From 8 to 25 July, six opera titles – the tetralogy "Der Ring des Nibelungen", "Parsifal" and "Tristan und Isolde" will be presented on the stage of the National Opera under the baton of Constantin Trinks. Rosen Gergov will take the podium to close the festival on 29 and 30 July with "Der fliegende Holländer" on Lake Pancharevo. The 210th anniversary of Richard Wagner's birth is the occasion for this large-scale project by Plamen Kartaloff, as well as for the new production of "Der Ring des Nibelungen".
A special address to the management and the audience was sent by Rainer Fineske, President of the International Richard Wagner Association, who wrote:
"As the International Richard Wagner Association, we are very happy with the great commitment of the Sofia Opera and its General Director Plamen Kartaloff, who have forged a new "Ring"... Above all, we are delighted with the remarkable quality of the singers, the productions and the musical level of the opera theatre.
The Sofia Opera is one of the few opera houses in the world that promote the work of Richard Wagner with great enthusiasm and drive.
I wish prof. Plamen Kartaloff and all his team success and good luck!!!"
Anna Tomowa-Sintow, our great singer Kammersängerin, also sent her greetings to her colleagues and the audience and shared her excitement: "Der Ring des Nibelungen" is a huge challenge for any (and big) theatre! The tradition of the Sofia Opera was great, but it was not connected with Wagner. The decision made 12 years ago to present the "Ring" on a Sofia stage was a challenge for everyone – including the audience, which was, however, already craving for new paths in the opera's repertoire. And so, the theatre's management, in the person of Mr. Kartaloff, took on the huge and responsible task of organising a solid professional training of singers, orchestra, chorus and all other participants in the interest of the Ring's productions being at a high professional international level...
Personally, knowing full well what they are up against, I am in awe of our wonderful, talented singers who have done a brilliant job with the big tasks! The tremendous work was richly rewarded! The success was brilliant and Wagner's music is firmly on the stage of the Sofia National Opera. The Bulgarian "Ring des Nibelungen" received high recognition and appreciation around the world, including in Germany – in the historic town of Füssen, closely connected with Wagner's work...
With a thought – especially by my dear fellow singers – and to all the artists and participants – I wish first of all health and strength! May Wagner's inspiration never leave them, and with eyes fixed forward, may they follow the light of his path with confidence!
To all the participants and for the sake of realizing a new stage performance and directing full of energy and light – "Good luck" – to satisfaction and charge and to a happy audience!
To a great festival success!"
Every Wagner festival around the world attracts the interest of representatives of various Wagner societies, who make the journey to enjoy the productions of their favourite composer. In previous editions the Sofia Opera has also welcomed guests from all over the world. This year, too, avid admirers of Richard Wagner have booked their places, as have an organised group of representatives from Wagner societies in the UK.
Apart from musical pilgrims, Sofia Opera's productions have always attracted many journalists from prestigious world editions.
Again this year, for a different period of time, for the festival will arrive specialists from magazines, websites and radio stations, including "Concerto", "Opera Now", "Der Neue Merker", "Gramophone", "Musical Opinion, Oper", "Oper", "Drammaturgia", "OperaWire", "BelliniNews", "Eurocomunicazione", "London Arts Discovery", "Die Münchner Opernfreunde", "Dresdner Neueste Nachrichten", "Leipziger Volkszeitung", "Wagneriaani", as well as from "Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg".
Journalists from "Musikfestspiele Königswinkel" from Füssen, the town where the new production of "Die Walküre" will be presented in autumn, will also be in Sofia. A journalist from the website "Mezei néző" from Budapest is also arriving, who has been specially following the performances of the magnificent Hungarian bass Krisztián Cser. A representative of the website "MusicWeb Internationa", which is a passionate collector of classical music recordings, will be in Sofia for the whole festival.
In Plamen Kartaloff's new directorial concept of "Der Ring des Nibelungen", the set design is by Hans Kudlich and Hristiana Mihaleva-Zorbalieva is the author of the costume design.
This year Plamen Kartaloff relies on Bulgarian singers for the seven titles. The audience will be able to applaud the magnificent soloists of the Sofia Opera and Ballet – Radostina Nikolaeva, Gergana Rusekova, Mariana Zvetkova, Silvana Pravcheva, Tsvetana Bandalovska, Lilia Kehayova, Aleksandrina Stoyanova, Vesela Yaneva, Ayla Dobreva, Ina Kalinova, Tsvetana Sarambelieva, Rada Toteva, Lyubov Metodieva, Angelina Mancheva, Yuliana Katinova, Elena Mehandzhiyska, Kostadin Andreev, Martin Iliev, Daniel Ostretsov, Hrisimir Damyanov, Angel Antonov, Emil Pavlov, Atanas Mladenov, Veselin Mihaylov, Nikolay Petrov, Petar Buchkov, Biser Georgiev, Svetozar Rangelov, Stefan Vladimirov, Angel Hristov, Krasimir Dinev, Nikolay Voynov, Kalin Dushkov, Yordanka Derilova as Brünnhilde and Kamelia Kader as Waltraute in "Götterdämmerung" return to the Sofia stage. The cast also includes Plamen Dimitrov as Alberich in "Das Rheingold", "Siegfried" and "Götterdämmerung". The exceptions to this remarkable cast are Thomas Hall, who will be Wotan in "Die Walküre", Krisztián Cser invited for the Stranger in "Siegfried", Anna Werle for Brangäne in "Tristan und Isolde". Kurt Rydl is guest starring for Daland, and Stanislav Trifonov for the Dutchman in "Der fliegende Holländer".
