Sergey Rachmaninoff’s one act opera “Francesca da Rimini” is set to premiere on 10th April at Isidor Zak concert hall. Stage director Vyacheslav Starodubtsev and set designer Zhanna Usacheva suggest a visual solution for the production taking after Gustave Doré’s engravings for Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy – this stipulates the concise color scheme, costumes referring to the High Renaissance period and setting designed as a knights’ hall.
“We don’t want to give away all of our intensions, I can only tell you that surprises will start right at the entrance to the hall – tells Vyacheslav Starodubtsev – the space of the hall itself suggests applying unusual solutions for an opera performance. We want to engage the audience into the action, discover all options of this venue. And this will be again a multigenre production, a mixture of vocal and motion. Choreographer Sergey Zakharin, stage movement designer works a lot with soloists and the chorus, since the stage movement plays a significant role in our production”.
Francesca da Rimini’s story is an ageless plot, which has been inspiring artists from all different times and places, a sad and beautiful story of love, which continues beyond the hell gate. Dante was the first to refer to this tragic love story in his Divine Comedy. When the poet accompanied by Virgil was descending in hell, on the second circle, where the souls punished for infidelity are blazing through infernal vortex, he hears Francesca’s story of their love with Paolo.
Vyacheslav Starodubtsev: “We follow Rachmaninoff’s music. The dramatic power of this piece presupposes it to be a high tragedy. That’s why I find it absolutely legit to have the chorus acting as one of the characters, following the antique theatre traditions, as well as Roman theatre masks.”
“Francesca da Rimini” by S. Rachmaninoff. Premiere is set on 10th April, 19:00, Isidor Zak concert hall. Musical Director and Conductor – Ara Karapetyan; Stage Director, author of artistic concept – Vyacheslav Starodubtsev; Set Designer – Zhanna Usacheva; Lighting Designer – Sergey Skornetsky; Stage Movement Designer – Sergey Zakharin.
Tickets are available at the theatre box office, on the website novat.nsk.ru, and with our partners.
