I wonder why, "Katya Kabanova" for so long was to his incarnation on the scenic banks of the Neva. Music Janacek - bright, emotional, deeply sincere - sometimes on their spirituality and ecstaticism recalls the best works by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The outstanding folk art connoisseur and an expert on folklore, the composer never cites any folk tunes, composing for the opera "like the popular" songs. However, it is love that Janacek to Russian culture in general and literature in particular and has led to the birth of "Katie Kabanova." Curiously, the Janacek himself well read in Russian, took the libretto for the text of Ostrovsky's play "Thunderstorm," translated by V. Chervinko (though much of his remake).
The protagonist of the new formulation can be no doubt be called the Mikhailovsky Theatre Orchestra: under its chief conductor Peter Feranec it is not just coped with the expressive, coloristic, "thin weave 'score. The opera was performed with the scope, scale, and "thunder" passions - and with careful diligence in all piercingly lyrical ground and perfect balance of "pit-scene." The musical component performance was beyond praise - it was impossible to believe that the orchestra and conductor perform "Katya Kabanov," the first time.
In the title role made Ryaguzov Tatiana - now safe to say, the star of Michael opera company, as the main vocal and emotional weight to the opera falls to Kate - and if it does not (or soloist on various indicators of "not up") - then , by and large, there is no play. Katie monologues, in fact, are emotional and semantic culmination of the whole opera.
Ms. Ryaguzov managed to pass all the psychological depth of the image Katie, and all shades of feelings of the heroine from the deep religiosity and devotion to the almost childish arguments in a scene with a key from the gate. Her touching and highly convincing performance in the vocal, it was almost flawless.
However, if we talk about the composition as a whole, Ryaguzov not a "ray of light in the darkness": the Mikhailovsky Theatre opera company was able to put up for the premiere of a very smooth and professional strong team. With the "age" roles perfectly mastered bass Yuri Monchak and mezzo-soprano Natalia Biryukova, creating a colorful and distinctive portraits of the Wild and Kabanihi respectively. Very organically and naturally was a young singer in the role of Sophia Barbara Feinberg - a wonderful debut in the big party! Also good was Alex Kuligin (Kudryash), Yuri Ivshin (Kuligin), Mikhail Makarov (Tikhonov) and Dmitry Popov in the party of Boris - incidentally, the only guest soloist (Ukrainian National Opera).
As for the stage incarnation of the opera, then all is not as straightforward. Just specify that the statement by Niels-Peter Rudolph of Germany (art director - Volker Hintermayer, costume designer - Sue Buhler) do not "criminal," and no "rezhopery" in it, fortunately, no. She just filled by certain symbols, which are, in my opinion, we could have been done, without compromising performance. Among them - here and there, standing upright on the stage of fluorescent lights (either a symbol of "our time", or the notorious "ray of light in the darkness"); demonstration dragging a black coffin in the background as the materialization of the bad feeling of the protagonist, and so on. But the key to the garden gate, which transmits Barbara Cate, this authentic symbol of future violent events in the life of the protagonist, is made it is absolutely realistic, fine.
In general, setting a very ascetic: a black background almost continuously throughout the performance it is snowing, flipped up the bottom of the canoe hints at the proximity of the shore of the Volga, and a pile of broken chairs in the foreground on the right should probably direct us to the idea that "all mixed up in a house Kabanov ".
However, the fate of the first staging in St. Petersburg, "Katie Kabanova" could arise, and much more deplorable way: let the staging will not shine with originality, a director in the process of working with actors not just changed the staging concept - the main thing that Staged decision not to run counter to the music, and (what equally recognized and soloists, and opera lovers) "does not interfere with" her perception. It should be noted and a "resistance of the material" with which the theater had to face while working on the opera: what can you do if some of the audience, musicians and singers still consider music Janacek's "complicated" and "avant garde"! Of course, "Katya Kabanova" - not "Carmen." But not "Wozzeck" in the end - though these operas shares only 4 years, and both made some eighty years ago ...
But as you know, the winners are not judged: and one of the most popular European operas (only this year it was staged in Bonn, Brussels, Buenos Aires, Karlsruhe, London, Muenster, Paris, Prague, Stuttgart, Warsaw - and so on ) is now taking its place in the playbill of St. Petersburg. And Michael's Theatre, perhaps, over time, and regain its former glory MALEGOTa as a "laboratory of modern opera."
Cyril Veselago