On the Westside East meets West
Music and vocal theater inspired by tales from ancient China “Book of Mountains and Seas” at BroadStage by Bondo Wyszpolski Composer-librettist Huang Ruo. Photo by Wenjun Miakoda LiangComposer and librettist Huang Ruo reached all the way back to China’s Qin dynasty in the fourth century B.C. and selected four mythical stories from “Book of Mountains and Seas.” He then created a score for 12 vocalists and two percussionists while collaborating with director, production designer, and puppetmaster Basil Twist to create an enchanting performance of choral theater that also includes half a dozen puppeteers. While drawing from the past, Huang Ruo’s interpretation of the tales is clearly from a 21st century perspective. Even so, because of the setting, the choir that is more reminiscent of chanting by medieval monks, and the narration (partly in Mandarin and partly in a fabricated language to mimic or accompany the music), the work defies a contemporary feel. The performance, which opened Wednesday at BroadStage in Santa Monica, and encores this Friday and Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon, is roughly 80 minutes in length without an intermission. The vignettes seem to be about equal…
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