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The phrase Nixon in China is a historical reference to US President Richard Nixon's visit to see Chairman Mao Zedong, leader of the People's Republic of China in 1972. This visit was of particular significance because it marked a period of renormalization of Sino-American relations. Nixon had a strongly anti-Communist reputation, and so was largely immune from criticism about being "soft on Communism" (from a largely anti-Communist American public) because of his friendliness toward China, an ardently Communist country at the time. The phrase "like Nixon in China" is thus an analogy which refers to the special ability of a hardliner to accomplish something moderate in nature that a moderate figure could not.
Nixon in China is an opera, with music by John Adams and a libretto by Alice Goodman, about the visit of Richard Nixon to Mao Zedong in 1972.
The work was commissioned by the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Houston Grand Opera and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
It premiered at the Houston Grand Opera, October 22, 1987 in a production by Peter Sellers with choreography by Mark Morris.
The opera is comprised of three acts. The first details the anticipation and arrival of the Nixon cortege, and the first meeting and evening in China. The second act shifts focus to Pat Nixon, as she makes tours of rural China, including an encounter at a pig farm. The second scene includes a performance of a traditional play which the six central characters take up parts on the stage, becoming involved in the brutal whipping of a girl. The last act chronicles the last night in China, in which Karl Marx climbs down from his portrait of the great hall and dances with the orchestra.
The opera takes an interesting perspective on the historical meeting by focusing on the personalities and personal histories of the six key players, Pat and Richard Nixon, Chiang Ching and Chairman Mao, and the two close advisors to the two parties, Henry Kissinger and Zhou Enlai.
Musically the opera perhaps owes more influence to 1940's big band jazz dances than any Asian styles,
and John Adams adapted the major foxtrot theme from the last act into a concerto style piece entitled 'The Chairman Dances'.
A recording was made in 1988 with the original cast and the Orchestra of Saint Luke’s conducted by Edo de Waart (Nonesuch 79177). h
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