Stage Direction
Starting in the 1990s, Zhang Yimou has been directing stage productions in parallel with his film career.
In 1998, he directed an acclaimed version of Puccini's opera Turandot, firstly in Florence and then later at the Forbidden City, Beijing, with Zubin Mehta conducting. He reprised his version of Turandot in October 2009, at the Bird's Nest Stadium in Beijing, and plans to tour with the production in Europe, Asia and Australia in 2010.
In 2001, Zhang adapted his 1991 film Raise the Red Lantern for the stage, directing a ballet version.
Zhang has co-directed a number of outdoor folk musicals under the title Impression. These include Impression, Liu Sanjie, which opened in August 2003 at the Li River, Guangxi province; Impression Lijiang, in June 2006 at the foot of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in Lijiang, Yunnan province; Impression West Lake, in late 2007 at the West Lake in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province; Impression Hainan in late 2009, set in Hainan Island; and Impression Dahongpao set on Mount Wuyi, in Fujian province. All five performances were co-directed by Wang Chaoge and Fan Yue.
Zhang also led the production of Tan Dun's opera, The First Emperor, which had its world premiere at the Metropolitan Opera on 21 December 2006.
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