For many years, the Government of the People's Republic of China forbade performance of Turandot because they said it portrayed China and the Chinese unfavorably. [9][10] In the late 1990s they relented, and in September 1998 the opera was performed for eight nights at the Forbidden City, complete with opulent sets and soldiers from the People's Liberation Army as extras. It was an international collaboration, with director Zhang Yimou as choreographer and Zubin Mehta as conductor. The singing roles saw Giovanna Casolla as Princess Turandot, Sergej Larin as Calàf, and Barbara Frittoli as Liù.
As with Madama Butterfly, Puccini strove for a semblance of Asian authenticity (at least to western ears) by using music from the region in question. Up to eight of the themes used in Turandot appear to be based on traditional Chinese music, and the melody of a Chinese song named "Mò Li Hūa (茉莉花)", or "Jasmine", is included as a motif for the princess. [11]
The information about the song "Mò Li Hūa (茉莉花)" is also interesting: Wikipedia,
Video shows scenes from China with Jasmine playing as the background music.
More scenes of China with the song.
