Chinese opera "Diaries of John Rabe" kicked off its European tour at the Berlin State Opera on Wednesday, attracting a large audience.

John Rabe was a German businessman who worked as chief representative of Siemens, and lived in Nanjing at the time of the Nanking Massacre in 1937–1938. 

During the war, Rabe not only kept a diary of the atrocities committed by Japanese troops against Chinese civilians after they captured Nanjing, but also saved many Chinese lives by establishing the Nanking Safety Zone, an area of the city that provided refuge to an estimated 200,000 people.

Chinese artists have now used the form of opera to tell stories of Rabe and other international friends during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. The premiere of the opera was well received the audience.

The opera, sponsored by the publicity department of Jiangsu provincial party committee and co-produced by Jiangsu Cultural Investment Management Group and Jiangsu Performing Arts Group, will be performed in Berlin and Hamburg in Germany and Vienna in Austria.

"Opera is an art form that Europeans can accept. Opera can also carry big historical themes, so we try to tell this history with opera," said Wang Yanwen, a member of the standing committee of Jiangsu provincial party committee and head of the publicity department.

Thomas Rabe, Rabe's grandson, also attended the premiere. He expressed his thanks to the cast and crew.

"I was extremely impressed with the opera, especially with my grandfather's inner monologue. Whether it's music, video, the visualization of the story, or the implicit and artistic treatment of brutality, I love it," he added.

Meanwhile, the opera team has also organized an exhibition of background information about "Diaries of John Rabe." The exhibition includes information on John Rabe and details about the history featured in the opera, so that audiences can better understand the plot and background of the performance.