"Christmas Tale" by Shchedrin. Enthusiasm, full house, allusions

ST. PETERSBURG. The premiere of Rodion Shchedrin’s opera extravaganza at the Mariinsky Stage.

You can learn about the approach of the New Year and the beginning of school holidays without looking at the calendar. The number of Nutcrackers and Snow Queens per square centimeter of the poster of any theater increases dramatically. The Mariinsky Theater was able to offer a wonderful alternative to traditional New Year’s joy thanks to a long-standing friendship with Rodion Shchedrin. The opera Christmas Fairy Tale was intended specifically for these stages, as was Lefty, whose world premiere took place here in 2013. The libretto for both performances was created by Rodion Konstantinovich based on several versions of his favorite tale.

The basis for the well-known version of Marshak was the Bohemian legend, which he heard in someone’s oral presentation. Only later did he learn about the existence of Slavic tradition from the Trenčín environs “About Twelve Months” with a similar plot from the famous Czech writer Bozena Nemtsova. True stepmother sent her stepdaughter to certain doom by her own whim. And not for snowdrops, but for violets and apples. In the translation of Nikolai Leskov, the fairy tale reached Russia. Marshak came up with some funny characters, decorated the plot with new lines. But Shchedrin had to make a fascinating mix, which is interesting to watch for children of any age, as well as their parents. The last author of the libretto throws snowballs of crafty allusions. For months, the choir complained of sanctions, the queen was dissatisfied with flowers of imported origin and was easy to kill with the full approval of the courtiers.

A witty and dynamic performance, which took place thanks to the excellent direction of Alexei Stepanyuk, the choreography of Ilya Ustyantsev, the work of costume designer Irina Cherednikova (the huge beds of the sisters that are worthless only) and the lighting designer Sivaev, a long and happy fate awaits. However, neither creative scenography, nor the beautiful voices of the soloists, nor an entertaining plot would save the situation in the absence of the main component - great music. Shchedrin managed to "harness in one cart" sophistication, complexity and high "calm" with the availability, beauty, "hit" of the musical material. Maya Mikhailovna, to whom this opera is dedicated, would be happy with the enthusiastic reception of the public.

Elena Tanakova © Gallerix.ru