The Bayreuth Festival has announced a cast change for the opening night performance of Wagner’s “Tannhauser.”

The festival announced that due to injury during the stage rehearsal Ekaterina Gubanova would not be able to perform on opening night scheduled for July 25, 2019. As a result, Elena Zhidkova will take on the role of Venus in the new production, which is set to be conducted by Valery Gergiev and directed by Tobias Kratzer.

Zhidkova first appeared at the Bayreuth Festival in 2001. She has since appeared in productions of “Die Walkure, ” ‘Gotterdammerung,” and “Das Rheingold.”  This will mark her first leading role at the Bayreuth Festival.

Gubanova is set to return to the production on July 28 and perform through August 25, 2019. She joins a cast that includes Lise Davidsen, Stephen Gould, Markus Eiche, and Wilhelm Schwinghammer.