important protagonists of the Taoist philosophical school. While putting traditional Chinese performers into action, Qu joins different elements of the Chinese and Western opera tradition in a most fascinating manner in both form and style.

On his way home the itinerant story teller Zhuan Zhou loses his way and finds himself in the realm of the dead. Its king tells him, however, that he has not yet forfeited his life. The king asks him whether he is ready for enlightenment. Zhuang Zhou doesn’t know. The skeletons in the realm incite him to try.

In the role of the story teller Zhuang Zhou begins to talk. Returning from a long voyage one day, he observes a young woman at a cemetary kneeling in front of a grave, waving a fan at it. Curious, Zhuang Zhou asks for the reasons is for her conduct. The woman tells him that her husband has recently died and that she was allowed to remarry only after his grave has dried up. She says that in her insupportable loneliness she wants to accelerate the drying of the grave. Amazed at this unfaithfulness Zhuang Zhou asks himself if all women would act like this. He decides to test his wife Tian...

Co-production with the Münchener Biennale and the Hebbel am Ufer, Berlin - financed by the Federal Cultural Foundation, Germany, the Ministry for Science, Research and Culture, Berlin – with support of the Berlin Artists-in-Residence program of the DAAD

review by Münchener Merkur

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