Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, Op. 29 by Shostakovich, Noiztik (2023/2023), Zuzendaria Fanny Ardant,, Zuzendaria Fabrizio Ventura, Stavros Niarchos Hall, Athens, Greece

The Greek National Opera is reviving one of the most popular productions to have graced its stage in recent years. Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk –the Shostakovich opera that tackles the place of women within pre-revolutionary rural Russia– is returning to the Stavros Niarchos Hall in a production directed by Fanny Ardant, working with an all-star international creative team. This iconic 20th-century opera owes much of its power to the great variety inherent within the music composed for it by Dmitri Shostakovich: grittily realistic in its action and love scenes, and throughout the murder of Zinovy, the music is also intensely poetic within its ferocity. The work distinctly sets itself apart, not only through its rawness and brutality but also because it is affecting on an equally deep level – and not just in its climactic scene, which manages to capture and encapsulate centuries of pain and deprivation in Russia. Directing a work of opera for the first time, Fanny Ardant created a bold and poetic production, one that spotlights such elements as personal freedom and daring, as well as blazing extremes. “Lady Macbeth sets a mirror before us. And in it, we see our own selves. Lady Macbeth is our wild reflection, restless and free. How can the part of ourselves that fights back against the law survive within conventional, homogenised society? To love criminals is a risk. And it is one I take. I love Katerina Ismailova. She is not only one of Leskov’s characters in an opera by Shostakovich – no, she is also an ever-present individual, even in our own time. And if we pay close enough attention, we may well encounter her,” notes Fanny Ardant. The production features sets by the award-winning German scenic designer Tobias Hoheisel, costumes created by the four-time Oscar-winning Milena Canonero in partnership with the acclaimed German costume designer Petra Reinhardt, movement by the French artist collective LA(HORDE) (Marine Brutti, Jonathan Debrouwer, and Arthur Harel), and lighting by the award-winning Italian cinematographer Luca Bigazzi. Appearing in the lead roles are Svetlana Sozdateleva –who, following her performance at the GNO in 2019, went on to play the role at the Metropolitan Opera in New York to great success– alongside Sergey Semishkur, Yanni Yannissis, Yannis Christopoulos, and others. Conducting is Fabrizio Ventura.