Vyacheslav Starodubtsev

Chief Stage Director of the Novosibirsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre / NOVAT
Honoured Artist of Russia, Ph. D. in Art History, member of the Presidential Council for Culture, Rector of the Novosibirsk State Conservatory named after M. Glinka, Associate Professor of Musical Theatre Department at the Novosibirsk State Conservatory named after M. Glinka, Assistant to the Co-Chairman of the Theatre Union of the Russian Federation, Chairman of the Commission on Education in the Field of Culture and Art of the Theatre Union of the Russian Federation, Chairman of the Novosibirsk regional branch of the Theatre Union of the Russian Federation

In 2006, Vyacheslav Starodubtsev graduated from the Russian Institute of Theatre Arts - GITIS (workshop of People’s Artist of Russia, Professor Dmitry Bertman) in the specialty “Musical Theatre Actor”. In 2009, he completed postgraduate studies at GITIS at the Department of Directing and Acting at the Musical Theatre, in 2012 he defended his dissertation on the topic “Training in acting and directing opera”. In 2024, he completed professional retraining at the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA) under the additional professional program “Educational Systems Management”, earning the qualification of “Head of an Educational Organization”. He has published in scientific journals.

Vyacheslav Starodubtsev is the author of more than 70 productions at musical and dramatic theatres of Moscow, St. Petersburg, Vladivostok, Novosibirsk, Chelyabinsk, Tobolsk, Syktyvkar, Minsk, Tallinn, Yerevan. His works ran at the Mariinsky Theatre, the Mikhailovsky Theatre, the Helikon Opera, the Gorky Moscow Art Theatre, the Armenian National Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre named after A. Spendiaryan, the Galina Vishnevskaya Opera Centre, the Primorsky Academic Drama Theatre named after M. Gorky, the Chelyabinsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre named after M. Glinka, and others.

He has collaborated with outstanding Russian and world’s opera conductors: V. Gergiev, Daniel Oren, Roland Böer, G. Rozhdestvensky, V. Ponkin, D. Jurowski, M. Tatarnikov, M. Emelyanychev, E. Volynsky, A. Lubchenko, P. Smelkov, K. Durgaryan, D. Korchak.

As a music director and stage director of musical scenes, he worked on the release of Russian films: Dostoevsky (directed by V. Khotinenko), Kuprin. The Duel (directed by A. Malyukov), Grigory Rasputin (directed by A. Malyukov). He arranged and directed international art projects in Japan, India, Spain, Estonia, Korea. Vyacheslav Starodubtsev created courses of lectures and educational projects Open Dialogues, Reading the Opera, Unknown Tchaikovsky, Verdi Censored, and others.

He is the author of the idea and organizer of the project “Theatre Avenue of Novosibirsk”, dedicated to outstanding figures of the Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre (since 2017).

Vyacheslav Starodubtsev is a three-time laureate of the XXVIII, XXXI and XXXIII Professional Theatre Award “Paradise” of the Russian Theatre Union in the category “Best Stage Director's Work in Musical Theatre” (2019, 2021, 2025; for directing and artistic concept of the operas: Un Ballo in Maschera and Falstaff by G. Verdi, The Tsar's Bride by N. Rimsky-Korsakov); the performance The Tsar's Bride was also recognized as the best performance in musical theatre of the 2022/2023 season of the Novosibirsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre. He is a laureate of the “Kings of Fine Arts” Award (Novosibirsk, 2020). The performances Un Ballo in Maschera and Falstaff by G. Verdi were included in the longlist of the Russian National Theatre Award “Golden Mask” (2017, 2020). Stravinsky's opera Le Rossignol was named one of the five best opera productions of the 2024-2025 season of the XXXII Russian National Theatre Award and Festival “Golden Mask” (2026). Verdi's opera Il Trovatore, staged on the Primorsky Stage of the Mariinsky Theatre, was nominated for the Golden Mask for the 2024-2025 season. Vyacheslav Starodubtsev is a three-time winner of the V, IX and X National Opera Award “Onegin”: for the production of Falstaff in the “Artistic management” and “Debut” categories (2020); a special jury prize for the children's opera cycle “Pushkiniana”, staged at NOVAT (2024); for the production of Glinka's opera Ivan Susanin for the 80th anniversary of the Theatre of Victory in the category “Event” (2025). The performance The Tale of the Dead Princess and the Seven Knights was included in the “Golden Fund of Russian Theatrical Productions”, a project dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the Russian Theatre Union.

