Tchaikovsky's "Mazeppa" to premiere at Metropolitan Opera (02/26/06)

Tchaikovsky's "Mazeppa" to premiere at Metropolitan Opera

NEW YORK - Peter Tchaikovsky's "Mazeppa," an opera in three acts, will premiere at New York's Metropolitan Opera on March 6. Composed by Tchaikovsky and written by Tchaikovsky and V.P. Burenin in 1881, "Mazeppa" tells the story of love and betrayal between Ukrainian Hetman Ivan Mazepa and his goddaughter Maria, daughter of Kochubei.

The libretto is based on Alexander Pushkin's epic poem "Poltava," which details the historical Battle of Poltava, when Tsar Peter the Great defeated Swedish King Charles XII and Hetman Mazepa. The opera premiered in Moscow and St. Petersburg in 1884 and has remained in the repertoire of the Mariinsky Theater from that time.

Tchaikovsky, considered one of the greatest Russian composers of the 19th century, was a descendent, on his father's side, of an old Kozak family, Chaika. He frequently visited Kamianka, in the Chyhyryn area, to visit his sister and lived in Nyzy, near Sumy, in 1876-1879. Some 30 of his works have Ukrainian subjects or incorporate Ukrainian folk melodies, among them "Mazeppa," "Night before Christmas" (or "Vakula the Smith," based on the story by Nikolai Gogol), Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 1 in B-flat Minor and the "1812 Overture."

"Mazeppa," according to The Metropolitan Opera Guild, is the tragic story of a young woman whose powerful love for the "17th century Ukrainian separatist" draws her into a catastrophic downward spiral. In Act 1, the elderly Mazepa (1640-1709) asks Kochubei for his young daughter's hand in marriage. The later refuses, and Mazepa, enraged, demands that Maria choose between him and her father. She chooses Mazepa, and leaves her family home. Kochubei decides to tell Tsar Peter the Great of Mazepa's plan to align himself with Swedish King Charles XII. Andrei, a young boy desperately in love with Maria, offers to denounce Hetman Mazepa as well.

At the beginning of Act II, Kochubei, imprisoned, awaits execution. Mazepa, troubled by guilty visions and worried how Maria will react to her father's execution, tells her that he may soon ascend the throne of independent Ukraine. She assures him of her devotion. Lyubov, her mother, enters the palace and begs Maria to help save her father's life. When Maria realizes what has happened, overcome by guilt, she faints. By the time she and her mother reach the scaffold, they are too late to stop the execution.

In Act III, a defeated Mazepa is challenged to a duel by young Andrei. Mazepa shoots the boy, who falls wounded. Maria, mad with grief over the death of her father, comes upon the wounded Andrei. She cradles him in her arms as if a sleeping child and sings him a lullaby. He dies with a last farewell on his lips as she gently rocks him in her lap.

The role of Maria is performed by soprano Olga Guryakova, Lyubov by mezzo-soprano Larissa Diadkova, Andrei by tenor Oleg Balashov, Mazeppa by baritone Nikolai Putilin and Kochubei by bass Paata Burchuladze.

Cast changes later in the run of "Mazeppa" will include Elena Evseeva as Maria (March 22), Olga Savova as Lyubov (March 22), Victor Chernomortsev as Mazeppa (March 27), and Mikhail Kit as Kochubey (March 27).

The opera is conducted by Valery Gergiev; "Mazeppa" is the third Metropolitan Opera premiere conducted by Maestro Gergiev, who also serves as the Met's principal guest conductor. The Kirov Opera (today known as the Mariinsky Theater), conducted by its artistic director Maestro Gergiev, first brought "Mazeppa" to the Metropolitan Opera House as part of a 1998 tour.

The director of the Met's production of "Mazeppa" is Yuri Alexandrov; set design is by George Tsypin. Others involved in the production are costume designer Tatiana Noginova, choreographer Sergei Gritsai and lighting designer Gleb Filshtinsky.

The approximate running time for "Mazeppa" is 3 hours, 50 minutes. Performances are scheduled through March 30.

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