\n
![](\"https:\/\/cdn.i-scmp.com\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/1280x720\/public\/d8\/images\/canvas\/2025\/11\/12\/68e2198e-50c6-42cb-94a5-67c004c3fec7_58e50749.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n<\/p>\n
The Monkey King is beloved in Chinese mythology and has appeared in everything from a 16th-century epic to modern comics, animated movies and video games \u2013 even in poetry by Mao Zedong.<\/p>\n
Now, he is the star of an opera.<\/p>\n
The Monkey King<\/em>, with music by Huang Ruo and libretto by David Henry Hwang, has its world premiere at the San Francisco Opera, in the United States, on November 14 with performances through November 30.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s essentially an allegory of how Buddhism came to China,\u201d Hwang said.<\/p>\n His libretto, in both English and Mandarin, is based on the early chapters of the epic, portraying the Monkey King\u2019s birth and daring exploits, as well as his arrogance and pride that lead to his imprisonment for 500 years until he learns humility, compassion and discipline. At the end of the opera, he is finally worthy of accompanying the monk on his journey.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nIt is adapted from Journey to the West<\/em><\/span>, a novel inspired by the true story of a 7th-century Chinese monk who travelled to India to find Buddhist sutras, or scriptures, and brought them back home.<\/div>\n