Just over a month remains before the close of the Mariinsky Theatre’s 243rd season. By tradition, this is the moment when the theatrical year reaches its culmination. Rare, major and exclusive events – often unavailable during the regular season – appear across the theatre’s stages in a dazzling abundance. At the height of summer the concentration of stars from the world opera stage is especially remarkable. In July and early August Mariinsky Theatre productions will feature Hibla Gerzmava, Vladislav Sulimsky, Ekaterina Semenchuk, Yulia Matochkina, Alexey Markov, Elena Stikhina, Mikhail Petrenko, Olga Borodina, Tatiana Serjan, Irina Churilova and Sergei Skorokhodov.
On 11 July Mariinsky II will present one of the great rarities and monuments of French opera: Hector Berlioz’ Les Troyens. This ancient-world counterpart to War and Peace astonishes with its epic scale. To present this monumental five-hour work is an undertaking few theatres in the world are prepared to attempt. Valery Gergiev will conduct the forthcoming performance, with a truly star-studded cast in the principal roles: Yulia Matochkina, Ivan Gyngazov, Tatiana Serjan, Yuri Vorobiev, Anna Kiknadze and Alexey Markov.
The following day, 12 July, Verdi’s tempestuous drama Simon Boccanegra will unfold at Mariinsky II against the spellbinding backdrop of the Ligurian Sea, Vladislav Sulimsky in the title role, Christian Knapp conducts.
Vladislav Sulimsky will delight his admirers with two further summer appearances at the Mariinsky Theatre. On 26 July he will sing Rogozhin in Weinberg’s The Idiot – a role in which the renowned baritone achieved resounding international success at the Salzburg Festival in 2024. On 30 July Sulimsky and the incomparable Elena Stikhina will appear in Tchaikovsky’s The Enchantress, a gripping opera charged with passion and psychological confrontation.
A series of appearances also awaits the magnificent Yulia Matochkina. Following Les Troyens, the singer will return to the Mariinsky stage three more times. On 15 July, together with the Mariinsky Orchestra and Christian Knapp, she will perform Poulenc’s mono-opera La Voix humaine at the Concert Hall. A special place in the programme belongs to Richard Wagner’s great Romantic myth, Lohengrin. On 1 August the principal roles in this grand mystery production will be performed by stars of the Austro-German repertoire: Sergei Skorokhodov, Elena Stikhina and Yulia Matochkina. Valery Gergiev conducts.
The unsurpassed opera diva Hibla Gerzmava, People’s Artist of Russia, will appear in Puccini’s Tosca on 28 July. This gripping musical drama of power, betrayal, and love, captivating in its melodic beauty, will be conducted by Valery Gergiev.
A sumptuous gift awaits St Petersburg audiences from the brilliant Ekaterina Semenchuk. A singer of extraordinary range and artistry, she will perform the role of the cruel Princess Turandot in Puccini’s opera of the same name on 31 July. On 2 August Semenchuk will also take part in the ceremonial closing of the season at Mariinsky II, appearing in one of her signature roles: Marfa in Musorgsky’s Khovanshchina.
This Saturday, 5 July, Mariinsky II will present Rimsky-Korsakov’s great epic opera The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh and the Maiden Fevroniya, conducted by Valery Gergiev. A spiritual testament by the great Russian composer, the work is striking in its philosophical depth and musical grandeur. The central role will be performed by Irina Churilova, the Mariinsky’s definitive Fevroniya. Joining her on stage will be Denis Zakirov, Yuri Vorobiev and Svetlana Karpova.
The July Russian opera programme also features star casts in Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, with Anzhelika Minasova (in the title role) and Mikhail Petrenko on 8 July, and Tchaikovsky’s The Queen of Spades, with People’s Artist of Russia Olga Borodina as the Countess on 17 July.
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