Turandot tells the story of a cold-hearted Chinese princess，named Turandot，who lives in the Forbidden City and is drunk with power. To avoid marriage，she says that any potential husband must answer three riddles correctly or he has to die. At first，a prince is killed because he is unable to answer Turandot?s riddles. Before lon g，Calaf，another prince，falls in love with her. But a young slave of his father，Liu，loves Calaf. So the story takes on a classic love triangle feature. Calaf answers Turandot?s questions correctly，but she is greatly upset. Calaf promises that she does n?t have to marry him，if she can guess his name by sunrise. So Turandot threatens and terrifies Liu whose love for Calaf is unconditional，but Liu kills herself. Everyone，including Turandot，is moved. Finally，Calaf wins Turandot?s affection and the whol e city celebrates their happiness.
Section 2 Background information
I. 张艺谋简介