This weekend, the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre will premiere Amilcare Ponchielli's opera "Lithuanians" (it. "I Lituani"). The creators of the production call this opera a song of freedom, and reveal the secret messages awaiting the premiere audience.
"We live in a global world, which means that there is a great danger of our identity disappearing. The opera "Lithuanians" speaks precisely about the values that help strengthen our identity and resilience: freedom, sacrifice, love for the homeland. These are the values that strengthen our nation from within in the face of current threats," – emphasizes Laima Vilimienė, general manager of the LNOBT.
The Production Was Created by an International Team
The creation of a production of an Italian opera of great significance to Lithuanians was entrusted to an international team of artists. The Italian Ambassador to Lithuania, Emanuele de Maigret, who currently also heads the Italian Cultural Institute in Vilnius, emphasized that it would be difficult to imagine a better opportunity to strengthen cultural relations between Italy and Lithuania than the production of A. Ponchielli's opera "Lithuanians".
"The fact that a director of such stature as Hugo de Ana and a conductor of such stature as Gianluca Marcianò are currently working at the Lithuanian Theatre proves how consistently Italy cares about promoting its culture in foreign countries," – said the ambassador.
The premiere's director, set and costume designer Hugo de Ana, who was born in Argentina, was reluctant to talk much about what specifically the audience will see when the curtain rises on the theatre stage this Friday, as he seeks to maintain the intrigue until the opening night. However, he did not hide the gigantic efforts made by the entire company.
"For the composer A. Ponchielli in this opera, as, for example, for Giuseppe Verdi in his "Nabucco", the most important thing was to express the concept of homeland and freedom through music. And this became a huge responsibility for all of us. Every day we start our work at eight in the morning, finish at ten in the evening and still it seems that we don't have time for anything – this opera is so complex and enriched with various nuances.
It is no coincidence that between individual acts of the opera you will see short quotes from Adam Mickiewicz's poem "Konrad Wallenrod": this work, which became the basis for the libretto of the opera "Lithuanians", was a cornerstone work of world literature of the 19th century, inspiring even revolutionaries in distant Cuba to rebel against the Spanish colonists," – recalls H. De Ana.
He is assisted in creating the production in Vilnius by lighting designer Valerio Alfieri, video projection designer Sergio Metalli, and choreography and movement director Michele Cosentino.
The Most Authentic Version of the Opera
The premiere's music director, Italian conductor Gianluca Marcianò, revealed that the opera's score itself also required effort: "In the surviving manuscript of A. Ponchielli, some parts of the opera were removed, some were later included again, and some we ourselves, in consultation with the Ponchielli Theatre in Cremona, brought back into the opera. Therefore, we can reasonably claim that the version of "Lithuanian" that the audience will hear at the premiere in Vilnius will be the most authentic and complete," – claims G. Marcianò.
The conductor was pleased with the powerful LNOBT orchestra and especially the theatre choir led by maestro Česlovas Radžiūnas, who will appear as a separate independent character in this opera.
"In general, the opera "Lithuanians" is like a song of freedom, and we Italians feel privileged to be able to perform it together with Lithuanians. Also, the fact that one of the performers of the main role of Corrado at the premiere will be the Ukrainian tenor Denys Pivnitskyi is also a message about a song of freedom that we would like to convey to everyone," – says G. Marcianò.
Another singer to perform the role of Corrado in the premiere performances will be the famous Lithuanian soloist Kristian Benedikt. The principal female role of Aldona will be sung by opera soloists Viktorija Miškūnaitė and Sandra Janušaitė, Albano – by Tadas Girininkas and Liudas Norvaišas, Arnoldo – by Eugenijus Chrebtovas and Steponas Zonys, and Vitoldo by Konstantin Toman and Alfredas Miniotas.
The Premiere's Patron is the Vilnius Club
The appearance of the production of "Lithuanians" on the LNOBT stage was supported by the members of the Vilnius Club, and the upcoming premiere is now eagerly awaited by them. Vilius Bernatonis, Chairman of the Board of the Vilnius Club Foundation, is pleased that all members of the Club contributed to the emergence of this wonderful artistic project to the best of their ability.
"Our goal is to become a centre of patronage in Vilnius. Absolutely all members of the Vilnius Club contributed to the project of the production of "Lithuanians", and we are extremely proud that one of them is the former prima donna of the Chicago Lithuanian Opera, Nerija Linkevičiūtė-Kasparienė, who performed the role of Aldona in the 1981 premiere of "Lithuanians" in Chicago," – emphasized V. Bernatonis.
The first premiere performance of the production of "Lithuanians" will be performed on the LNOBT stage on the evening of 5 September. Theatre audiences will have the opportunity to listen to the classical opera that makes Lithuania famous until September 12.
