Zou Jingzhi, librettist

Born in 1952, Zou Jingzhi is a poet and novelist. His writings, poems, essays, novels, plays, have received several awards in China. Some are translated into English, Japanese, and Spanish.

Yi Liming, set design

Born in 1963, Yi Liming has taken part in over one hundred productions. From opera to dance to modern experimental theater, his lighting and set designs have been seen not only in China, but also in New York, Berlin, London, Paris, Rome and Berlin. A 1989 graduate of the Central Academy of Dramatic Art, Yi Liming is Head of Lighting at the Peking Peoples Art Theatre. In two prior collaborations with director Chen Shi-Zheng, he designed lights and sets for The Peony Pavilion (1999) and Dido and Aeneas (2001). In January of 2001, he realised the scenography for Richard III in Peking.

Jean Kalman, lighting design

Jean Kalman has designed for numerous theaters throughout France, Italy, Great Britain, Holland, the United States and Japan, most notably for the opera houses of Paris, Lyon, Amsterdam, London, Munich, Venice, Chicago and New York, as well as for the festivals of Aix-en-Provence, Glyndebourne, Saito Kinen and Maggio Musicale, and for the Royal Shakespeare Company. He is a frequent collaborator of such directors as Peter Brook, Pierre Audi, Richard Eyre, Deborah Warner, Robert Carsen and Lev Dodin. Additionally, he has taken part in installations and theatre pieces created by Christian Boltanski, Heiner Goebbels and Ilya Kabakov.

Cheng Shuyi, costume design

Born in Suzhou in 1963, Cheng Shuyi studied embroidery at Suzhou's School of Arts and Crafts (1982), and costume design in the Decorative Arts Department of the Central Academy of Dramatic Art in China where she now teaches. Her work has been well received at the Festival d'Automne à Paris, the Festival of Brussels, and the Tokyo Festival. She designed costumes for Chen Shi-Zheng's productions of Peony Pavilion (1999) and Dido and Aeneas (2001).

Maeve Fiona Butler, assistant director

Maeve Fiona Butler made her directorial debut with Don Giovanni at the Caramoor Center in 1998. She returned to stage Handel's Amadigi, also designing sets and costumes. Most recently, she produced and directed the American premiere of Antonio Vivaldi's La Griselda. Engagements as assistant director include productions with the Teatri Comunali of Bologna and Ferrara, Vanessa Redgrave's Antony and Cleopatra and Corin Redgrave's Julius Caesar (London, European tour, Houston) Chen Shi-Zheng's Dido and Aeneas (Spoleto Festival U.S.A.) and a long term association with Meredith Monk.

Performers

Ed Spanjaard, conductor

Born in Haarlem in 1948, Ed Spanjaard studied piano and conducting in Amsterdam and London. On the coaching staff at Covent Garden in 1973, assistant to Haitink, to Karajan in Salzburg and to Solti at Bayreuth, he became a member of the Royal Opera Covent Garden in London, going on to conduct the major European orchestras and ensembles Klanforum Wien, Ensemble Intercontemporain, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and the London Philharmonic Orchestra. As a pianist, he has performed with Elisabeth Soderstrom, Frederica von Stade and Elly Ameling. Regularly invited to take part in the festivals of Varsovie, Vienna and Witten, Ed Spanjaard conducted the premieres of operas by Guo Wenjing (The Wolfcub's Village), Qu Xiaosong (The Death of Oedipus) and Donatoni (Alfred, Alfred). He is musical director of the Nieuw Ensemble, Principal Conductor and Artistic Director of the Limburg Symphony Orchestra. Since 1992, in collaboration with the Nieuw Ensemble and its artistic director, Joel Bons, he has led the discovery of contemporary Chinese composers.

Johannes Debus, conductor, repetiteur

Born in 1974, Johannes Debus studied conducting, musicology and philosophy in Hambourg from 1993-1998. Coach, assistant conductor and later Kappellmeister at the Frankfurt Opera, his conducting engagements include The Magic Flute, La Traviata, Hansel and Gretel and Boulevard Solitude. His interest in contemporary music has led to collaborations with Ensemble Modern and Musikfabrik NRW, as well as with Bernhard Kontarsky, Markus Stenz and Ed Spanjaard as part of the series Klanfiguren in Francfort. In 2002, Johannes Debus will conduct Luciano Berio's Un re in ascolto and the premiere of Salvatore Sciarrino's Macbeth at the Festival of Schwetzingen.

