Liao Changyong (left) and Huang Ying perform a scene from Chinese opera Spring River on Friday at the Shanghai Grand Theatre in Shanghai. Photo: Xu Liuliu/GT

There is probably no better choice for opening one of Shanghai's biggest international events than with an opera full of Shanghainese flavor. Chinese opera Spring River, an adaption of the 1940s film A Spring River Flows East, helped raise the curtain on the month-long Shanghai International Arts Festival on Friday night in the Shanghai Grand Theatre.

Compared to the original movie, the opera version places more focus on its dramatic plot and musical numbers to carry the show. The latest collaboration between musician Zhou Xiaoyan's studio and the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, the four-act opera is the first part of what is being called the Shanghai trilogy series, with operas Family and Sunrise making up the second and third parts respectively.

Not only the music, but the stage design has also been warmly welcomed by audiences. Set in three cities that lie along the Yangtze river, Wuhan, Chongqing and Shanghai, several landmarks from each location" have been painstakingly recreated as part of the stage set.

The international arts festival will stage 45 performances in various theaters in the city, as well as hold many public activities such as community performances, college lectures and master classes. It's been estimated that more than 5 million people will be involved in the festival, which is scheduled to end November 16.

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