Galym Akhmediyarov: True artistry is a must for an opera house

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NUR-SULTAN. KAZINFORM - Astana Opera’s general director, Honoured Worker of Kazakhstan Galym Akhmedyarov, spoke in an interview about the audience’s needs, new theatrical trends, and also about the opera house’s significance in the life of the city’s residents, Kazinform has learnt from the Astana Opera’s press service.

- What performances will start the year? Also, could you tell us how much the opera house is in demand today among the residents of the capital?

- I believe that today the opera house is an important part of the life of the residents of our city, a kind of cultural symbol of the capital. We are seeing the public demand for quality performances. I would like to note that Astana Opera is always sold out, and the performances find an ardent response in the theatregoers’ hearts. You know, the time has become much richer: five years is already an era. The next theatrical season will be significant for us: we will celebrate our 10th anniversary. A lot has happened during this time, but the main thing is that Nur-Sultan’s own viewership is being formed. That is, the colossal goal to which we strive – to create a cultural environment in the capital, to expand the circle of viewers – is close. In order to achieve such important tasks, we offer the audience opera and ballet performances and music programs at the highest level.

As for the opera house’s February playbill, it features our wonderful productions – Adolphe Adam’s ballet Le Corsaire on an adventure theme about the life of pirates, Raimondo Rebeck’s new original ballet Beethoven – Immortal – Love, Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, Yerkegali Rakhmadiyev’s opera Alpamys, Gioachino Rossini’s opera La Scala di Seta, as well as a number of musical evenings, which will be held in the Baiseitova Chamber Hall. Among them is the concert Asyl Arman, prepared for the 100th anniversary of Roza Baglanova.

- As you said, everything has become much richer. Now the intellectual flow is such that the requirements, the demands of society, the demands of the stage director are changing. How is this reflected in the creation of new productions?

- You do not always need to be led by new trends. We adhere to the rule that true artistry is a must for an opera house. You know, a pop performance is not something that can become a legacy. There is a certain foundation – meaning classics. Partly it is already widely represented in our repertoire. Of course, we do not deny experimental forms, but we always tell stage directors that everything must be meaningful and presented in a way that will be understandable and relevant after many years. Our main task is to educate the viewers. They may attend an opera or ballet for the first time and not immediately imbued with the theatre art, that is, this is not a quick journey. It is necessary that the audience itself develop a creative principle, and this is possible only through highly artistic performances.

- What is the company working on now and what new can the high art aficionados expect?

- The opera house, with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Sports, is preparing a number of interesting premieres, including Jiří Kylián’s ballet Sechs Tänze. As is commonly known, this year has been declared as The Year of Children, so we have included the premiere of Zholan Dastenov’s children’s opera Qanbaq Shal in our repertoire. This opera is about the adventures of the Old Man Tumbleweed (Qanbaq Shal), who, despite his very light weight, defeated huge giants, outwitted a cunning fox and freed the captives. Furthermore, the audience will see Sergei Prokofiev’s ballet Cinderella, staged by the excellent choreographer Raimondo Rebeck. Of course, the main gift for theatregoers will be the premiere of Yevgeny Brusilovsky’s national opera Yer Targyn. We try to bring something new to each production, to make it exclusive, with our own understanding of the essence of what is happening.

I am pleased to invite residents and guests of the capital to visit our premieres and exciting performances in order to become a part of this great celebration of high art!


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