Wu Man, solo pipa

Born in Hangzhou, Wu Man began performing professionally at the age of ten. In 1977, she enrolled at the Peking Central Conservatory where she studied with Liu Dehai and Lin Shicheng, master of the Pudong School of pipa. Upon leaving China, she established her home in Massachusetts. She has premiered Tan Dun's Ghost Opera, numerous concertos for pipa by such composers as Bright Sheng, Lou Harrison, as well as works by Bun-Chung Lam and Zhou Long. An artist of international reknown, she received the 1999 Glenn Gould award, and has collaborated with such conductors as Christoph Eschenbach, Dennis Russell Davies and Esa-Pekka Salonen. She performed with Yo-Yo Ma, and with the Kronos Quartet.

Jiang Qihu, countertenor (Li Yu)

Born in 1963 in the Jiangsu province, Jiang Qihu studied at Peking's Central Institute of Theatre, receiving his degree in 1985. A member of the principal Troupe of the Peking Opera, Actor of the First Class, he is a specialist in roles of xiaosheng (young men). In 1996, he took part in the Peking premiere of Chen Shi-Zheng's The Bacchae. In 1997, he performed in Ong Keng Sen's adaptation of Shakespeare's Lear and toured to Singapour, Malayasia, Indonesia, Thailand and Japan. In Peking in 2001, Jiang Qihu appeared in Manjianghong, a Chinese opera based on a well-known, ancient patriotic poem.

Gong Dongjian, bass (Han Xizai)

Recipient of international prizes in the USA, Italy and Russia, Gong Dongjian studied with Nicola Rossi-Lemeni at the University of Indiana. An interpreter of Mozart, Beethoven, Rossini, Wagner, Puccini and especially Verdi, he has appeared on opera stages in Berlin, Brussels, Dallas, Lyon, Mexico, New York, Seattle, Séville, Vancouver and Vienna. In 1993, he took part in the premiere of Carlos Santos's Asdrúbila and sang Kublai Khan in Tan Dun's Marco Polo. Gong Dongjian premiered Life on a String by Qu Xiaosong, a 1998 coproduction of the Kunsten-Festivaldes/Brussels and the Festival d'Automne à Paris.

You Hongfei, soprano (Hongzhu)

Born in 1971, You Hongfei entered the Conservatory of Music in China in 1991, receiving her diploma in 1996. Winner of several competitions, most notably in China (First Chinese Vocal Competion, 2000) and in Korea (Spring Festival of the Arts, 1999), since 1996, she has been a member of the National Opera of China. In 2000, she performed the role of Violetta in Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata, and took part in a benefit concert in concert for the fight against AIDS. In April 2001, she made her debut as Leonora in Giuseppe Verdi's Il Trovatore.

Fan Jingma, tenor (Gu Hongzhong)

Winner of many international competitions (Cardiff International Vocal Competion, Rosa Ponelle International Competion, New York Opera Competion), Fan Jingma performs in the United States, Europe, Asia and Africa. His repertory includes the title roles in Gounod's Faust and Verdi's Don Carlo, as well as Lenski in Eugene Oneguin, Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Ramiro in La Cenerentola, Don Ottavio in Mozart's Don Giovanni, Don José in Carmen and Rodolfo in La Bohème. He has appeared as Alfredo in La Traviata. In 1997, he starred in Frédéric Mitterand's film of Madame Butterfly.

Chen Yanlei, baritone (Zhou Wenju)

Born in Peking in 1969, Chen Yanlei began his vocal studies in 1990 with Elisabeth Lachmann in Dortmund. Beginning in 1992, he continued his training with Ms. Lachmann at the Musikhoschule Detmold, graduating in 1998. In conjunction with his studies, Chen Yanlei was seen in concert throughout Europe. In 1995, he was awarded a grant from the Richard Wagner Society. Since 1998, he has been a member of the Francfort Opera.

Makuuchi Tomoko, coloratura soprano (a Concubine)

Born in Kumamoto (Japan), Tomoko Makuuchi began her musical studies in the United States at the age of four. In 1996, she became a student of Henny Diemer at the Conservatory of Utrecht and participated in masterclasses given by Victoria de los Angeles and Dawn Upshaw at the Concertgebouw. Winner of the 1997 Netherlands Competition for Young Artists, she has performed Susanna (The Marriage of Figaro), Despina (Così Fan Tutte), Belinda (Dido and Aeneas), as well as taking part in Pli selon Pli by Boulez, and the premiere of Caroline Ansink's Libe Monstren. In 2001, she performed at the Théâtre du Châtelet in La Femme silencieuse and Falstaff.

