In June “Helikon-Opera” under Dmitry Bertman took part in international music festival Bartok+Verdi (Hungary, Miskolc). “Helikon-Opera” is a traditional guest of the fest, the theatre have already come to Miskolc for the 5th time. The leadership of the festival jokingly calls its brainchild “Bartok+Bertman”.

Before that the theatre brought to Miskolc “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk district” by D. Shostakovich, “Siberia” by U. Giordano, “Norma” by V. Bellini with Swedish prima Lena Nordin, “Apollo et Hyacinthus” by W. A. Mozart, “Lulu” by A. Berg and “Mozart and Salieri” by N. Rimsky-Korsakov. Last year “Wallenberg”, the anti-fascist opera by Estonian composer Erkki Sven-Tuur, staged by Dmitry Bertman was shown at the festival. Dmitry Bertman received the Estonian order of Santa Maria Land, the State Estonian Prize and prize of Estonian Theatrical Union for that production. “Wallenberg” became a cultural event in Miskolc.

This year on the 13th of June “Rigoletto” by G. Verdi with “Helikon-Opera” soloists and Vishnevskaya Opera Centre choir and “Helikon-Opera” orchestra under conductor Yaroslav Tkalenko (Visnevskaya Opera Centre). And on the 14th of June “Nabucco” was shown.

“Nabucco” opera appeared in Helikon’s repertoire in 2004. Stage director Dmitry Bertman, set and costime designers Igor Nezhny and Tatiana Tulubieva, lighting designer Damir Ismagilov. The premiere performances were given in Dijon and Paris with prima donna Maria Guleghina. Since 2005 “Nabucco” in Dmitry Bertman, Igor Nezhny and Tatiana Tulubieva’s production is shown on stage of Mariinsky theatre and is a joint production of Mariinsky and “Helikon-Opera” theatres.

In Russia it was the first case of such a collaboration of opera theatres. Unfortunately, Moscow doesn’t have a hall, where the grandiose decorations of the performance could fit, that’s why “Helikon-Opera” shows “Nabucco” only on tours.

On the 14th of June the stars of the theatre Larisa Kostiuk (Fenena), Ekaterina Oblezova (Anna), Svetlana Sozdateleva (Abigaille), Sergey Toptygin (Nabucco), Mikhail Guzhov (Zaccaria), Dmitry Ponomarev (Ismaele), Mikhail Seryshev (Abdallo), Dmitry Skorikov (Gran Sacerdote), artists of the choir and orchestra took part in the performance. Conductor – Eugene Brazhnik. Upon the tradition Tamas, the son of the director of the festival Tamas Bator, took part in the performance.

During the festival, provincial Miskolc, a homeland of great Bartok, is filled with music lovers from all over Europe. The pedestrian streets of the ancient city turn into a giant foyer of an opera theatre, full of pavilions with festival logos, souvenirs and handicraft products.

Due to the nearness of the borders, Austrian designer Hartmut Schoerghofer, who works under set and costumes of “Das Liebesverbot” by R. Wagner, the premiere of which is expected in “Helikon-Opera” in October 2011, visited Miskolc to see the theatre.

In three weeks the theatre will be touring Nizhny Novgorod with “Tsarina”, a joint project of META Enlightment Fund and “Helikon-Opera” theatre. On the 6th and 7th of July, “the open opera”, this is how the creators define the genre of the work meaning accessibility of its perception for ordinary spectator, will be performed on stage of Nizhny Novgorod Theatre of Opera and Ballet. The tickets for both dates are already bought.