Cultural and artistic activities have been growing rapidly in this country over the past few years. The Taipei city government, the Executive Yuan's Council for Cultural Planning & Development, the New Aspect Promotion Corporation and other organizations have all had a hand in this effort, which has gradually taken root in our society. In addition to developing the people's art of living, the movement has given artists a chance to compare notes and display their works.

The high point of this year's Art Festival was an opera entitled Turandot, a musical marking the organization's first attempt at performing an opera. In six performances, everyone--actors, chorus, stagehands--combined their best efforts, making considerable progress toward achieving a high level for Western opera in this country.

Turandot is unique among Western plays in that it has a Chinese setting. The love story takes place in an ancient Imperial Court and has "White Jasmine" as its theme song. The Taipei City Symphony Orchestra extended special invitations to overseas Chinese singers Jen Jung, Chu Tai-li, J. Anifantakis, Wu Wen-hsiu and Chu Yu-lan to return and take part in the performance.

Modern opera's greatest playwright, Giacomo Puccini, authored the play, which was still unfinished at his death. The original plot was the work of Corlo Gozzi, an 18th century Venetian poet who had viewed the positive and negative sides of many political marriages. He had also read two famous books on the mysterious East by Marco Polo and Matteo Ricci; all of these experiences he combined to form a children's story.

Puccini had finished only the first scene of Act Ⅲ when he succumbed to throat cancer. Later Franco Alfano, one of his former students, completed the last two scenes of the work, in accordance with what his late master had already written. Though Puccini's dramas retain an Italian opera style, his fascination with the Orient is reflected in the emotions portrayed in Madam Butterfly and Turandot.

Turandot is a gorgeous Chinese princess whose grandmother died after being abducted by foreign invaders. She tries to avenge the crime, using riddles to lure foreign princes into her marital trap. Anyone failing to answer correctly is executed. Later Prince Calaf appears and solves her riddle, but she has a change of heart and refuses to marry him. Liu, one of the Prince's maidservants, helps open the way for the marriage by committing suicide. That was as far as Puccini was able to write before his death. At this point in the play's original debut, Arturo Toscanini, the renowned orchestra conductor, lay down his baton, turned to the audience and pointed this out to them.

The role of Liu is not the principal one, but it does touch the audience deeply. Four actresses--Chu Tai-li, Hsin Yung-hsiu, Fan Yu-wen and Chou Tung-fang-alternated in the part, but the former was acknowledged as the best. Her rendition of the aria "Love is Steadfast" (Act Ⅲ) moved the audience to tears. Chu is a graduate of the Rome College of Music and has appeared professionally in a number of cities throughout Europe.

Prince Calaf's role was shared by Wu Wen-hsiu and J. Anifantakis. The latter has more than ten years' experience to his name; his vocal and acting skills are guaranteed to charm any audience. Jen Jung and Chu Yu- lan alternated in Turandot's role, the hardest of all in that it portrays conflicting emotions (love and hate).

The 60-member Taipei Philharmonic Chorus, along with 20 children singers of the Tun Hwa Children's Choir, rehearsed for three months in advance in order to augment the opera's effect.

Yasuhiko Aguni, at the helm of last year's Carmen performance, directed the entire opera. He said: "The function of a director is to underscore co-ordination among the play's various elements."

One special problem is that although Western operas have been translated successfully into German and Japanese, using a libretto entirely in Chinese makes it difficult for the audience to understand the words, due to the monosyllabic nature of the Chinese language.

In general, the performance is clear evidence that opera in Taiwan has made progress. Except for Japan, no other country can compare with ours, as many of our scholars have studied abroad and are willing to promote higher standards.

[Picture Caption]

Each of them performed admirably: J. Anifantakis as Prince Calaf, Jen Jung as Turandot, Chang Jui-ming as Emperor.

1. J. Anifantakis is an accomplished vocalist as well as an actor. 2. Wu Wen-hsiu and Chu Yu-lan were together in one performance and played the parts of Prince Calaf and Princess Turandot, respectively. 3. Ministers try to dissuade Calaf from falling into Turandot's marital trap. 4. Ping, Pang, Pong, comic roles, dilute the tragedy of the play. 5. Chu Tai-li masterfully portrays the emotional Liu.

More than two hundred extras worked behind the scene to make the production possible. The Taipei Philharmonic Chorus provided the opera chorus. The cast takes a curtain call.

1. J. Anifantakis is an accomplished vocalist as well as an actor.

2. Wu Wen-hsiu and Chu Yu-lan were together in one performance and played the parts of Prince Calaf and Princess Turandot, respectively.

Ministers try to dissuade Calaf from falling into Turandot's marital trap.

4. Ping, Pang, Pong, comic roles, dilute the tragedy of the play.

5. Chu Tai-li masterfully portrays the emotional Liu.

More than two hundred extras worked behind the scene to make the production possible. The Taipei Philharmonic Chorus provided the opera chorus. The cast takes a curtain call.