July 3 & 4 2026
Suntory Hall 40th Anniversary Programme
Daiwa House Special
Hall Opera®
Tan Dun: Tea: A Mirror of Soul
(Opera in 3 acts / Sung in English with Japanese & English surtitles)
" ... a fascinating blend of East and West, religion and drama, love and death."
- Michael Davidson, Opera
Suntory Hall presents Hall Opera® Tan Dun’s Tea: A Mirror of Soul in a new production by artists from Japan and China.
The opera, originally commissioned by Suntory Hall, was premiered in 2002, and has since been performed worldwide.
Set in Tang Dynasty China, it is a tragic love story centered on a journey in search of The Book of Tea, a sacred Chinese text on the way of tea.
Fusing Eastern philosophy with Western musical language, Tan Dun uses sounds of water, paper, ceramic and stone create a unique sonic world.
Conducted by Tan himself, the dazzling work will be performed by the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra.
Presented by Suntory Hall
Suntory Hall 40th Anniversary Programme
Supported by Daiwa House Industry Co., Ltd.
Supported by Japan-China Cultural Exchange Association
Composer Tan Dun
Libretto Tan Dun, Xu Ying (Translation into English Diana Liao)
■Date & Booking
Fri, JUL 3 | 19:00 (Doors open: 18:20) ► Booking
Sat, JUL 4 | 17:00 (Doors open 16:20) ► Booking
■Running time
The performance lasts approximately 2 hours 15 minutes, including 1 intermission
■Language
Sung in English with Japanese and English surtitles.
■Creatives
Conductor Tan Dun
Stage Director Sherwood Hu
Costume Designer Kumi Sakurai
Stage Manager Jun Kabakura (Art Creation Co, Ltd.)
■Cast, Performers
Seikyo (Japanese Monk) ･･･discovery/philosophy
Zhengzhong Zhou, Baritone
Lan (Chinese Princess) ･･･love
Lucy Fitz Gibbon, Soprano
Prince ･･･anger
Motoki Ishii, Tenor
Emperor ･･･tradition/culture
Apollo Wong, Bass
Lu (Daughter of Tea Sage Luyu) ･･･tea/messenger for spirit
Ying Deng, Mezzo-Soprano
Monks chanting ･･･religion
New National Theatre Chorus
Three Percussionists ･･･nature
Chenchu Rong / Tamao Inano / Yoshiko Kanda
Orchestra ･･･drama
Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra
Motoki Ishii / Apollo Wong / Ying Deng
— Synopsis —
Act I
Kyoto, Japan. Ancient times. Japanese tea ceremony inside a temple tea garden. High monk Seikyo raises an empty teapot, passes an empty bowl, and savors empty tea ritualistically. Chanting monks ask why he savors the tea from emptiness. Seikyo, a Prince by birth, relates that ten years ago he became a monk because of his bitter love...
Ten years earlier. ChangAn, ancient Chinese capital. Family bliss inside the palace. Beautiful Princess Lan and her brother the Prince perform for their father. Seikyo enters and the Emperor receives him with surprise. They speak of fond memories. Seikyo expresses his wish to marry Lan. The Emperor hesitates, and asks Seikyo to recite a tea poem. The Prince angrily expresses his disapproval. Seikyo's excellence at reciting leads the Emperor to consent.
Amidst a Chinese tea ceremony, a Persian arrives, offering a thousand horses in exchange for one book: The Book of Tea. Treasured secrets fill this book of wisdom. The Prince, who possesses this book, reluctantly retrieves it from his sleeve. Seikyo expresses doubt that this is the true book shown him by its author, his teacher the Tea Sage Luyu. Angry and jealous, the Prince challenges Seikyo; vowing to sacrifice his own life if Seikyo can show him the "real" Book of Tea. Seikyo promises to end his life if proven wrong.
Act II
Seikyo and Lan travel south in search of the true Book of Tea. Lan acquaints Seikyo with the legend of how tea was invented thousands of years ago. On the journey their love blossoms.
Act III
In the South, Seikyo and Lan arrive during a ritual tea ceremony, offered by Lu, daughter of Tea Sage Luyu. Lu announces Luyu's death. She consents to give Seikyo and Lan the Book of Tea on the condition that they vow to spread its wisdom throughout the world. As they read, the Prince bursts in and grabs it. A fight erupts between Seikyo and the Prince. Attempting to stop the duel, Lan is mortally wounded. Covered in blood, Lan drinks the tea of emptiness. The Prince kneels before Seikyo, presenting his sword. Instead of killing the Prince, Seikyo slices off his own hair...
The chanting of monks returns... In a Japanese tea garden, high monk Seikyo raises the empty teapot, passes the empty tea bowls, and savors the empty tea.
