The Mandarin's Son

The Mandarin's Son (Сын мандарина in Cyrillic; Syn mandarina in transliteration) is comic opera in one act by César Cui, composed in 1859.

No small influence for this work came from the French composer Daniel Auber, particularly his Le cheval de bronze, which had a similar setting, and was being performed in Saint Petersburg at the time.

It occurred on 22 February 1859 at the apartment of Cui's in-laws in Saint Petersburg, with piano accompaniment.

The cast for this performance included Mussorgsky in the role of the Mandarin and Mal'vina as the Innkeeper's daughter.

In the meantime, the Mandarin has arrived, searching for his long-lost son, who turns out to be Muri.