Stage shot of the opera "The Homeland", on April 2. [Photo/nanyang.gov.cn]

The city of Nanyang, Henan province, staged an Yu (Henan) Opera, "The Homeland", on April 2, which tells the stories of people who have to leave their homeland to make place for China's South-North Water Diversion Project, because the city is involved in the project,.

The opera is the work of a number of renowned artists and is dedicated to all the people in the province who leave for other cities so that the national project can go forward. It focuses on a village near the Danjiangkou Reservoir, stretching across Henan and Hubei provinces, where the villagers have to make tough choices in abandoning their ancestral home and start a new life in an alien city. The opera tells of the sacrifices of several generations and the government's care for them and of how the government helps the immigrants get resettled to make a living in a new environment.

The opera got support from the province's Culture Dept, the Henan Yu Opera Association, and the water project's Immigration Office and is one of the top national plays for 2014. It was written by Yao Jincheng and Han Feng and directed by Li Gengchun. Its lead actors, Li Bin and Fan Jing, are national first-class actor.

The opera will tour all the cities along the water project.