“The meeting of Nixon and Mao is a mythological moment in world history, particularly American history. All of my operas have dealt on deep psychological levels with our American mythology,” says Adams.
The first act includes the presidential landing in Beijing and an enigmatic meeting with Chairman Mao (sung by Robert Brubaker and backed by a trio of singers who were dubbed the 'Maoettes' in the first production) and climaxes with an escalating series of public toasts between the Americans and the Chinese. The women come to the fore in the second act, which starts with Pat Nixon, played by Janis Kelly, on an official tour of Chinese sites. In stark contrast to the First Lady’s lady-like deportment, the formidable Madame Mao (Kathleen Kim) presides over the evening’s entertainment.
The third act is the most unconventional in structure and tone. Here the opera takes a remarkable turn inward, as the main characters begin to face their own mortality, and reflect — in intimate dialogues and monologues — on their respective pasts with an increasingly elegiac sense of regret.
Nixon in China is one of seven forthcoming operas to be featured in the 4
th season of Opera at Cinema Nouveau. Other operas to be seen include:
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Gluck’s Iphigénie en Tauride on 25 March,
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Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor on 8 April,
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Rossini’s Le Comte Ory on 6 May,
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Strauss’s Capriccio on 20 May,
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Verdi’s Il Trovatore on 27 May and
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Wagner’s Die Walküre on 10 June.
For more information on Opera at Cinema Nouveau, visit
www.sterkinekor.com.