The Hvorostovsky Krasnoyarsk Opera and Ballet Theatre invites Krasnoyarsk residents to the advance premiere of a rare opera-farce by Alexander Borodin Heroes. The performance will take place on Sunday, 13 December, at 6.30 p.m.

The one-act opera Bogatyri (Heroes) will be presented to the audience at the Quadrat loft (Krasnoy Armii Street 10, building 4). Like other productions of the innovative project Art at the Quadrat (the Heroes performance is a part of it), it’ll be the theatre’s next step towards the development of contemporary opera.

This production of the Hvorostovsky Krasnoyarsk Opera and Ballet Theatre was lent grant support of the Russian Culture Fund. The federal grant was obtained by the Krasnoyarsk Theatre within the Contemporary Drama Support Competition. The competition aims to support theatres in building up their new repertoires and introducing young talented artists to the audience.

According to the terms of the competition, the shows that have never been staged before, as well as specially created dramas, translations, and adaptations may qualify for financial assistance. Such a unique thing was presented by the theatre as demanded: it’s a libretto created by the young poet Alexei Bobrov at the request of the Krasnoyarsk Opera and Ballet Theatre.

The Bogatyri (Heroes) mock opera was only staged twice: in 1867 (to the libretto by Viktor Krylov) and 1936 (to the libretto of Demyan Bedny). Both versions were banned by the authorities. In the new interpretation of the Krasnoyarsk Opera House, the opera’s characters are the same. The production team pursues the subject brought up by Borodin: the subject of false heroism, phoney patriotism; but these topics are explored through a modern material and in a satirical way - the performance depicts events which took place in our country in the 1990s giving references to the original texts.

“Our theatre has already successfully collaborated with this librettist: it was he who created the literary basis of Francis Poulenc’s opera Les Mamelles de Tirésias. The production received the special award at the Golden Mask competition in 2020. One of the leaders of the Russian composing community, laureate of the Golden Mask award Alexei Syumak presented the new edition of Alexander Borodin's music. The opera will be included in the theatre’s repertoire. The performance will be interesting to young, intellectual, cogitative people and will attract a new audience to the theatre,” said the production director of the opera Heroes, Artistic Director of the Hvorostovsky Krasnoyarsk Opera and Ballet Theatre Sergei Bobrov.