"Since childhood I dreamed of being an artist, but the role of the artist Kavarados is very close to me," - Merūnas Vitulskis, one of the most beloved Lithuanian tenors, reveals the secret of his childhood, intensively preparing for a special debut. On March 27-29, Vilnius City Opera with the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra, led by maestro Gintaras Rinkevičius, invites you to immerse yourself in the passions of Giacomo Puccini's opera "Tosca" and be the first to see Merūnas performing this role belonging to the professional Olympus of tenors. "Bohemians" will present one of their most outstanding performances this time in a new space - Vilnius concert hall "Compensa".
"The subtle beauty of Merūnos' voice, the color of timbre and the melody are just ideal for Puccini's music, so there is no doubt that he will be the absolute "nail" of this production, and this role will be one of the most important in his repertoire on many European stages. I hope that this will be the beginning of a new phase where he will complement his wonderful lyricism with dramatic details. I'm glad that he chose us for this debut, after all, the first preparation for a role is like a first love, you never forget it", Dalia Ibelhauptaitė, the director of the performance, shares her impressions.
The talented Georgian soloist Svetlana Kasyan, who impressed the audience and music connoisseurs during the premiere in Vilnius in 2016, returns as Tosca. Over the past couple of years, she has become the most sought-after Tosca on the opera stages of Rome, Venice, Warsaw, Switzerland and Finland. By the way, Svetlana was the youngest soloist who made her debut in this role at the age of 25, in her third year, and not just anywhere, but on one of the main stages of the opera world - the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow.
Dalia Ibelhauptaitė will transport the audience to the atmosphere of 1940s Italy torn by the Second World War and imbued with the ideology of terror in the new hall with a renewed line-up of soloists. These are the times when the powerful are declared righteous and the innocent guilty, dissenters fall into the mills of political terror, and any individuality, emotion or thought that does not conform to the philosophy of the "war winner" is destroyed. Almost half of the action of the opera takes place in the church, but no one comes there to pray, but to seek refuge. The opera explores themes that, according to the director, are relevant at all times. "I am worried about the question: what would you sacrifice first when the main goal of those persecuting you is to destroy your personality?" The sensitive topic of the forces of art and politics in "Tosca" is particularly important, a painful reminder that culture has always been one of the main tools of the government, used when it is "necessary" and as it "likes", and the involvement of prominent artists in politics is a bait for the people. And, as you know, art is most acceptable to every government when it is "safe", so those who are not on the way should be destroyed. Mills of political terror destroyed millions of people. And in "Tosca" there is simply an atomic charge - love and politics! Their collision has fatal consequences," says Dalia Ibelhauptaitė.
The portrait of the dark dictator Scarpia will be created again by Almas Švilpa, who lives in Germany and can proudly be proud of being the most suggestive performer of Mephistophelian characters on the "Bohemian" stage. No one can resist the inner strength and manipulative powers of the terrifying and horrifying Scarpia he creates. Along with Almas Švilpa, Latvian baritone Janis Apeinis will play the role of Skarpija, who will replace Kostas Smorigins, who is going to Stockholm and London for concerts with the Stockholm Philharmonic and BBC symphony orchestras.
A few more surprises will be Zakristijon performed by baritone Roman Kudriashov, who has not lived in Lithuania for several years and is honing his operatic talent in England, and the debut of young bassist Kšyštofs Bondarenko in the role of Angelotis.
Set designer Marijus Jacovskis, costume designer from the United Kingdom Jon Morrell and lighting designer Eugenijus Sabaliauskas help the director to create the atmosphere of fascist Italy. Jon Morrell has revealed that he drew inspiration not only from photos of movie stars of the time, but also from the images of New York mob bosses. Therefore, there will be no shortage of visual cinematic impressions and wonderful melodies!
Tickets for the opera "Tosca" are available for purchase tickets.lt
