Past Production Reviews
2On April 19 and 21, the National Opera of Ukraine pleased and even surprised – the premiere of the opera The Barber of Seville by G. Rossini took place, based on the play of the same name by the famous playwright Beaumarchais, which takes place… And here it was a surprise for the viewer, accustomed to the contemplation of the classics, rather than to modern productions. The chief director of the theatre, director of the opera Anatoly Solovyanenko posed a real challenge to the times, because the modern reading of the classics is not only an attempt to “wipe off the dust” and show what tools the author used and what he encrypted, but to correctly introduce iconic moments that are understandable to the modern audience here and now. As you know, Rossini himself defined the genre of his opera as opera-buffa - a composition full of energy and typical life ups and downs, which are always enough and at all times. It is no coincidence that modern directors, who repeatedly turned to the work of the great composer, brought their own accents to the production, transferring the characters to different time frames, mixing eras. So, in one of the famous performances of the Paris Opera, the story composed by Beaumarchais and Rossini is either about the Turks or about the Moors. In another European setting, it is the 20s of the 20th century with Chaplin's grotesque. But in each of them, and in the Kiev production as well, the situation and the characters are still the same: the cunning, adventurous commoner Figaro, the amorous Count Almaviva, Dr. Bartolo and his young pupil Rosina. It is quite difficult to determine with accuracy the time and place of the comic situations taking place in the current production. The director either takes his characters from the streets of Seville to a shopping mall, where Almaviva, ardently in love, gives interviews to journalists and poses for cameras before singing his cavatina, or the characters are already in a modern office space. And there are plenty of such moments that send heroes to the present. But the storyline did not suffer at all from this, and even won, since the rather skillful introduction of signs of a new era made what was happening more comical. Two premiere days gave the audience an opportunity to evaluate two compositions of soloists. For the role of Count Almaviva, the artist-vocalist of the National Operetta, the singer of the academic chapel "Dumka", Anatoly Pogrebnoy, was invited, who, it must be said, made a confident debut on the stage of the National Opera. Anatoly is well acquainted with the part of the count, since he played the role of Almaviva in the eponymous premiere of the operetta theater in 2017. Together with Pogrebny, this part was prepared by his colleague, theater soloist Dmitry Ivanchenko. At the first premiere, Igor Evdokimenko performed the role of Figaro, captivating the audience from his very first cavatina about Figaro here, Figaro there. And on the second day, Igor Mokrenko was in this image. Andrey Maslakov (Dr. Bartolo) also succeeded in a comedic role. Leading bass Sergei Magera as Don Balisio was also impeccable in his performance, and Bartolo's housekeeper Anzhelina Shvachka, spectacular in a provocative outfit, was generally beyond praise. The scenography by Andrey Zlobin and the costumes of the characters created by Anna Ipatyeva deserve special mention. This creative tandem is already familiar to the viewer from the no less “modernized” Faust. This time, too, thanks to the imagination and talent of the stage designer and costume designer, the action was transferred to such a modern space. The audience received the first premiere performances very warmly. And if the subsequent ones, one of which is on May 31, are met with full houses, there is every reason to believe that modern Figaro will be registered in the opera for a long time.
It is possible that the appearance of The Barber of Seville, which has been on the stage with world-famous names for almost 200 years, was influenced by the fact that for seven years now, since 2010, another Rossini opera, Cinderella, has been invariably popular at the National Opera ". So in this sense, one Rossini is good, but two are much better. The Barber of Seville was taken on by a knowledgeable team: stage director Anatoly Solovyanenko, stage conductor Nikolai Dyadyura. And for the stage implementation, they invited well-known in the theatrical environment - set designer, artist Andrei Zlobin and costume designer Anna Ipatyeva. Both of them were remembered by the audience, first of all, for the design of performances for the Kiev Modern Ballet. So, having a general idea of the sharply creative way in which the artists create, one could imagine what their work would look like in the Natsoper. Well, it must be assumed that they certainly did not disappoint the viewer. The staging of Beaumarchais's sparkling story about the barber Figaro (an energetic rogue, a thunderstorm of husbands and a favorite of women), embodied earlier in the opera by Paisiello, and then by Rossini, came out fresh, relevant, flavored with a modern entourage. However, I hasten to reassure the admirers of the classical traditions, even such an interpretation, created in tune with the present day, is worked out appropriately and with all due respect to the source material. Compared to the ultra-modern productions of this opera in some European theaters, where it is often impossible for the viewer to understand what is unfolding before their eyes, the National Opera has a modern light version, carefully built in accordance with academic theatrical traditions. And, most importantly, the comedic component of del arte, which is largely