Connected by the stars

He adds that the creative teams faced tremendous challenges in producing the show during the pandemic. A diversity of elements, such as singing, dancing, martial arts, acrobatics and magic, are featured in the musical, which is supported by technologies such as holograms and three-dimensional images.

Veteran Chinese songwriters Liang Mang and Peter Kam were part of the creative team. They used both traditional Chinese musical instruments and contemporary instruments to portray the scenes of time traveling.

"There are many Chinese musical elements, and some of the songs were inspired by old Chinese folk songs," says Liang, a lyricist.

Playwright Marc Acito, who wrote the script for the musical, says: "As an international team, we wanted to celebrate the diversity of all of the cultures that were united by trade on the Silk Road. People thousands of miles apart were all, like we say in the title of our opening song, Connected by the Stars, and that just felt like a wonderful message to start a musical."