The next production from the Met in the current Live in HD season, acclaimed English director Deborah Warner’s production of Tchaikovsky’s romantic tragedy Eugene Onegin, releases at Nouveau and select Ster-Kinekor cinemas from Saturday, 20 May, for limited screenings.
Soprano Anna Netrebko reprises one of her most acclaimed roles as Tatiana, the naïve heroine of Tchaikovsky’s opera, which the composer adapted from Pushkin’s classic verse novel. Peter Mattei stars opposite her as the self-confident title character, Eugene Onegin, who rejects Tatiana’s love until it’s too late. Other lead roles in the opera are sung by Alexey Dolgov as Onegin’s friend-turned-rival, Lenski, with Elena Maximova as Tatiana’s sister, Olga, and Štefan Kocán as Prince Gremin.
The opera, a revival of acclaimed English director Deborah Warner’s staging that opened the Met’s 2013-14 season, is conducted by Robin Ticciati, music director of Glyndebourne Festival Opera.
Russian mezzo-soprano Yelizaveta Lavrovskaya suggested Alexander Pushkin’s popular Russian work, Eugene Onegin, to Tchaikovsky as the basis of an opera. The composer originally felt the plot was not strong enough to sustain an opera. However, he kept thinking about the story as an opera and ultimately felt that if he used original verses from Pushkin’s novel, the opera could be a success. Since this story was well-known, Tchaikovsky reckoned the audience could fill in any details that were not included in the actual opera, similar to Puccini’s La Bohème.
Eugene Onegin premiered at the Moscow Conservatory in 1879. The opera became popular in Russia but was slow to gain popularity outside the country. The first performance in the US was at the Met in 1920. The premiere was initially sung in Italian; however, today’s productions are sung in its original Russian.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JTWC0QPtuw&feature=youtu.be
Screening times for Eugene Onegin at Nouveau (Rosebank Mall, JHB; Brooklyn Mall, PTA; SK Gateway Commercial, DBN; and V&A Waterfront, CT) and select Ster-Kinekor cinemas are as follows: 20 May at 17:00; 21 May at 14:30; 23 and 31 May at 11:30; and 30 May at 18:00. All the ticket discounts and benefits offered to members of the Ster-Kinekor loyalty programmes, SK Club, Discovery Vitality and Edgars Club, do apply for the Met: Live in HD screenings, where applicable.
The running time of Eugene Onegin is 3hrs and 45mins, including two intervals. The intermission programme and interviews are hosted by acclaimed soprano Renée Fleming.
For more information and to make bookings for Idomeneo, part of The Met: Live in HD season, visit www.sterkinekor.com. Follow us on Twitter @nouveaubuzz and on Facebook at Cinema Nouveau. For information, call Ticketline on 0861-Movies (668 437).
Now in its eleventh year, The Met: Live in HD series is screened in cinemas around the world, including exclusive releases at Nouveau and select Ster-Kinekor cinemas in South Africa. The Met’s current season presents ten opulent, full-length operas including five new productions, three of which are new to the series. The series has become a global phenomenon with more than 19 million tickets sold since its inception ten years ago.
These grand operas, filmed at the iconic Metropolitan Opera House, feature some of the world’s most talented singers, conductors, composers, orchestra musicians, stage directors, designers, visual artists, choreographers and dancers.
With these exclusive productions, Nouveau continues to give local audiences the opportunity to witness these spectacular ‘live’ opera productions broadcast on the big screen, in full digital projection, at various sites across South Africa. Past productions have received critical acclaim and gained recognition around the world.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEG9JfPWXs8&feature=youtu.be&list=RDcEG9JfPWXs8
