The Turandot Project

Miller captures an unprecedented collaboration that bridges continents and breaks cultural barriers to bring Puccini's opera to life.

"A must-see for opera lovers and a snappy diversion for cinephiles--The Turandot Project is the next best thing to being backstage."--The Village Voice

The Turandot Project began in 1997, when filmmaker Allan Miller began chronicling an unprecedented cross-cultural collaboration: world-renowned, Bombay-born conductor Zubin Mehta joining forces with Chinese film director Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, Ju Dou) to produce a stage version of Puccini's last opera, Turandot, in Italy.

Before the year was out, the project became even more historic, as Zhang and Mehta obtained government permission to bring their exquisite production to the Forbidden City in Beijing. A riveting inside look at the nature of theatrical collaboration, the film is also a unique study of the vicissitudes of staging and production. By the time the opera is staged in Beijing, it's been completely executed in Ming Dynasty traditions. (84 mins.)