Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2024 All Rights Reserved

OPERA OPEN: The summer of opera stars in Plovdiv /17.06-20.07/

БНР Новини
Photo: Opera Open







Starting on 17 June, the City of Plovdiv is the venue of Opera Open, a brand new creative platform that provides a follow-up of the traditional Verdi Nights.The director of the Plovdiv Opera House Nina Naydenova seeks to help more young people become attracted to opera music. For this reason the event’s program features a few popular works. The start is given with Carl Orff’s scenic cantata Carmina Burana. It will be presented by the company of the Plovdiv State Opera with conductor Dian Chobanov. Based on this music score choreographer Boriana Sechanova has staged a dance show, one of the pearls in the repertoire of the Arabesque Ballet Company.

Ivan Angelov, a conductor who has guest-performed in some of the most prestigious opera theaters, is the artistic director of the Opera Open Festival:

„We are trying to organize an event that is a follow-up of the Verdi festival, with some new highlights though. Our venue is the Roman Theater in Plovdiv, one of the emblems of the city. We have included some quite imposing shows. One of them is a two-hour version of Wagner’s Twilight of the Gods. We have invited the star of the Bayreuth Festival Elisabet Strid. The young Swedish soprano has already sung in Germany, Latvia and the United States. This will be her debut in Bulgaria. The program includes a concert commemorating the 100th birth anniversary of Boris Christoff. The guest of this event will be basso Paata Burchuladze (Georgia), a celebrity of world opera appearing in leading theaters such as the Metropolitan and La Scala. He is the first Georgian proclaimed prince by the Russian Orthodox Church while the State Opera in Stuttgart has awarded him with the title Kammersänger. Of course, we honor the tradition and present a few Verdi works. One of them is the first night of Aida featuring an international celebrity – Chinese soprano Hui He. She is on the playbill of theaters from Vienna to New York. The soprano will sing in Plovdiv on 20 July. It goes without saying, Plovdiv audiences will also enjoy a few Bulgarian singers, notably, leading baritone Vladimir Stoyanov cast as Marquis of Posa in Don Carlos. In the show of Aida Chinese Hui He’s partner on stage will be Kamen Chanev, a tenor with a successful international career. I believe that the festival will live up to the expectations of audiences. We have sold tickets across Bulgaria. As to foreigners who come to the Roman Theater in Plovdiv, they are delighted and say that this magnificent stage should be used fully. This opera festival is a great opportunity to do so."

English Daniela Konstantinova 


The audio to this text features the following soundtracks:

1.  Fragment from Carmina Burana by Carl Orff

2.  Romance of Radames from Act I of Verdi’s Aida, soloist is Kamen Chanev with the Symphony Orchestra of the Bulgarian National Radio, conductor Luciano di Martino

3.  A duet from Act I of Don Carlos,soloists Nicola Ghiuselev and Vladimir Stoyanov









Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Christmas Hymn - a new Bulgarian song dedicated to Christmas

"Christmas Hymn" is among the newest Bulgarian songs dedicated to the Christmas holidays. It is performed by Georgi Kostadinov together with the young singers from the Diamond vocal group. The idea came to its author, Rafi Zhamakortsyan, a year ago,..

published on 12/25/24 10:05 AM
Rumiana Kotseva

The messages of world-famous Christmas songs reach the hearts of Bulgarians the fastest in Bulgarian

Christmas is a very special holiday for Bulgarian pop singer Rumiana Kotseva . For years in a row, she gathers her family and friends in her home - cherished moments that warm her days until next Christmas. This year, the pop singer gave an emotional..

published on 12/24/24 7:15 PM

A "Christmas Miracle" is here to hear

One of the latest releases is "Christmas Miracle" , performed by young singers Stefani Ilieva and Stoycho Stoychev, aka STOYCHOS. "With this duet we hope to reach people's hearts, so that everyone can identify with our message, get a feeling of..

published on 12/23/24 2:00 PM