After more than a decade of planning, the world premiere of The First Emperor by composer Tan Dun staged at the Metropolitan Opera in New York with Placido Domingo singing the title role. 　

The new work by Tan Dun, the winner of an Academy Award and a Grammy for his Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon film score, is one of the hottest tickets this season at New York's Metropolitan Opera. It has sold out its nine-performance run through January 25. 　

In addition to boasting music by this Chinese-born, New York-based composer, The First Emperor has one of the biggest opera stars in the business heading the cast. 　

Placido Domingo sings the title role of Qinshihuang, the man who built the Great Wall and thought he could unify China for "a thousand generations." 　

The production team boasts another Academy Award-winner, costume designer Emi Wada, and director Zhang Yimou, who also teamed with Tan in the 2002 movie Hero.　

After the premiere, tenor Domingo excitedly told China's portal website Sina.com on phone that he planned to present the opera to Beijing audiences before 2008.

(CRI December 25, 2006)