entrusted to the actors, was fully preserved, without sliding into an ordinary farce. Some, clearly directorial finds cause laughter in the hall. For example, the departure of Figaro on a scooter, an electric guitar, to the accompaniment of which Count Almaviva, in love, who looks like a rock star, sings serenades under Rosina's window, the running of heroes against the background of a lowered veil, where thunders and lightnings rage or lightsabers standing at a full-length figure from " Star Wars - Darth Vader. According to the law of the genre, if the weapon is placed in a conspicuous place, then there will be a battle. And the director did not deceive our expectations in this. The performance from the first note to the final is subordinated to Rossini's music: light, cheerful, witty. It also corresponds to a detailed study of mise-en-scenes and an exact hit in the canonical roles, whether it be a charming rogue, an admirer in love, a coquette or a pompous doctor. The musical material, as noted by the chief conductor Nikolai Dyadyura, is as close as possible to the original, practically does not contain cuts, but those parts that, as a rule, were taken out of the scope of the performance, are voiced. But it was they who made the storyline intelligible and logical. The action is displaced in time, while it is not possible to determine the place of stay. Let's call it for convention - somewhere in Europe. At the whim of the director, the street of Seville turns into something resembling a shopping center, which is eloquently suggested to the viewer by numerous glass windows, mirrors, a number of mannequins and brand advertisements. In this either a trading floor or an atrium, fans of Count Almaviva, a local celebrity, gathered. He gives interviews to journalists on camera, and then sings his famous cavatina, calling young Rosina, a pupil of Dr. Bartolo, to the balcony. In the second picture, the space is transformed into the interiors of the venerable doctor's house, there is a bar counter, a TV set, a table with an office chair, a presentable armchair, and an exercise bike was added in the second act. The National Opera invited Anatoly Pogrebny, the vocalist of the National Operetta, the singer of the academic chapel Dumka, to play the role of the Count, who, it must be said, made his debut on this stage with confidence. Obviously, such a non-trivial choice was influenced by the fact that Anatoly is well acquainted with the part of the count, firstly, he played the role of Almaviva in the eponymous premiere of the operetta theater in 2017. Secondly, he perfectly understands what it means to sing in the style of Rossini; last year, as part of the famous Rossini Festival in Pesaro, he performed the part of the Belfiore cavalier in the opera Journey to Reims. This year he is again engaged in Pesaro to sing the part of Edoardo Milfort in Rossini's opera Le Marriage Promissory. Together with Pogrebny, this part is being prepared by his colleague, theater soloist Dmitry Ivanchenko. In general, several groups of performers have been selected to try their hand at such a landmark opera as The Barber of Seville. Each of these soloists is so charismatic and recognizable that the audience might even find it interesting to compare the actor's interpretation and performance class in different ensembles. So, Igor Evdokimenko and Igor Mokrenko will play the role of Figaro. At the first premiere, Evdokimenko sang, captivating the audience from his very first cavatina about Figaro here, Figaro there.… I was impressed by Andrey Maslakov (Dr. Bartolo), bass, who owns the Belkant vocal technique. Enhances the effect of his presence on stage and a pronounced acting gift. In ensemble scenes, he drew attention to himself, while simply watching TV and not even uttering a sound. He demonstrated a clear comedic role to the regulars of the theater in the relatively recent premiere of Pergolesi's comic opera The Servant-Madam. It's funny, but in both cases, the singer's costume is a dressing gown. Impeccable in everything (from the possession of the voice to the entry into the image) Sergei Magera, the theater's leading bass. Good Rosina (Olga Fomicheva). In the future, this part will be performed by Susanna Chakhoyan, Lilia Grevtsova, and Tamara Kalinkina. Each appearance of Bartolo's housekeeper, Bertha, a snuff lover performed by Anzhelina Shvachka, is spectacular. She, musically sneezing, was dressed in a very tight outfit, a blonde wig and a high cap - provoking fantasies. In general, the costumes of the characters are not tied to a specific era and have no historical reference, they are rather created in the spirit of what in French can be called "a la" - like. The uniform of the Italian carabinieri resembles the uniforms of any power formation in Europe. Caps, clubs and handcuffs hanging from a belt are also recognizable. Beauty Rozina appears in magnificent dresses, which are quite appropriate to wear to one of the modern Kiev balls. Unlike the premiere of The Barber of Seville, which took place at the Teatro Argentina in Rome in February 1816 and was coldly received by the public, and, frankly, simply failed, the Kiev version, presumably, is waiting for a much more optimistic life. From the first try. However, according to the chief director of the theater Anatoly Solovyanenko, the success of the production in terms of its artistic value is determined by sold-out fees of 10-15 shows. Now, if even then the performance gathers a full hall, it means that the efforts of all those involved in the action were applied to the maximum. Узнать детали: https://izvestia.kiev.ua/item/show/116396?fbclid=IwAR3EKEHdBYZ46_QRA05lS8sGiTDBDY0Tjnl3E326BJtM7COb2Kz_fCQ63ag
