On Sept. 12, 2025, Kristina Mkhitaryan will return to the Putin-supported Tchaikovsky Concert Hall for a concert performance of “Manon.” 

The performance will come days before her return to the Metropolitan Opera House and will also star Liparit Avetisyan, who is making his Met debut this season.

It will also mark the first of three Russian  appearances this season for the soprano. Mkhitaryan will also return to the hall for a concert with the Russian National Orchestra in June and will also perform in Moscow’s Zaryadye Hall. The hall famously supported the invasion of Ukraine and called for the “denazification of Ukraine.”

Mkhitaryan’s performances come on the heels of the soprano promoting the Sevastopol Opera and Ballet Theater’s young artist program, in a now deleted story. The theater is located in Crimea, the internationally disputed territory annexed by Russia and stands as a symbol of Russia’s defiance of punitive measures imposed following its 2014 seizure of the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula and ongoing involvement in the separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine. Putin supporter Ildar Abdrazakov is the general Director. OperaWire asked for comment on the post but never heard back from the Metropolitan Opera or the soprano’s management.

The soprano’s performances also come as Russia’s attacks on Ukraine intensify and as Peter Gelb, the Met’s General Manager, said having cultural exchange with a country trying to kill people is wrong. He told the Observer, “You can’t have cultural exchange with a country that is trying to kill millions of people. Today, it would be a big mistake to even try to divorce art from politics. Art has to be used as a weapon for good. Certainly, Russia and Putin have used cultural propaganda for years. In today’s world, where Russia is trying to annihilate Ukraine and deny its very cultural existence, it is more important than ever that art be weaponised against these forces. When you think about it, this is much bigger than just the war in Ukraine. It’s really a fight for the free world, for the democratic world, and it has to be won. And cultural leaders and cultural institutions have to be part of that fight, in my opinion.”