Irina Petrova / Recenzii

On 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

This is not the first attempt to launch Tsar Salatan into the permanent repertoire of the Kyiv theater. On September 1, 1911, on the eve of the official opening of the next theatrical season, a festive performance "The Tale of Tsar Saltan" was shown in the Kyiv Theater. In the hall - distinguished guests of the capital, led by Russian Emperor Nicholas II, who arrived in Kiev on the occasion of the unveiling of the monument to Alexander II. In the intermission after the second act, Russian Prime Minister Peter Stolypin was assassinated and mortally wounded… Since then, one of the brightest operas has been associated with tragedy. The next premiere of "Tales of Tsar Saltan" on the Kyiv stage took place only in 1917. Subsequently, the theater repeatedly turned to the masterpiece of M. Rimsky-Korsakov. The last time was in 1949, when the anniversary of Alexander Pushkin's birth was celebrated. They decided to break the 64-year-old break only now. - The repertoire of the National Opera of Ukraine includes many serious dramatic performances. Today we are turning to the Children's Opera, which we hope will be a bridge to future generations of opera fans, - says the theater's chief director Anatoly Solovyanenko. Vrubel and Vasnetsov conjured for children Rimsky-Korsakov once granted the Russian private opera the right to stage the first production of The Tale of Tsar Saltan. The success of the audience was ensured by the careful work of the conductor Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov and participation in the premiere performances of the best artists of the troupe. In addition, Mykhailo Vrubel undertook the artistic design of the play - scenery and costumes. Apollinarii Vasnetsov (brother of the famous Russian artist Viktor Vasnetsov), who was then a theatrical artist, wrote on the basis of his sketches of the scenery. For several seasons, the best and most outstanding "adult" masters of classical art worked on the Kyiv stage on the children's "Fairy Tale": conductors Eugenio Esposito, Mykhailo Shteiman, directors Mykola Bogolyubov, Oleksandr Ulukhanov. The voices of Leonida Balanovska, Mykhailo Donets, Mykhailo Mykysh, Maria Tesseir, Borys Hmyra, Larysa Rudenko sounded powerful and bright… Anatoliy Solovyanenko, the director of the modern version of "Fairy Tales", sees no differences in the approach to the work: "Despite the fact that this is a children's play, the attitude of the troupes to it is very serious. We work like adults: the best creative forces of the theater are involved, leading soloists of the opera troupe, chief conductor Mykola Dyadyura, chief artist Maria Levitska, chief choirmaster Bohdan Plish, ballet dancers. Now we grind the last details. I'm not afraid to brag - we have a very clear scenography. " The main trick is to invent a style To create all the scenographic splendor, the main artist of the theater Maria Levitskaya studied ancient icons and clothes, looked through hundreds of books, specially went to the Armory and other museums in Moscow. - "Tales of King Saltan" has a primary scenographic authorship, - says Levitskaya. - This is Ivan Bilibin. A master whose hand is unmistakably recognizable. Our task was to create an interesting and completely independent version, without repeating a single stroke. I say "we" because it is a complex and exciting process that involves many people. Our costumes are really handmade. This is probably one of the most beautiful performances we have ever performed. More than 350 costumes and more than 5,000 meters of paintings have been created for "The Tale of King Saltan"! "You can wrap and even cover the Kyiv Opera," smiles Maria Levitska. The choir is about 150 singers, they will change clothes twice during the performance. The costumes of the soloists are regally rich, "with fiction". "Precious stones?" This will not surprise anyone now. Sticking "sapphires" is not a trick. The trick is to invent a style so as not to end up in the royal chambers of Boris Godunov, says the artist. The fairy tale needs an expanded palette of colors, special decor and imagination. Bumblebee will dance and Chornomor will become a cartoon One of the director's fantasies is choreographic episodes (choreographer-director - Victor Yaremenko). Mythical characters, flowers, bumblebees - will be recreated in the language of dance. The famous scherzo, known as "Flight of the Bumblebee", has withstood many adaptations for many instruments, has become an independent and popular work. I wonder if the same popularity awaits the choreographic version? Other surprises await the audience. Some of the characters, such as Squirrel, Blackbird, Swan, Kite will be animated. So the main theater of the country is going to take another step towards the use of the latest stenographic technologies. "This is the first time we have used visual and graphic effects on this scale. We hope that this will be a successful creative experiment, "says Anatoliy Solovyanenko. The theater is convinced that "The Tale of Tsar Saltan", which will be one of the most expensive productions of the NOU, along with the most expensive premieres of the past two seasons - the ballet "Bayaderka" and the opera "Don Carlos". The play is planned to be shown during the day on weekends, so that it is convenient for the youngest spectators. In the modern version, the number of actions has been reduced from four to two and each will last no more than 50-55 minutes. We hope that the tale will appeal to both adults and children.

This performance (libretto by Vladimir Belsky based on the fairy tale by Alexander Pushkin) is designed for a family cultural trip to the theater and, first of all, for the youngest audience. Let us recall that in the capital, on the stage of the Municipal Opera for Children and Youth, a version of this wonderful musical fairy tale adapted for perception by children is successfully staged. But the directors of the National Opera: conductor Nikolai Dyadyura, director Anatoly Solovyanenko, artist Maria Levitskaya, choirmaster Bogdan Plish and choreographer Viktor Yaremenko, hope to amaze their audience not only with singing, but also with fantastic scenography, ballet and visual and graphic effects. Soloists are working on the embodiment of the main characters: Taras Shtonda, Sergey Kovnir and Andrey Gonyukov (Saltan), Victoria Chenskaya, Lesya Alekseeva (Queen Militrisa, younger sister), Daria Knyazeva, Irina Petrova (Weaver, middle sister), Natalia Nikolaishin, Tamara Kalinina, Olga Matushenko (Cook, older sister), Anzhelina Shvachka, Tatiana Piminova (Matchmaker Babaricha), Lilia Grevtsova, Olga Nagornaya (The Swan Princess), Sergei Pashchuk, Dmitry Kuzmin, Sergei Skochelias (Tsarevich Gvidon) and others. The history of productions and performances of The Tale of Tsar Saltan since its dedication to the 100th anniversary of the birth of the author of the original source, A. S. Pushkin, is interesting and varied. The right of the first production in 1900 was granted by the composer to the Russian Private Opera (conductor - Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov, artist - Mikhail Vrubel, and the role of the Swan Princess was played by the outstanding singer Nadezhda Zabila-Vrubel (our countrywoman, who received her musical education at the Kiev Institute of Noble girls at Nikolai Lysenko's.) The action takes place partly in the city of Tmutarakan, partly on the island of Buyan... The Tale was first staged on the Kiev stage in 1908. It was this production that was also staged in the fateful 1911, when Russian Prime Minister Pyotr Stolypin was mortally wounded during a parade performance for the court and ministers of Emperor Nicholas II... The next premiere "Tales of Tsar Saltan" took place in 1917. Subsequently, the theater turned to the masterpiece of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov more than once. The last time was in 1949 (when the 150th anniversary of the birth of A. Pushkin was celebrated). And soon the audience will see a new reading of the classics. “We are turning to children's opera, which, we hope, will become a bridge to future generations — admirers of opera art,” says director A. Solovyanenko. - "The Tale of Tsar Saltan" by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov is a very interesting work both on stage and musically.