Last year Zhang, the Oscar-nominated director of Raise the Red Lantern and Keep Cool, freely conceded his qualms at tackling opera--a genre he knew only in the bastardizations of Cultural Revolution agitprop. But the choice turned out to be inspired.

• 去年因执导《大红灯笼高高挂》和《有话好好说》而获奥斯卡提名的张导，坦言他对染指歌剧（这种只道是当初泛滥于文革的宣传鼓动形式）的疑虑，但他的这一选择却受到人们的激励。