FROM FOBI 2024: Final commentary and video
News публикувана на: 30.12.2024
Go back
The Festival of Opera and Ballet Art - Stara Zagora /FOBI/ took place from 21 November to 4 December 2024 with the participation of the hosts from the State Opera - Stara Zagora, Sofia Opera and Ballet, State Opera - Plovdiv, National Music Theatre "Stefan Makedonski", National Museum "Boris Hristov", National Ballet of El Salvador and one independent project.
The main programme contained 10 events:
- 4 opera performances / two of Gianni Schicchi and The Samodivas by Giacomo Puccini, The Mercy of Titus by W.A. Mozart and Das Rheingold by Richard Wagner;
- 3 ballet performances /two of "Coppélia" by Leo Delibes and one concerto/;
- 2 concerts /"Bulgarian Basses" and "Dialogue with Solitude"/;
- 1 musical /"The Misunderstood Civilization" by Decho Taralezhkov/
The two productions of the hosts - the opera diptych Gianni Schicchi and The Samodivas by Puccini and Coppelia to music by Delibes were highly appreciated by the audience and critics. Just one more small step is needed towards making it a standard for host operas to present the classical ballet repertoire with live orchestral accompaniment.
The participation of the Sofia Opera and Ballet for the third consecutive year, with Wagner's Das Rheingold, represents the long-standing efforts of its management, in the person of Acad. Plamen Kartalov, to establish the Bulgarian capital as a key destination for the many admirers of the great German composer. And the guest appearance on the Stara Zagora stage is also a kind of appreciation of the organizers' efforts to present to the Bulgarian audience excellence in opera and ballet.
Deservedly, Vera Nemirova is among the most actively represented directors in FOBI. Her productions have provoked curiosity with staging decisions outside the routine. The list of titles, in itself, is telling: "Mayerber's The African Girl by the hosts from Stara Zagora, two productions by State Opera Plovdiv - Shostakovich's Katerina Izmailova 2019/and Mozart's The Mercy of Titus, and three by State Opera Varna - Kalman's The Countess Maritza/2021/, Tchaikovsky's The Queen of Spades /2022/, Wagner's The Flying Dutchman /2023/.
The National Music Theatre "Stefan Makedonski" and the National Museum "Boris Hristov" contributed to the celebration of important anniversaries related to significant events of national culture.
The ballet company of the National Ballet of El Salvador presented in a concert program the best in the classical dance tradition, refracted through the local culture, under the expert guidance of the Bulgarian dance teacher Rumen Rashev.
The programming of the art song deserves special attention. After reaching the audience three years ago with Franz Schubert's Winter Road cycle performed by Ivaylo Djurov and Denitsa Petrova, this year's edition of the festival presented pianist Alexandra Dicheva's independent project dedicated to the work of composer Todor Popov based on Bulgarian classical poets.
The accompanying programme included:
- The presentation of two books: 'Speech and Deed' with memoirs of the composer and conductor Konstantin Iliev and 'The Scenographer and Costume Designer Salvatore Russo. The Dream, the Way, the Reality" by prof. Flavia Papachena;
- presentation of the artist, poet and musician Valentin Donchevski;
- presentation of an exhibition dedicated to Kamen Chanev;
- the lecture "On the Lightness of Dance" by prof. Gabrielle Brandstetter.
54. Festival of Opera and Ballet Art is organized by the State Opera - Stara Zagora, with the support of the Culture Programme of the Municipality of Stara Zagora, the National Culture Fund and the Polish Cultural Institute.
The video collects the most intriguing moments from the past festival, in footage shot by Milen Botev and Plamen Asenov. To our faithful and demanding audience, we wish a prosperous and successful 2025, when the Stara Zagora Opera Theatre will round the impressive 100 years! Until new meetings and pleasant viewing!
https://youtu.be/7Gg7HqYNoc4