Valery Gergiev is set to become the General Director of the Bolshoi Theatre. According to Opera Magazine, the Russian conductor will replace Vladimir Urin and will remain head of the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg. Gergiev will be the first leader of both major Russian theaters for the first time since Tsarist times. The news comes a year after Putin {…}
The Bolshoi Theatre has banned the work “Nureyev,” complying with Putin’s expanded anti-LGBT law. In a statement during a Press Conference, Vladimir Urpin said, “Nureyev was removed from the repertoire in connection with the law … where issues related to the promotion of ‘non-traditional values’ are stipulated absolutely unequivocally.” The law Urpin refers to is one that was passed in November {…}
The Bolshoi Theatre honored conductor, teacher, pianist, composer, and musical public figure Gennady Rozhdestvensky. The theater unveiled a plaque in his name on March 14 and the musician’s widow, National Artist of Russia Victoria Postnikova, the Bolshoi General Director Vladimir Urin, Rector of the Moscow Conservatory Alexander Sokolov, Chief Conductor of the State Academic Symphony Capella of Russia Valery Polyansky {…}
The Bolshoi Theatre has fired Russian director Alexander Molochnikov. The 30-year-old director who was set to direct productions of Rachmaninov’s “Francesca da Rimini” and Zemlinsky’s “Florentine Tragedy,” was let go due to his opposition to the war in Ukraine. According to a recent article in AFP, several fiercely pro-Kremlin figures, including Sergei Mironov and Zakhar Prilepin, co-chairmen of the political {…}
Over the next month baritone, Igor Golaventko will perform at the Bolshoi Theatre. The baritone, who is set to return to the Metropolitan Opera over the next few seasons, will perform productions of “La Bohème,” “Boris Godunov,” “The Queen of Spades,” and “Iolanta.” The baritone recently performed in the Met’s “Eugene Onegin” and General Director Peter Gelb said in an {…}
Stage director Claus Guth has rejected the Golden Mask Award at the Bolshoi Theatre. Guth was awarded the prize for Best Director but the director noted that he could not accept the award due to the war, which he has condemned. Guth was receiving the award for his production of “Salome,” which was praised by critics and audiences alike. According {…}
Metropolitan Opera General Manager Peter Gelb is taking a new stance on Russian artists performing at the Met Opera, noting he will allow them privacy. In an interview with the Guardian, Gelb said, “Most Russian artists, including other singers who perform at the Met, have not taken any public political position. Their private positions are theirs to keep private. I {…}
(Credit: © Decca / Simon Fowler) Aida Garifullina is set to perform at the Bolshoi Theatre in a production of “La Traviata.” The soprano is set to replace Irina Lungu in the role of Violetta in “La Traviata” on March 18 and 20. In a statement, via Instagram, the soprano said, “And now I’m glad to be home and perform {…}
Numerous Russian cultural leaders have signed a petition for Russia’s President Vladimir Putin to stop the war. In the letter, which was signed by the Bolshoi Theatre’s General Director Vladimir Urin and prominent conductor and violinist Vladimir Spivakov, leaders said, “We now speak not only as cultural figures, but as ordinary people, citizens of our country, our Homeland. Among us {…}
The Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow has canceled its final performance of “Sadko” on Sunday, Oct. 10, 2021. The news comes a day after an actor for the company was killed in a freak accident during the Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021 performance of the opera. Moscow’s prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation surrounding the accident while the Tverskoy Inter-district Investigation Department {…}
On Saturday, Oct. 9, a performer at Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre was killed in an accident on stage during a performance of “Sadko.” The Bolshoi said the accident happened during a set change in the Russian opera by composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. In a statement, the company said, “When the scenery was changed, an artist of the mimansa (mime ensemble) died. The {…}