This year, Italian composer Giacomo Puccini’s famed opera Turandot celebrates the 100th anniversary since its premiere, which was held at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan in April, 1926.
The award-winning KL City Opera (KLCO), in collaboration with the Embassy of Italy in Kuala Lumpur and with support from the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Malaysia, is bringing the epic back in a six-show run at Pentas 1, Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPac) from Oct 17-25.
Marking the opera's long-awaited return to Malaysia after more than two decades, this new staging offers audiences the rare opportunity to experience one of Puccini's greatest masterpieces live on stage.
Renowned for its breathtaking orchestral score, monumental choruses and the iconic tenor aria Nessun Dorma, Turandot remains one of the grandest works in the operatic repertoire.
Under the baton of Italian conductor Alessandro Mazzocchetti, with Bernard Tan as assistant conductor and Amelia Tan as stage director, the production brings together leading Malaysian and international performers, a 50-piece orchestra, and a 70-member chorus comprising the KL City Opera Chorus and Young KL Singers.
Performed in Italian with English and Chinese surtitles, the two-hour performance has been designed to welcome both seasoned opera lovers and audiences discovering opera for the very first time.
When ice meets fire
In opera history books, Turandot is Puccini's final opera, left unfinished at the time of his death from complications due to throat cancer. This production will be presented with Italian composer and pianist Franco Alfano's traditional completed version, the one most frequently performed in opera houses around the world.
“It’s taken us this long to restage Turandot because it’s such a huge and challenging production,” says Danny Chen, KLCO co-founder and executive producer.
“This is KLCO’s largest and most ambitious production to date, so our hope is that this staging of Turandot will inspire both long-time opera enthusiasts and a new generation of audiences to experience the power of live opera,” he adds.
KLCO has already enjoyed a notable year, winning Best Group Performance – Vocal at the Boh Cameronian Awards in May for Mozart’s Don Giovanni. The award recognised its approach to blending Western and local elements, as seen in its reimagining of Don Giovanni, transposing the opera from 17th-century Seville to the glittering towers and shadowed backstreets of contemporary Kuala Lumpur.
Turandot transports local audiences to China. Set in ancient Peking (Beijing), the opera tells the story of the beautiful but icy Princess Turandot, who vehemently vows never to marry.
To dissuade any prince seeking her hand, she issues them a challenge: they must answer three riddles correctly – or face execution.
When a mysterious nameless Prince succeeds in answering her riddles, he offers Turandot one final challenge: if she can discover his name before dawn, he will willingly die. As the city searches through the night for the Prince’s true identity, his sincerity begins to melt Turandot's guarded heart.
Taking on the leading roles are sopranos Cecilia Yap and Eleanor Greenwood as the aloof Turandot and tenors Yap Jin Hin and Gui Foo Chen as the brave Unknown Prince (Prince Calaf).
Rounding out the cast are bass singers Vun Chieh and Mak Chi Hoe as Timur, the deposed King of Tartary, sopranos Yap Zhuo Ling and Ang Mei Foong as the tragically loyal Liu, baritones James Long and Zhang Enrui as Lord Chancellor Ping, tenors Khoo Wu Ji and Jin Junxian as Majordomo Pang, tenors Thompson Yunga and Han Longxi as Pong, head chef of the Imperial Kitchen, tenor Joseph Leow as Emperor Altoum, Turandot’s father, and Wynn Ch’ng as the Mandarin.
A touch of Malaysian opulence
Adding a distinctive visual dimension to the production is KLCO's collaboration with acclaimed Malaysian fashion house Behati, led by founder and designer Kel Wen.
Known for reimagining traditional textiles, cultural motifs and heritage craftsmanship through contemporary fashion, Behati brings its design philosophy to Turandot through both costume design and artistic direction.
Kel Wen shares that opera has always been a huge influence on his fashion sensibilities, particularly the way music, costume and performance all come together to create an entire world.
“One of my ambitions as a fashion designer has always been to realise a complete costume vision for an opera, offering a modern interpretation through a Malaysian lens, particularly through Malay culture," he says.
The opera’s portrayal of imperial China through a Western artistic tradition presented an intriguing starting point for incorporating Malaysian cultural references and exploring how local identity might inform an established international art form.
For this production, Kel Wen envisioned creating a fictional world shaped by the cultural exchanges that define Malaysia.
“Turandot’s headdress captures that vision. Its starting point was the headgear of Mak Yong, which I brought into conversation with the shapes of Chinese opera hats. I also drew inspiration from the silhouette in the original Turandot poster and motifs found in traditional Malay woodcarving,” he explains.
The fashion designer chose an icy blue songket material for the headdress, as it suited the production’s frozen atmosphere, then embellished it with traditional Malay metal ornaments arranged to evoke icicles.
“Each element carries a cultural reference, but together they create something new. In that sense, the headdress introduces the visual world that unfolds throughout the production,” he adds.
Presented in conjunction with the Week of the Italian Language in the World, which is held every third week in October, the production celebrates Italy's rich operatic tradition while reflecting a shared commitment to strengthening cultural exchange between Malaysia and Italy through the performing arts.
KLCO’s Turandot will be staged at Pentas 1, KLPac from Oct 17-25. More info here.
