What John Adams 1987 opera recounts an historic meeting between Chinese and U.S. leaders?

The story was set in February 1972, during the trip that Nixon undertook with his wife, Pat, and with Kissinger, then Nixon’s national security adviser. As much as politics and human nature drive the tale, the opera also deals with the influence of the media. In one of the opera’s most-striking scenes—taken straight from the front page of U.S. newspapers—Nixon and his wife exit Air Force One, and the president raises his arms in his iconic “V-for-Victory” sign. Many of the ensuing scenes also reflect actual events, including Mao’s secretaries repeating Mao’s every word in strongly poetic terms and the formal banquet at which the main participants toast each other. The opera also includes Pat Nixon’s tour of the region, a tour that focused on things of which the Chinese leaders were especially proud.