The Mariinsky Theatre is continuing to add to the playbill of the Stars of the White Nights festival with new operas that have been rehearsed during the period of self-isolation and to expand its "collection" of repertoire rarities. On 7 and 8 August there will be concert performances of works by composers who occupy a special position in the repertoire of the Mariinsky Theatre – Tchaikovsky's The Maid of Orleans and Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg by Wagner.
On 7 August for the first time following a lengthy interval at the Mariinsky Theatre, there is to be a complete performance of Tchaikovsky's most monumental and ambitious work, The Maid of Orleans. The Mariinsky Theatre presents performances of most operas and every ballet by the composer, and there are frequent concerts of his symphony and chamber music, though the opus about the tragedy of Joan of Arc has only twice before been in the repertoire – in 1881 when the world premiere took place here and then again in 1945. The return of The Maid of Orleans to the Mariinsky Theatre in the year marking the one hundred and eightieth anniversary of the birth of Tchaikovsky thus acquires particular significance for the theatre. While remaining a rarity in the repertoire, the opera has served as a new title for several generations of singers and for Valery Gergiev, who has turned to this score for the very first time. On 7 August the incredibly demanding role of Joan is to be performed by the dazzling Ekaterina Semenchuk. Also appearing in the lead roles are Irina Churilova (Agnès Sorel), Sergei Skorokhodov (Charles VII), Yevgeny Nikitin (Thibaut), Vladislav Sulimsky (Dunois), Yuri Vorobiev (the Archbishop), Roman Burdenko (Lionel) and Gleb Peryazev (Lauret). Valery Gergiev will be conducting.
On 8 August soloists of the Mariinsky Opera, Chorus and Orchestra under the baton of maestro Gergiev will be presenting highlights from Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg by Wagner – the last of the composer's ten mature operas with which the Mariinsky Theatre's "Wagneriana" becomes complete. The return of the opera, staged here in its entirety more than a century ago and subsequently only presented in short fragments, is another of the results of singers' activities during the months of self-isolation. The vocal roles have been rehearsed not just by experienced Wagnerian singers from the company but by young soloists as well.
"We have been trying, very actively, particularly since the shock of the first three or four weeks, to prepare for serious tasks in the future while also understanding that this epidemic will eventually be defeated. This is why many singers have each been rehearsing four or even five new roles – important and truly large-scale opuses. These cover the German, French and Italian repertoires and, of course, works by Russian composers. Despite all of the major losses, behind the scenes we have been working to enrich the theatre's repertoire for the future," Valery Gergiev commented.
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