Not Love Alone by Shchedrin, Mon 22 Feb 2021, From (2020/2021), Directed by Tatyana Karpacheva, Darya Modzalevskaya, Natalya Chernikova, Conductor Maxim Valkov, Alexander Goikhman, Baron Fon Derviz Mansion (St Petersburg Chamber Opera), Saint Petersburg, Russia

The St. Petersburg premiere of “Not Only Love” by the famous composer Rodion Shchedrin was a landmark event. The composer himself described it as the best performance of his opera. “Not Only Love” is a bright, sparkling performance that is close to the musical in its genre. The main focus of the performance, as director Yuri Alexandrov sees it, is love, of course. “The theme of love” , the director says, “is eternal and always relevant, no matter in what scenery it takes place.” The performance attracts the audience with its free vocal, the “openness” of acting and lots of dancing. It is full of light lyricism and irony, that “juicy” humour typical for this genre and high drama. In its plot some experienced music lovers will recognize parallels with “Eugene Onegin” and even “Carmen.” Rodion Shchedrin, who saw the premiere in the St. Petersburg Chamber Opera, recalled the devastating 1961 performance. “Do you know why the show failed then? Because they were afraid of sex. And here today they are not. And it worked out. Personally, I can see on the stage a huge amount of love for those times and those people.”