The Belarussian National opera celabrates its birthday on May, 25: this day in 1933 the first performance of "Carmen", G.Bizet was given on the stage of the Belarussian theatre of drama. Later, in 1939 the National opera and ballet theatre moved in its own house placed on the Trinity Hill in the city centre.The first production played here was the opera by E.Tikotsky "Mikhas' Padgorny" (10th of May, 1939). The very next season the National opera has declared itself at the decade of Belarussian arts in Moscow (June, 1940) having presented three national productions: the above-mentioned "Mikhas' Padgorny" and A.Turenkov's "In the dense forests of Palesie" and "The Happiness Flower". Afterwards, the Belarussian opera troupe appeared many times on the most prestigious stage of the USSR: the Bolshoi Moscow theatre. The success of the 1940-season was so important that the Theatre was named "the Great"; another not less significant season of 1964 has brought the title of the "academic".

Among the founders of the Belarussian National opera the names of many celebrated artists are to be found: conductors I.Gitgarz, N.Grubin, M.Shneiderman; producers V.Borisevich, P.Zlatogorov, N.Smolich, I.Shlepianov; interior decorators M.Bobyshev, P.Viliams, B.Volkov, N.Korovin, S.Nikolaev; choirmasters A.Belsky and G.Petrov; soloists L.Alexandrovskaya, L.Alekseeva, A.Arsenko, I.Bolotin, T.Bonachich, V.Volchanetskaya, M.Denisov, S.Druker, P.Zasetsky, V.Kalinovsky, D.Kroz, N.Lazarev, V.Lapin, V.Malkova, R.Mlodek, I.Muromtsev, V.Talankin, G.Tsepova, Y.Shetikhin and others.

During the War the troupe kept on working in Nizhny Novgorod and Kovrov (Russia). Its concert units (brigades) performed for the Soviet troops on the front-line. The Opera came back in Minsk right after the liberation of Belarus (1944). The new season opened with the premiere of opera "Alesia" by E.Tikotsky.

The troupe of Belarussian opera was always one of the most brilliant and vivid companies in the former USSR. The most oustanding masters kept its high professional

standard up: conductors O.Bron, V.Piradov, L.Lyubimov, T.Kolomyitseva, J.Voshtshak, V.Moshensky, G.Provatorov, A.Anissimov, producers O.Moralev, D.Smolich, Y.Yuzhentsev, V.Tsiupa, M.Izvorska-Yelizarieva, stage decorators S.Nikolaev, E.Chemodurov, E.Geidelbrecht, E.Zhdan, V.Okunev, choirmasters A.Kogadeev, N.Lomanovich, soloists the People's Artists of the USSR and Belarus L.Alexandrovskaya, Z.Babiy, Y.Bastrikov, I.Bolotin, L.Brazhnik, N.Vorvulev, L.Galushkina, A.Generalov, V.Glushakov, S.Daniliuk, L.Zlatova, M.Ziuvanov, K.Kudriashova, T.Nizhnikova, N.Rudneva, A.Savchenko, N.Serdobov, I.Sorokin, N.Tkachenko, V.Chernobaev, I.Shikunova, T.Shimko, V.Eknadiosov…

Among the special achievements of the troupe are the productions of "Sadko", "The Snow Maiden" and "The Golden Cockerel" by N.Rimsky-Korsakov, "War and Peace" by S.Prokofiev, "Otello" and "Don Carlos" by G.Verdi, "Lohengrin" by R.Wagner, "The Tales of Hoffman" by J.Offenbach, "Boris Godunov" by M.Moussorgsky, "Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk (Katherina Izmailova)" by D.Shostakovitch and others. The troupe of Belarussian opera was the first to produce the operas "The Dreadful Homestead" by S.Moniushko, "Orestea" by S.Taneev, "Maddalena" by S.Prokofiev, was one of the few companies to produce "Der Rosenkavalier" by R.Strauss.

The National opera theatre has always turned to the works by Belarussian composers: Nikolay Aladov, Anatoly Bogatyrev, Andrey Bondarenko, Genrich Vagner, Eugene Glebov, Sergei Kortes, Grigory Pukst, Yuri Semeniako, Dmitry Smolsky, Vladimir Soltan, Eugene Tikotsky, Alexey Turenkov.

Today the National academic Great opera theatre of the Republic of Belarus comprises the regular soloists' troupe of 57 singers, the choir (76 singers), the orchestra (over 150 musicians), the artitic company "Belarussian Capella" and the children's musical theatre-studio. The artists of the National ballet theatre take part in the opera productions: "Boris Godunov", "Prince Igor", "The Queen of Spades" and others. The most operas produced in the original languages.

Since 1992 the Belarussian opera has been steady going on tours abroad being well known in Brazil, Germany, Israel, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Cyprus, China, Korea, Poland, Russia, Turkey, Switzerland.

E-mail: belarus_opera@tut.by
Internet: http://www.belarusopera.com/

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