"Empress Sissi," performed in English with Chinese subtitles, is an authentic Austrian show.

With the world in a financial downturn this festive season, Shanghai Oriental Art Center is hoping to cheer people up by staging two "happy" shows: a Chinese-Italian opera "The Marriage of Figaro" and an original Austrian musical "Empress Sissi."

A host of real-life brides and bridegrooms will get married in the latest version of Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro" on December 23.

"They will walk from their seats in the audience to join an aristocratic wedding on stage during Act Three," says the opera's Chinese director Li Wei, from Shanghai Opera House. "They will act with the opera singers for 15 minutes on stage and it will be an unforgettable wedding ceremony."

Unlike Japanese conductor Seiji Ozawa's classic version of "Figaro" last year, also at the art center, this is a self-funded, revolutionary production which includes English and Chinese content to make it easier for the audience to understand.

"They have maintained Mozart's music and Italian arias but removed some long recitatives to make it tighter for audiences of today," says local music critic Wang Shu, who has watched the show previously.

Although following the original storyline, most of the opera is set in a modern China with performers wearing modern costumes and singing about the price of real estates and pork meat.

American baritone Brian Montgomery will play the count with Chinese baritone Shi Heng playing Figaro. Music will be provided by Shanghai Sinfonietta, conducted by Chinese pianist/conductor Xu Zhong.

"It's a very bold, interesting version of this classic opera, showing the characteristics of the director. Traditional opera houses rarely attempted this kind of creation," says Wang. "I especially adore the creative use of Chinese male falsetto Xiao Ma, whose part was usually played by a mezzo-soprano in traditional versions."

"Empress Sissi," performed in English with Chinese subtitles, is in every way an authentic Austrian show.

Settings include the romantic wilds of the Salzkammergut mountains, the Hungarian Puzta, the baroque park of the famous Austrian imperial palace of Schnbrunn and Possenhofen castle in Bavaria, the childhood home of this famed, beautiful empress of Austria.

Austrian composer Georg Stampfer wrote the music which evokes memories of Schubert, Haydn, Beethoven, Brahms and Strauss.

The 135-minute show also features 90 costumes which have been created from designs by traditional Viennese tailors.

Most of the cast are also among Austria's leading musical performers.

Although the real Express Sissi suffered health problems and lost many relatives and friends before finally being assassinated in Geneva in 1898, the musical captures only the most glorious part of her life.

"The Marriage of Figaro"

Date: December 23, 7:30pm

Tickets: 100-680 yuan

"Express Sissi"

Date: January 6-11, 7:15pm; January 10-11, 2pm

Tickets: 180-880 yuan

Address: 425 Dingxiang Rd, Pudong, Shanghai

Tel: 6854-1234

(Shanghai Daily December 5, 2008)