You must have read or heard of the sad love story between Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu.But can you imagine the two characters singing opera（歌?。?in English instead of speaking poetic（詩(shī)歌的） Chinese？
   Jia and Lin are two characters from the classic Chinese novel A Dream of Red Mansions，written by Cao Xueqin （1715-1763）.He spent most of his life on the book and finished it at the age of 35.Now the book has been made into an English-language opera.
   Many of the opera's creators have backgrounds（背景） in both Chinese and American cultures.Their understanding of both cultures helped them change a Chinese classic into a foreign-language opera.
   The book，which includes the rise and fall of the Jia family，has hundreds of characters.But opera writer David Henry Hwang cut down the number of characters to just seven.Hwang，a Chinese-American，wrote the love story between Jia and Lin and tried to write a tragedy（悲?。?that everyone would understand.
The art director Timmy Yip，from Hong Kong，tried to help foreign people understand the characters by using costumes（戲服） and stage settings（布景）!He compared Lin to water and gave her a light green costume.When Lin showed up on stage，there was usually water around her on the stage.
   The creators considered it to be a meaningful job to introduce a Chinese classic to Western audiences（觀眾）.

（1）When did Cao Xueqin finish writing the book A Dream of Red Mansions？

At the age of 35.

At the age of 35.

（2）Who wrote the opera for A Dream of Red Mansions？

David Henry Hwang.

David Henry Hwang.

（3）Does the character Jia Baoyu speak Chinese or English in the opera？

English.

English.

（4）How did Timmy Yip help foreign people understand the characters？

By using costumes and stage settings.

By using costumes and stage settings.

（5）Do you want to watch the opera for A Dream of Red Mansions？Why or why not？

Yes.Because I love the book and opera.

Yes.Because I love the book and opera.