Having revealed the plans for the upcoming season at the beginning of the summer, when autumn came, the Vilnius City Opera team invited the press representatives to an extraordinary meeting... in the basement. It was in the basement of the Congress Palace - the long-term home of the VCO, once like a children's bunker, and today, like a parent's nest from which one has to move, that the first founders gathered: the troupe's inspiration Dalia Ibelhauptaitė, maestro Gintaras Rinkevičius, costume designer Juozas Statkevičius and opera soloists Asmik Grigorian, Edgaras Montvid, and Laimonas Pautienius. The biggest news of the VCO season was the premiere of "The Queen of Spades" in February, which after a five-year break brings back not only J. Statkevičius' costume skills, but also A. Grigorian, who triumphed in Salzburg, and also news that many have not heard yet: VCO performances are forced to move from the Congress Palace hall. Queen of Spades will be the last performances on this stage.
After years of fighting with the Congress Palace premises, which were not suitable for performances, the creators of the VCO had already managed to curb them in their own way, but fate continues to create new challenges for the troupe: "Twelve years have passed here and from a complete alternative, which was unheard of in opera back then, we have become a confident leader in our field , and the soloists singing with us have conquered the great stages of the world. The only spot that hasn't changed so far was this hall, with the parquet floor rising every year, brutally worn hall chairs, spectators fainting from the heat and non-existent backstage. However, it was the place where a generation of soloists of the highest professionalism grew up and created stage roles, in whose footsteps the youth are following today.
It's a shame that people grow and buildings don't. It is a pity that in more than a decade, Vilnius has not built a new multifunctional concert hall, any theater hall, and the soon-to-be-opened Modern Art Museum was built with private funds. Vilnius City Opera would not have survived as long without huge support and private funds. This is how we say goodbye to our past here today and move out into complete obscurity, because there is no other hall in Vilnius that can accommodate more than 1000 spectators and is acoustically adapted to classical music. And how operas and fantastic voices of soloists will sound in spaces that require sound reinforcement - only God knows..." said D. Ibelhauptaitė. In this way, from 2019 in March, the "bohemians" will cozy up to the Compensa concert hall, where the performers of G. Puccini's "Tosca" and C. Saint-Saëns' "Samson and Delilah" will be the first to enter.
Maestro Gintaras Rinkevičius said that intensive work is already underway on the reconstruction of the hall, he believes that after it all the instruments will sound even more beautiful: "The most beautiful instrument is the human voice. Not because our soloists will sing more beautifully, they already sing well, but because we will work on the technical requirements of the hall's acoustics, which, if professionally fulfilled, should surround the audience with an even richer and more pleasant sound, in which all the details, all the overtones stand out... Well, "Queen of Spades" is a special beauty, which is a great pleasure and challenge to touch every time."
But before moving out, the audience is in for some great encounters with their favorite pieces. The first of them is October 25-28. "Onegin" and with it Edgar Montvid, who recently captivated the critics at the Glyndebourne Festival, created Lenski both at this prestigious event and in at least five different productions. However, no one can surpass Edgar's bespectacled Lenskis from Vilnius with humor and sensitivity, who wore the real watermelon on stage. In the performances we will also see Laimonas Pautienias working in Germany, Tadas Girininkas returning from Nuremberg, Ieva Prudnikovaitė preparing memorable roles in Wuppertal, charismatic Jovitas Vaškevičiūtė, Rafailas Karpis and many others...
This piece by P. Tchaikovsky is one of the troupe's most beloved, and is especially highly anticipated by the LNOBT choir, which is returning to continue its long-standing creative partnership. It was in "Onegin" that this team created the most memorable, cinematically detailed roles. In addition, even the musicians of the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra can appear here, the first two acts with the maestro at the forefront, wearing homemade, training clothes. These musicians are an integral part of the "bohemian" creativity, without which, as D. Ibelhauptaitė has repeatedly mentioned, the kind of operas we see on the Congress stage would never have taken place.
The two works of P. Tchaikovsky that will be performed in the season are connected by two family lines. The first is the return of designer Juozas Statkevičius after a five-year break with Queen of Spades. At that time, the costume designer of "Onegin" not only created new clothes, but also cleverly adapted the found authentic clothes of the Soviet era, and even appeared on stage in the role of a New York fashion designer at the premieres! Of course, this time there will be new and different challenges waiting for him, probably costing many long hours of hard work... Well, we will find out later how it will be with the attraction of the stage.
The second line is doubly familial. "Queen of Spades" returns Asmik Grigorian to Lithuania, and with her - her mother, the legendary opera prima donna Irena Milkevičiūtė. Although very little time has passed, today there are few who have not heard about A. Grigorian's success in Salzburg, and at the same time, her extraordinary professional leap throughout the world of opera. Having overcome the tasks set for herself one after another, Asmik has also set one personal desire related to her mother: "Singing with my mother is a great happiness for me. I have a secret dream and belief that the role of the Countess will give my mother new inspiration to create new repertoire and character roles." It was in the premieres of "Onegin" that three generations of this family "fit" together on stage for the first time: I. Milkevičiūtė, A. Grigorian and her son Nojus. Does this mean that even more surprises await the audience in "Lady of Spades"? Maybe. However, it is well known that the mezzo-soprano Jurgita Adamonytė and Kostas Smoriginas, who charmed the audience of the Bregenz festival this summer, will also join the charming ladies.
"We are especially happy that the loyal soloists of our troupe, who have reached world heights, are returning this year in larger numbers than ever. Edgar Montvidas appears in the roles of Lenskis and Faust, Justina Gringytė - in Carmen and Dalila, Kostas Smoriginas - in even three roles: Tomskis in "Lady of Spades", Dagon's knight in "Samson and Dalila", and in March together with Merūnas Vitulskis, he will debut in "Tosca". Almas Švilpa, who recently impressed Deutsche Opera in Berlin, returns to the role of Mephistopheles, and Vida Miknevičiūtė will visit us before her performances at the Berlin Staatsoper to play the part of Margarita. In May, there will also be an extraordinary opportunity to hear Kristian Benedikt Samson, returning almost straight from the Metropolitan Opera. Of course, continuing the traditions, there will be no lack of young soloists in the performances, among them - Lenskis prepared by Edgar Davidovičius and Zakristijonas "Toska" by Roman Kudriašov, as well as wonderful artists of the Kaunas State Choir, who have been the musical backbone of VCO productions for many years now". - taught by D. Ibelhauptaitė.
Well, the last piece of candy was the news about new and intriguing collaborations between opera creators and representatives of visual arts, which "Bohemians" continue to inspire from the successful friendship of the last season with the painter Andrius Zakarauskas. It will soon be possible to see the first collaboration in the city of Vilnius - the posters for "Onegin" performances created by Ray Bartkaus. Stasys Eidrigevičius, another creator of exceptional drawings and a living legend of the theater poster, will create the poster for "Queen of Spades". Meanwhile, in the Museum of Modern Art, opening in October, it will be possible to find several works initiated by VCO: an installation of opera costumes will be created by sculptor Nerijus Erminas, and in the musical and visual plane, with the help of video artist Rimos Sakalauskas, Andriaus Zakarauskas' painting will come to life, once again inviting the painter and conductor Ričardas. Šumila with "Bohemian" soloists.
Well, everyone interested in electronic music is waiting for e-Karmen, who will return for the only time after a two-year hiatus.
