[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

On her way to a concert performance in Spain in November, Chinese soprano He Hui learned in Rome, where she stopped for a flight change, that all theaters were closed in Spain because of the COVID-19 outbreak.

She made a prompt decision and purchased a ticket to China. It was a direct flight from Madrid to Xi’an in Northwest China’s Shaanxi province, but she had to wait a whole week before the plane took off. Once she landed in Xi’an, she spent the first two weeks quarantining in a designated hotel, followed by another two weeks’ stay in at-home quarantine.

After two tests for COVID-19 and five weeks, “I was ready to sing for my audiences in China,” she said. He presented her first proper concert performance on Dec 18 in Zhuhai, South China’s Guangdong province. On Christmas Eve, she will make her Shanghai Concert Hall debut show, presenting a recital of opera arias from her most celebrated Verisimo Opera repertoire, such as Madame Butterfly and Tosca.

She also will sing two Chinese art songs, which she chose because they “would show the characteristic of my voice, and express my love and feelings for the motherland,” she said.

“I used to have a very busy performing schedule, and I was quite exhausted before the pandemic, and then I got a complete rest,” she said.

The lockdown and suspension of live show industries gave her an opportunity to readjust and polish her skills. “I hope to show audiences the result from this special period,” she said.

Arguably the most successful Chinese soprano in the world opera scene for more than 20 years, He made her first breakthrough at the Shanghai Grand Theatre in 1998, as the first Chinese soprano to play the title character in Aida. Since 2002, when she made a breakout performance in the title role in Puccini’s Tosca at the Teatro Regio in Parma, He has sung at most of the world’s leading theaters, including the Metropolitan Opera, Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Opera Bastille in Paris and Arena di Verona.