MOSCOW, March 13. The Mariinsky Theater will present Modest Mussorgsky’s “Khovanshchina” on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater from March 13 to 17 for the first time in 20 years, the Bolshoi Theater press service noted.
The performances staged by Leonid Baratov are timed to coincide with the 185th anniversary of Mussorgsky's birth. «Khovanshchina» is the composer's last opera.
“On the one hand, this is a continuation of exchanges between the Bolshoi and Mariinsky theaters, and on the other hand, we are celebrating Mussorgsky’s anniversary. Reflecting on how to present his legacy, we realized that the Bolshoi Theater’s repertoire now includes one of his great operas — “Boris Godunov” , and the other — «Khovanshchina» — has not been performed on our stage for about 20 years. But it is in the repertoire of the Mariinsky Theater,» the Bolshoi Theater said.
The choir and orchestra of the Bolshoi Theater will be involved in the shows. Valery Gergiev will take the control.
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It is noteworthy that the Mariinsky Theater brought to the capital the scenery of the artist Fyodor Fedorovsky, which was once purchased from the Bolshoi Theater. “Fyodor Fedorovsky is actually the star of our exchanges. His decorations in the performances of The Tsar’s Bride, The Woman of Pskov, Boris Godunov and Khovanshchina. In aesthetic terms, he is the cornerstone of what we call the “grand style” in opera,” — noted at the theater.
In turn, the Bolshoi Theater brought the production of “Boris Godunov” to St. Petersburg, the choir and orchestra of the Mariinsky Theater are participating in the shows.
Previously, the Moscow and St. Petersburg troupes exchanged performances of operas Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, whose 180th anniversary is also celebrated this year.
«Valery Abisalovich Gergiev, as soon as he headed the Bolshoi Theater, spoke about the fact that contacts between our theaters would arise more often, and that the task of Russian theaters — to promote and perform the music of domestic composers,” the press service recalled.
Theatres are also planning joint trips to the homelands of outstanding Russian composers.