The year 2025 marks the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Italy. The Italian musical The Divine Comedy Musical, adapted from the renowned work by Italian poet Dante Alighieri, will tour China for the first time, with 57 performances across 15 cities nationwide. The Beijing leg of the tour will be staged at Century Theater from July 31 to August 3. On April 21, a national press conference for the tour was held in Beijing, where members of the renowned Chinese children's choir "WeDo" shared the stage with Italian performers. Together, they presented captivating musical excerpts from the show in both Italian and Chinese, including the Chinese songs Jasmine Flower and What the World Has Given Me.
A Sensation in Italy with Sold-Out Performances
Seven centuries ago, Dante's epic poem The Divine Comedy opened the doors to the European Renaissance and became a pinnacle in world literary history. The Divine Comedy Musical is the first musical interpretation of this literary masterpiece and has been honored with the Dante Alighieri Society Gold Award and two Persephone Awards. It was a sensational success in Italy, with every performance selling out.
The musical is structured in three acts—Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso—and fuses rock, pop, and opera to recreate Dante's philosophical world with a rich musical language. The cast features a new generation of powerful Italian vocalists, each known for their golden-toned voices and emotional intensity. In addition to eight acclaimed Italian singers, the production includes 14 dancers and acrobats, over 200 sets of stage costumes, and more than 70 3D scenes created through advanced lighting and projection technology. With original music by renowned composer Marco Frisina, the audience is transported into the immersive spiritual journey of Dante.
Director Andrea Ortis stated that The Divine Comedy Musical offers a brilliant interpretation of the classical literary masterpiece through an extraordinary performance combining music, dance, and cutting-edge digital technology. In this theatrical journey where music and technology form the narrative core, every audience member can understand and appreciate the work of this great poet.
Chinese Children and Italian Actors Perform Together
At the press conference, eight top Italian actors shared the stage with the well-known Chinese children's choir "WeDo." They performed impressive excerpts from The Divine Comedy Musical in Italian and then sang the Chinese songs Jasmine Flower and What the World Has Given Me together in Chinese. The heavenly voices of the Chinese children harmonizing with the Italian performers' beautiful and moving vocals brought the house down with thunderous applause.
Not long ago, the lead actors of The Divine Comedy Musical also performed classic selections from the show on the CCTV program Beauty in Harmony, setting a new viewership record for the show. The musical's producer, Gabriele Gravina—President of the Italian Football Federation and Vice President of UEFA—stated that introducing The Divine Comedy Musical to China is not only a recognition of its artistic value but also an effort to foster cultural exchange between nations through the medium of musical theatre.
In 2025, this much-anticipated Italian musical will be staged in 15 cities across China, including Chongqing, Changsha, Wuxi, Nanjing, Nanchang, Wuhan, Chengdu, Beijing, Guangzhou, Xiamen, Shenzhen, Suzhou, Ningbo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong, for a total of 57 performances.
Translator: FENG Haoxuan
Reviewer: BAI Jing
