Author: Ivan Varbanov
Editor-in-chief of News BG Reporter *
Sofia, 1 October 2020
The 130th Anniversary season of the Sofia Opera and Ballet will be celebrated and opened in a difficult time of trials. The glorious history of the opera cause passes through different great heights, storms, contradictions, cataclysms. But during the decades was won the world recognition for the great artists and the Bulgarian singing and ballet schools, for the theatre’s brand as institution – with own contribution to the world music and stage heritage, with its mission and identity. The artists and the spectators to be together! This is the credo, which follows the management of our first opera theatre.
The season’s opening will be marked by something unusual – the chairs on the ground floor will be taken apart, and after alignment of the slope of the hall, there will be installed the orchestra. Thus, the ground floor becomes an enormous orchestra box, in which the 85-member orchestra will perform the score of the one-act opera “Elektra” by Richard Strauss. This way the administration guarantees no close distances between the members of the orchestra, in the context of the health measures against Covid 19. And more: the approach for the spectator’s hall will also be more different than the conventional. In the hall there will be no separate empty seats and name plates, but the chairs, envisaged for ensuring of distance, will be put small baskets with flowers. This way will be created the feeling that the audience will come in and install itself on the balconies and the boxes in an original garden.
The whole company of the Sofia Opera and Ballet is expecting with impatience its audience. It expects that it will come in without fear and doubt in the opera temple. Everybody is unanimous: the Sofia Opera will work to give joy to the audience, and the artists to be happy that they are exercising their profession. The theatre should not stop its activity, since the depression and the fear in everybody are already overcome.
The start of season 2020/20201 will be with the most Bulgarian opera and metaphorical work for the contemporaneity of today – “Yana’s Nine Brothers” by Lyubomir Pipkov. Then follow: the pearl production of “Carmen”, the ballet spectacle to Carl Orff’s music – “Carmina Burana”. Planned is the coming back of the musical “Les Misérables”, as representative of the third genre in the theatre. November will be dedicated to the Wagner Festival. Because of the restrictions – regarding time, finances, guest-stars, in the postponed edition now there will be only two titles – “Parsifal” by Richard Wagner and “Elektra” by R. Strauss. In December the audience will have the possibility to see the spectacles of “Un ballo in maschera”, as well as the concert performance of “Macbeth” and spectacles of the ballet “The Nutcracker”. 2020 will finish with the traditional New Year concert.
The Ministry of Culture emphasized many times that the salaries of all artists in the guild are provided, as well as the expenses for maintenance of the building. The rest of the means must be realized by own activity.
During the past season were prepared two productions – the ballet of the Azerbaijan composer Fikret Amirov – “1001 Nights”, which is staged, there are sets, ready costumes. And “Elektra”, which had to have premiere in July, is also well provided for and absolutely ready in respect of the production. The so made investments will be repositioned.
It is important how and how far the state will allocate financial resource to grant means for new projects in the current season. An expectation, which is valid for all theatres.
Should we remind how passed the summer?
Seven stages, over 50 performances, more than 16 000 spectators, shows the statistics.
During the summer season of restrictions and pandemic, the Sofia Opera and Ballet performed on the big and the small stage – dedicated to the youngest audience of the children, in the Park of the Academy of Defence – where during 11 years have been performed spectacles for audience of all ages, at Lake Pancharevo (on the pontoon, constructed with the support of Georgi Spasov) was built up a new theatre – an enormous platform, on which there were performed operas, ballets and musical. Parallel to it, at the existing Roman town in the Cinema Center were presented classic spectacles. The fifth edition at the Belogradchik Rocks was also marked with the participation of the opera theatre. The closing of the season was at the late antique Tsari Mali Grad Fortress, above the village of Belchin, with wonderful acoustics.
A month and a half earlier, were streamed online over 30 productions, which are part of the archive of our first opera theatre. This was the application that the work will continue successfully.
It is delightfully that the audience was travelling and following the spectacles of its favourite theatre. The artists charged with faith their audience, which followed the productions all around the country.
Let it be so also during the new Anniversary 130th season of the Sofia Opera and Ballet.
Ever since 1891, there have always been difficulties and financial deficiencies. And so it was also during the decades. The important is to stand up for the high art and the work not to stop, not to close the theatre!
“More self-confidence, gentlemen pessimists, more respect for the musicians, who have dedicated themselves to a cause, which will be pride for Bulgaria”. This quotation was written in 1908 by Petko Naumov in newspaper “Den”.
And today we could add:
“We are with you and we are supporting you, colleagues.
Because the prestige and the mission of the Sofia Opera and Ballet is a cause and work for all of us – artists, audience, guild!”
Good luck!
https://newsbgreporter.com/
