“Helikon-opera” will show “Die Fledermaus” operetta by J. Strauss on birthday of a great Maestro Mstislav Rostropovich
19.03.2012
“Helikon-opera” will show “Die Fledermaus” operetta by J. Strauss on birthday of a great Maestro Mstislav Rostropovich
Moscow musical theatre under Dmitry Bertman presents
The 27th of March, 19.00
“Helikon in Arbat”, Novy Arbat, 11
"I will live on Helikon mountain"
Mstislav Rostropovich
On the 27th of March on International Day of a Theatre Moscow Musical Theatre “Helikon-opera” under Dmitry Bertman will show “Die Fledermaus” by J. Strauss performance, devoted to the outstanding musician, person and a great friend of the theatre Mstislav Rostropovich, who would be 85 on that day.
The history of this performance was connected with M. Rostropovich’s name. The authorities banned the work on “Die Fledermaus” operetta for M. Rostropovich just before his exile from Russia in 1974, that is why the production became his unrealized dream. The premiere of this performance at a festival in Evian became the musical sensation. Mstislav Rostropovich became the musical director and a conductor of this performance
The production became historical. For the first time in history of Russian musical theatre Russian actors not only sang in German, but read the German texts as well. This work is one of the most happy pages of creative biography of all Helikon’s people, who took part in it. After the premiere Dmitry Bertman turned to Mstislav Rostropovich with the following words: “We are grateful for the traditions, which you were giving us these days. You often refer to the experience of your beloved teachers, great musicians Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Britten. For all of us, Helikon people, you will be just the same beloved teachers”.
Since then, “Die Fledermaus” is an immortal hit in Helikon’s repertoire. The theatre travelled the whole world with this performance, only in the USA it was shown for 58 times.
“Helikon-opera” and Mstislav Rostropovich were tied with years of friendship, Mstislav Leopoldovich didn’t miss a single premiere, often visited rehearsals, knew personally the soloists of the theatre, visited the performances of the theatre in Russia and abroad. Once, speaking to Bertman, Rostropovich asked what “Helikon” was and Dmitry Bertman answered that this was a mountain in Ancient Greece, where Apollo met the muses and was making love with them. A musician answered that he would prefer to visit that mountain too.
In the memory of this friendship on a day of maestro’s jubilee the soloists of the theatre, the students of a great Russian singer Galina Vishnevskaya, Rostropovich’s spouse, will be the guests of Orlovsky’s ball. Laureates of international contests Inna Zveniatskaya, Alexey Tikhomirov, Konstantin Brzhinsky will perform the arias of classical repertoire.