From 2002 to 2017, he was a soloist and stage director at the Moscow Musical Theatre “Helikon-Opera” under the direction of D. Bertman.

From 2006 to 2013, he was a teacher of acting and directing in the Musical Theatre Department of the Russian Institute of Theatre Arts (GITIS).

From 2008 to 2011, Vyacheslav Starodubtsev was a stage director at the Galina Vishnevskaya Opera Center.

Since 2017, he has been a permanent jury member of the International Competition for Young Opera Directors “Nano-Opera”.

In the 2022/2023 season, he was the chairman of the jury of the XXX Competition Festival of the Russian National Theatre Award “Golden Mask” in the categories opera, operetta, musical, ballet.

Since 2017, Vyacheslav Starodubtsev has been the chief stage director of the Novosibirsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre (NOVAT). With the theatre company he staged the following productions: operatic quest Turandot by G. Puccini (2016), fashion opera Aida by G. Verdi (2016), opera The Queen of Spades. The Game by P. Tchaikovsky (2016), thriller opera Un Ballo in Maschera by G. Verdi (2017), opera tasting L'elisir d'amore by G. Donizetti (2017), The World Opera in Novosibirsk (2017), Christmas Oratorio by I. Alfeyev, Mozart and Salieri by N. Rimsky-Korsakov (2018), Francesca da Rimini by S. Rachmaninoff (2018), Bluebeard's Castle by B. Bartók (2018), Terem-Teremok by I. Polsky (2018), Die Fledermaus by J. Strauss (2018), The Steadfast Tin Soldier by S. Banevich (2019), Little Red Riding Hood by C. Cui (2019), The Booted Cat by C. Cui (2019), Sylva by I. Kálmán (2019), Falstaff by G. Verdi (2020), A Yeanling Tale by A. Abramenko (world premiere; 2020), Dido and Aeneas by H. Purcell (2020), Kashchey the Deathless by N. Rimsky-Korsakov (2020), The Magic Flute by W.A. Mozart (2021), Karlsson on the Roof by A. Gladkikh (world premiere; 2021), Morozko by M. Krasev (2021), Le Nozze di Figaro by W.A. Mozart (2022), The Tale of the Dead Princess and the Seven Knights by V. Pleshak (2022), The Tsar’s Bride by N. Rimsky-Korsakov (2022), Don Giovanni by W.A. Mozart (2023), The Extraordinary Adventures of Buratino by A. Semenov (world premiere, 2023), Aleko by S. Rachmaninoff (2023), The Tale of Tsar Saltan by N. Rimsky-Korsakov (2024), Rigoletto by G. Verdi (2024), The Twelve Months by S. Banevich (2024), Le Rossignol by I. Stravinsky (2025), Ivan Susanin by M. Glinka (production created for the 80th anniversary of the Theatre of Victory, which united on stage more than 350 musicians - artists of the orchestra and choral groups of the theatre, students of the Novosibirsk Conservatory named after M. Glinka, Novosibirsk Music College named after A. Murov; 2025). He is a stage director of the opera A Life for the Tsar by M. Glinka, conductor A. Karabanov; the premiere of the opera became the culmination of the XIII Music Festival “Summer in the Tobolsk Kremlin”, on Red Square in Tobolsk (July 2022). Vyacheslav Starodubtsev has arranged more than 30 concerts and recitals.

Since 2023, he has been acting rector of the Novosibirsk State Conservatory named after M. Glinka. In 2026 he was appointed rector of the Novosibirsk State Conservatory named after M. Glinka.

In 2024, he joined the Presidential Council of the Russian Federation for Culture and Art.

Since 2024, he has been an assistant to the co-chairman of the Russian Theatre Union, Valery Gergiev.

Since 2025, he has been chairman of the Commission on Education in the Field of Culture and Art of the Russian Theatre Union.

Since 2026, he has been chairman of the Novosibirsk regional branch of the Russian Theatre Union.