MAKROPULOS CASE (VEC MAKROPOULOS) in Miskolz and LADY MACBETH OF THE MTZENSK in San-Paulo

On the 11th of June, 2016 Helikon-Opera company is leaving Moscow for Miskolz, Hungary for Bartok+ Festival with Makropoulos Case by Janacek, and later in July the company will present the Dmitry Shostakovich opera Lady Macbeth of the Mtzensk District.

Opera "Věc Makropulos" directed by Dmitry Bertman, a new guest of the Festival Bartok +. Helikon-Opera cooperates with this Festival for five years. Previously, the theatre  presented there Lady Macbeth of the Mtzensk District by D. Shostakovich, "Siberia" by U. Giordano and other productions, and in 2005 Helikon was granted the honorary right to open the Festival with "Norma" by V. Bellini with the participation of the Swedish Prima Lena Nordin.

       
"We are all very happy, because Hungary is a fantastic country with a rich culture and a great operatic tradition. The idea of the Festival Bartok + is amazing, because it is open to the world of music, the art pieces  of other composers and make them all meet  with the works of Béla Bartók", – the Artistic Director of Helikon-Opera Dmitry shares his impressions and hopes.  – The organizers of the Festival has chosen  the opera "Vec Makropoulos" by Janacek – the playwright whose works always touch my soul. I staged in Canada his grandest opera "Z mrtveho domu", I also staged  his other works. I am very happy that we made our production of "Vec Makropoulos" with an outstanding conductor Gennady Rozhdestvensky. It was performed on the stage of Slovak National Theatre in Brno, at the Janáček festival and now we will perform it  in Miskolz with other conductor - Constantine Khvatynets – the favorite student  of Gennady Nikolaevich.”

Makropulos Case will be performed on the 12th of June, 2016 on the Grand Stage of the National Miskolz Theatre. The leading soloists of Helikon-Opera are involved in the cast – Natalia Zagorinskaya (Emilia Marti), Dmitry Khromov (Albert Gregor), Dmitry Yankovsky (Prus), Dmitry Skorikov (Kolenaty), Andrey Palamarchuk (Witek), Marina Kalinina (Kristina), Alexaner Klevich (Yanek), Mikhail Seryshev (Hauk Schendorf), Dmitry Ovchinnikov (Stage Hand), Marina Karpechenko (Cleaner), Ekaterina Oblezova (Maid). A stage-director of Helikon-Opera Alexander Borodovsky will show up as a Hauk's wife.

Undoubtedly one of the best operas of the XX century, Lady Macbeth of the Mtzensk District by D.D.Shostakovich, has absorbed all the paradoxes and cruelty of the time described.

The production staged in 2000 by Dmitry Bertman with the sets and costumes of Igor Nezhny and Tatiana Tulubieva, has won 4 National Prizes in Russia –  Golden Masks – in different nominations; it has been seen by more that 15 000 people in Moscow and  Saint-Petersburg in Russia, and also in France, Estonia, South Korea, Israel, Hungary, Spain, Italy. 

In 2003 the production was presented at the Ravenna Opera Festival in Italy, founded by Christina and Riccardo Muti, and 2 years ago Lady became the subject of co-production between Teatro Comunale di Bologna and Helikon-Opera. 

The success of this Russian-Italian co-production inspired the impresario Mr. Valentin Proczynsky (Monaco) to use the same pattern with San-Paulo Municipal Theatre,  which is one of the most beautiful and famous theatres in the South America. There will be 6 performances in San-Paulo, which will be seen by more than 10 000 people. Lady Macbeth of the Mtzensk District will be performed by the chorus and orchestra of the San-Paulo Theatre trained by Dmitry Bertman, Ilia Iliin, four head-liners from the Helikon-Opera Chorus; soloists of Helikon-Opera – Elena Mikhailenko, Anna Pegova, Alexei Tikhomirov, Dmitry Ponomarev, Igor Morozov, Dmitry Skorikov, Kzenia Viaznikova, Larisa Kostiuk, Petro Morozov, Maya Barkovska, Mikhail Seryshev and others. 

There are two conductors from Helikon-opera taking part in the co-production – Vladimir Ponkin and Valery Kirianov.

The project has been realized owing to the support of the Ministry of Culutre of Brasil.