Sergei Prokofiev's Maddalena comes to the Bolshoi. Libretto based on the play by Magda Lieven, and orchestration by Edward Downes. The score has been made available by Boosey & Hawkes Publishers Limited.
Maurice Ravel
L'heure espagnole
Libretto by Franc-Nohain
Conductor: Alexey Vereshchagin
Director, Set Designer and Costume Designer: Vladislavs Nastavševs
Lighting Designer: Anton Stikhin
Choreographer: Ekaterina Mironova
Chorus Master: Pavel Suchkov
Maddalena by Sergei Prokofiev and L'heure espagnole by Maurice Ravel have never been shown in the same evening together. However, these two one-act operas have a lot in common. Both of them saw the light at the beginning of XX Century. Driving force behind both plots - love passion of several men towards one woman fueled by south blood (action of the first story takes place in Venice, second - Toledo). Swiftness of time passing through is similar in both operas: rapid heart rate like a barometer fixates disturbing atmosphere of approaching world cataclysms of the beginning of XX Century.
At the same time, operas-peers are in contrast with one another. Maddalena is a gloomy, almost expressionistic tragedy, where the whole action focuses on bloody outcome - the fight. L'heure espagnole is a light comedy of errors. According to Vladislavs Nastavševs, production director, this contrast is a reflection of two cultures - Russian and French: "Where Russians see fatal passions, French see chance to smile and make a joke".Performances begin 24 March. Learn more at https://2011.bolshoi.ru/en/performances/10031/.
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