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September 11, 2019

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Tchaikovsky鈥檚 melodic version of Pushkin鈥檚 classical tale

Pyotr Tchaikovsky鈥檚 opera 鈥淓ugene Onegin鈥 opens tonight at Shanghai Grand Theater for a three-night run.

Produced and performed by the Moscow State Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Music Theater, the performance serves as the opening show to the Shanghai Grand Theatre鈥檚 2019-20 season.

鈥淓ugene Onegin鈥 is based on a novel written in verse by Russian poet and novelist Alexander Pushkin.

It tells the story of a St Petersburg dandy who spurns the love of a young woman he meets. Years later, he comes across her again at a grand ball and realizes that he is in love with her. Married now, she spurns him.

The theater has brought a 200-member crew to Shanghai, which includes the performers, a symphony orchestra and a chorus.

The performance staged in Shanghai this week is a two-act version adapted from the original three-act opera. Director Alexander Titel has merged his own understanding of the classic tale into a new version, carefully describing the psychological changes of the characters.

鈥淭o connect a classic work to a modern audience, it can鈥檛 be achieved simply by changing the costumes or using modern stage settings,鈥 said Titel. 鈥淵ou need to find a way to let the audience echo with the characters鈥 emotions.鈥

The stage setting of 鈥淓ugene Onegin鈥 is simple 鈥 eight pillars in black and white colors.

鈥淭he story is simple, and the stage design has been simple from the beginning,鈥 said Titel. 鈥淭he black side of the pillars will remind you of the woods in Russia.鈥

Music director and conductor Felix Korobov described 鈥淓ugene Onegin鈥 as a 鈥渜uiet鈥 and 鈥減rivate鈥 performance which focuses on basic human emotions and the inner world of characters.

Actor Andrey Baturkin, who plays Onegin, says the difficulty lies in how to handle the pauses and 鈥渂lank intervals鈥 between singing during the performance.

鈥淥negin is a changeable role and I have to change myself accordingly as the story goes on,鈥 said Baturkin. 鈥淗e didn鈥檛 know how to love at the beginning, but started to feel love in the latter part. How to present that change is a challenge for me.鈥

Most of the actors and actresses are in their late 20s and early 30s, which is a young for opera performance.

鈥淚 want it to be a young opera, while the performers have to be confident and have a broad vision to understand and handle their roles. This is a well-selected crew,鈥 said Titel.

The Moscow State Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Music Theater has a history of nearly 100 years. The theater鈥檚 first visit to China dates back to 1954 when it was invited by Chairman Mao Zedong for a four-month performance trip to Beijing. They performed 鈥淓ugene Onegin鈥 and several other operas and ballets.

The opera is sung in Russian with Chinese and English subtitles.

Date: September 11, 13, 14, 7:15pm

Tickets: 80-1,280 yuan

Venue: Shanghai Grand Theater

Address: 300 People鈥檚 Ave


 

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