On Friday night, San Francisco got the world’s very first look at an opera destined to become a modern classic.

Huang Ruo and David Henry Hwang’s The Monkey King is a dazzling, gorgeous work of art that balances the joy of young mischievousness with the weight of old wisdom. Its costumes and set pieces are a feast for the eyes, augmented by a rich, meditative score and captivating performances. I cannot say enough good things about it. If you want just the three-word summary, it’s this: go, go, go.

Directed by Diane Paulus, and commissioned jointly by San Francisco Opera and the Chinese Heritage Foundation of Minnesota, this is an opera that’s both invigorating and accessible. Sung almost entirely in English, and based on a portion of the 16th Century Chinese novel Journey to the

See Full Page