Karaganda Academic Theatre of Musical Comedy to present its best productions at Astana Opera
Dunayevsky’s Scarlet Sails, which premiered in October 2018, is one of the new productions in the repertoire of the Karaganda theatre. The main idea of the work is unshakable faith and all-conquering and sublime dream that anyone is capable of doing wonders for a loved one.
The main character is Assol, a girl who lost her mother when she was only eight months old. Assol lived in the small village of Caperna, with her father, an unsociable and private former seaman Longren. After retirement, in order to make a living for himself and his little daughter, he started making and selling toys – skillfully carved models of sailboats and steamboats. One day, when Assol was eight years old, she saw a stranger holding her boat in his hands. It was the old Egl, who «made collections of songs, legends, lore and tales». He gave the toy back to Assol and foretold that the years would pass and «when she grows up and becomes an adult, one day a prince will come on the same ship with scarlet sails and carry her away to a distant country».
Mikhail Bartenev and Andrei Usachev’s libretto is based on an eponymous novel by Alexander Grin. The Stage Director is a winner of The Golden Mask, Man of the Year, Melpomene and Song of the Year Theatre Awards Susanna Tsiryuk (St. Petersburg, Russia). Music Director – Zhanna Shestakova, Chorus Master – holder of the Order of Kurmet Tatiana Shtykova.
The production of Kalman’s classical operetta Die Bajadere to the libretto by Elena Ezerskaya is notable for its unusual and exciting plot presentation. Hungarian composer’s charming melodies will entice the listeners to the mysterious world of the East, where the longings of the heart will come into conflict with the dictates of reason, everyday life around and established traditions.
A bajadere dancer Odette falls head over heels in love with the Indian Prince Radjami, who is ready for her sake to forego the ancient law prohibiting the Lahore princes to marry foreign women. The Prince relinquishes the throne, but Odette decides to make a huge sacrifice: after the engagement has been announced, she keeps up the charade and turns everything into a joke. The lovers’ hearts are broken, Radjami is about to leave, Odette has left the stage. Suddenly the permission to marry is received. According to the canons of the operetta genre, a beautiful finale brings happiness to the heroes.
Music Director and Conductor of the production – Valentin Bogdanov, Director – Lyudmila Naletova (Moscow, Russia), Chief Chorus Master – Tatiana Shtykova.