Interview: Director James Robinson Talks HGO's NIXON IN CHINA

Before the 24 hour news cycle and "I am not a crook" became one of the defining pop culture phrases of the '70s, Richard Nixon went to China, the first time a U.S. president ever visited the People's Republic.

"Most political events that we see these days," says James Robinson, director of Houston Grand Opera's production of John Adams's NIXON IN CHINA, "particularly televised ones, [are] pure theater, and this trip to China that Nixon made, I think, was the second most viewed global event after the moon landing."

The visit, says Robinson, was highly choreographed and carefully coordinated so moments could be recorded and broadcast, manipulating television in a way that is incredibly prophetic for an opera that first premiered in 1986.

"Nixon, during this trip to China, is very concerned about history being made and how many people are watching this event and what it all means," says Robinson.

Sound familiar?

Robinson is quick to point out NIXON IN CHINA is "a heroic opera, meaning it's not parody, it's not satire; it takes all the material quite seriously." He also considers the show a "very American story," partly because of the subject matter, and also because of the music.

The music is "quite jaunty at times" with a lot of dance rhythms. Robinson says it is scored for an orchestra, led by Conductor Robert Spano here in Houston, that includes saxophones and a synthesizer.

The libretto, by Alice Goodman, is far from traditional, and Robinson describes the show more as a theatrical poem, a meditation on Nixon's visit or, simply put, "all theater but no drama." Still, he says, the moments showing the characters retreat from the cameras to talk about their hopes, dreams, aspirations and fears, are quite compelling.

There's one moment in Act 3, as the characters get ready for bed and question whether or not the visit was ultimately good or bad, where they reveal their motivations. Without spoiling it, Robinson says that it still chokes him up, despite directing a dozen productions of NIXON IN CHINA since 2004.

"There's something quite beautiful about [it], because it's before the politics, before anything. It's a much more innocent time, and I find that incredibly moving."

Last chance to see NIXON IN CHINA is tomorrow January 28 at 7:30 p.m. Wortham Theater Center, 500 Texas. For more information, call 713-228-6737 or visit houstongrandopera.org. $15 to $354.