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It seems there are few boundaries left for Damon Albarn to smash. Having taken pop and art into new dimensions with Gorillaz, excelled in the exploration of all sounds and cultures in Africa Express and even gone to space with the ill-fated Beagle Mars landing, his latest project is currently playing at the most rarefied end of high society. Last night, Famethrowa was in attendance as "Monkey: Journey To The West" continued its brief run at the Royal Opera House in London. Needless to say, the show is a total triumph, with Albarn, now 40, only a cog in the collective magic of this spell-binding production.

"Monkey" is a stage adaptation of the celebrated 16th Century Chinese novel "Journey To The West" by Wu Cheng'en, which some may also remember as a daft late ‘70s kids' TV show. Conceived and created by actor and director Chen Shi-zheng, Albarn is responsible for the compelling, sprawling score, while Gorillaz' side-kick Jamie Hewlett is behind the visual concept. Having premiered last summer in Manchester, before moving onto Paris and South Carolina, the opera centres around the incorrigible Monkey King, as he bids to complete the transformation from "hooligan" to "Budda victorious in strife".



Across two hours, the yellow-tracksuited upstart squeals and scratches his way through a series of spectacular landscapes and set-pieces, accompanied by Pigsy, Sandy and their precious cargo, the asexual monk Tripitake. Deeply influenced by the acrobatics and pyrotechnics of the Chinese Circus, Hewlett's Manga illustration is particularly impressive in the extended cut scenes on a screen stretched across the stage, while subtitles translate the Mandarin dialogue. Albarn's soundtrack, performed with emphatic drama by an orchestra, will be officially released later this year.

Much is redolent of the detailed fairytale soundscapes of the last Gorillaz album and, in particular, low-key b-side "Hong Kong", which saw him create a blissful Oriental hymn on Guzheng (Chinese harp). The two clips in this posting are the trailer for "Monkey" and Albarn and Hewlett's titles for the BBC's upcoming Olympic coverage. Surely it can't be long before the Queen offers Damon some sort of royal honour? Of course, ten years ago he turned down Tony Blair's invitation to his Downing Street "Cool Britannia" shindig, saying he'd become a Communist. Perhaps this time he could tell Her Majesty he's converted to Buddhism...