Nixon in China
A Belated and Most Abbreviated Review

Chou and Dick
(Click Image to Zoom In and Out)

Many have commented that the CooperToons website caters to the popular, the rabble, the hoi polloi, nay, even the lowbrow. The author and illustrator needs must have take exception to such claims. The CooperToons website includes the highest levels of culture and art.

As proof we cite the above illustration drawn specificially for the following review. That is, the review of the grand opera Nixon in China by composer Douglas Adams and librettist Alice Goodman.

Nixon in China is an opera about, yes, Nixon in China. For those who have forgotten it, in 1972 President Richard Milhous Nixon traveled to China to begin the process of breaking down the barriers between the two nations which at the time were considered the most bitter of enemies.

The picture is based on the opera's first scene where Nixon and Chinese Prime Minister Chou Enlai meet at the Beijing Airport. If done right the scene - where Nixon's airplane "lands" - is pretty impressive.

The opera's premiere was at Houston in 1987 and was fairly well or at least politely received. The problem was most people didn't quite know what to make of it. But as time has gone on, the opera's popularity has steadily grown. It's since been staged at the Metropolitan Opera in New York and even presented on television where it was hosted by none other than Walter Cronkite. Walter - again for those who may not remember who was once the most trusted man in America - was the television journalist, commentator, and anchor man who did indeed accompany Dick on the trip to China.

But let's be honest. Anyone who first hears about Nixon in China will immediately respond with a loud - well, a loud exclamation of surprise. I mean, c'mon. An opera about Nixon in China? Most viewers, particularly those who have not yet learned opera etiquitte, don't quite know what to do.

First of all the music is not a montage of toe-tappers like Gilbert and Sullivan. So you're not likely to sing the songs at patter parties (certainly not the aria, "I Am the Wife of Mao-Tse-Tung"). Fortunately there was not - as sometimes seems to be the case - a conscicous effort by the composer to make the music sound "modern" - ergo, painful to listen to. Instead, the music is quite good and like in film scores is very much tailored to fit the action. A concert of the music without staging and lyrics, though, would probably not appeal to the general public as do the concerts of Wagner or Bizet.

But then there is the big question that all viewers of serious operas must deal with. At certain points is it all right to laugh?

Certainly. After all, when you see the scene where Henry Kissinger assumes the role of the villain in a ballet written by Mao's wife, what else are you supposed do? Or when Nixon has his famous meeting with Mao (where Mao is led in by his three lady - ah - "secretaries") and suddenly a group of Chinese photographers rush on stage, take the pictures, and zip off, a chuckle is OK. After all, a lot of serious operas have their comic relief as do Shakespeare's tradegies. Then some operas have their unintentional humor. Even now and despite the improvement of special effects in live staging, when Siegfried slays the dragon, the scene still draws giggles.

All in all, Nixon in China is fun to watch and enjoyable, even if you're not an opera buff.

References

Nixon in China, John Adams (music), Alice Goodman (libretto), Walter Cronkite (Presenter), 1987, Great Performances, NPR, 1988.

"L.A. Phil Delivers a Dazzling Reimagining of 'Nixon in China', Richard Ginell, Los Angeles Times, May 4, 2017.

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