'Nixon in China': an opera with fresh relevance
Paris (AFP) - Opera rarely feels like a topical medium but modern classic "Nixon in China" is growing in popularity and offering a pointed reminder of how much geopolitics has shifted in the past 50 years. It recounts the historic moment in 1972 when US president Richard Nixon travelled to Beijing and established diplomatic ties with Chinese leader Mao Zedong. The irreverent opera received mixed reviews when first performed in 1987 but has since become a beloved part of the canon in the United States. It is increasingly a hit abroad, playing in at least five European opera houses this year...