Qian Yi

Qian Yi studied for eight years with the Kunju masters of the Shanghai Opera School. Famed for her performances in The Legend of the White Serpent and in scenes from Tang Xianzu's Peony Pavilion, she appeared in theatres throughout China, becoming celebrated for the beauty of her voice and scenic presence. She was awarded the title of National Best Young Kunju Actress by the Chinese Minister of Culture. Qian Yi has made numerous appearances in the starring role of Du Liniang in The Peony Pavilion, in nineteen hours, directed by Chen Shi-Zheng. In 2001, she made her English language debut in Chen Shi-Zheng's workshop of Ji Junxiang's The Orphan of Zhao, produced by Lincoln Center Theatre. The production's premiere will take place in New York in the summer of 2002.

Song Yang

Born in Liaoning in 1969, Song Yang studied at the chinese Opera School of Fuxuen, where she specialized in the daomadan (warrior) roles, before becoming herself a teacher at the Academy of Traditional Opera in China. Named
best professor of the School of Opera in Peking, and recipient of numerous national prizes, Song Yang appeared with various troupes such as the Peking Opera Company in China, Japan and Europe, and performed more than ten roles, chief among them Madame Du, in The Peony Pavilion, directed by Chen Shi-Zheng.

Shan Jing

Born in Liaoning in 1974, Shan Jing studied at the Chinese Opera School of Jingchen (1985-1989) where he specialized in chou (clown) roles. He performed with the Jing-Chou Chinese Opera Company, before continuing his studies at the Peking Academy of Traditional Opera where, a 1997 graduate, he currently teaches. Shan Jing has also collaborated on several plays with Japanese artists and held a dozen roles, among them that of the Tutor, in Chen ShiiZheng's production of The Peony Pavilion.

Wang Yuqing

Born in Peking in 1962, Wang Yuqing studied at the Peking Academy of Chinese Opera with masters Sun Shengwen, Zhao Rongjin and Zhang Hongxiang. Specializing in hualian, or painted face, roles, he rejoined the National Peking Opera Company and performed in Great Britain, Holland, Spain, Greece, Austria, Taiwan and Japan. He worked with the great masters of Chinese theatre and performed fifteen roles, among them those of Dame Li and the Infernal Judge, in Chen Shi-Zheng's production of The Peony Pavilion.

Ensemble Modern

photography D.R.

The Ensemble Modern presented its debut concert on October 30, 1980 in Cologne. Counting as its members nineteen musicians of seven nationalities, the Ensemble is particularly noted for its interpretations of 20th century music and makes regular appearances with the Alte Oper of Francfort, the Berlin Philharmonic and the Vienna Konzerthaus, as well as at the major European festivals. On tour, the Ensemble demonstrates its commitment to 20th century music and to avant-garde composition. Known for their premieres of numerous works, as well as for their seminars and workshops, Ensemble Modern has collaborated on many theatrical, dance and film projects, recorded Feldman, Henze, Holliger, Kurtág, Nancarrow and Nono, and worked in close collaboration with Lachenmann, Rihm and Stockhausen. The Ensemble's members study roughly seventy new works each year Based in Francfort, where since 1993 it has produced the series Happy New Ears, Ensemble Modern survives largely thanks to private donations and boxoffice earnings. As members of an autonomous organization, the Ensemble's musicians make decisions collectively as to repertory and artistic direction. In 2000, in celebration of its 20th anniversary, the Ensemble collaborated with the town of Francfort to commission ten new works from composers of the younger generation. After performances of Guo Wenjing's Ye Yan / The Night Banquet in Paris, Berlin, Brussels and New York, the Ensemble will participate in the series Klanfiguren, at the Francfort Opera, as well as performing Nacht by George Haas and presenting the German premiere of Salvatore Sciarrino of Macbeth. In May of 2002, the orchestra embarks on an extensive European tour of Three Tales, a new opera by Steve Reich and Beryl Korot (video). The Ensemble Modern is sponsored by Kulturstiftung of Länder, the Fondation GEMA, the GVL, town of Francfort, by the Land of Hesse and by the Federal Minister of the Interior.