Last night I had the pleasure of going to see the opera ‘Monkey: Journey to the West’. The opera is a stage adaptation of the 16th Century Chinese novel ‘Journey to the West’, by Wu Cheng’en.

The project was conceived and created by the Chinese actor and director Chen Shi-zheng, together with the British musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett. This is the first piece of work between Albarn and Hewlett, since they collaborated together on Gorillaz, the most successful virtual band ever created.

The opera combines the music composed by Albarn, animation, set and costumes designed by Hewlett and the circus style performances of the talented cast. It brings together many different styles – pop and classical, Western and Eastern.

The opera was performed at ‘Monkey’s World’, a specially designed theatre, built just outside the O2. The arena features a restaurant, bar and even a Chinese foot massage parlour, giving people the opportunity to “start the journey” before the performance has even begun.

You may also remember the characters from the opera being used in an animation sequence titled ‘Journey to the East’ which was used by the BBC to introduce coverage of the 2008 Summer Olympics, held in Beijing.

It was a dazzling spectacle, with brilliant music, breathtaking imagery and daring performances.

To learn more about the opera and get a synopsis of the story, visit: www.monkeyjourneytothewest.com