The Ukrainian National Opera’s traditional spring tour of Europe has been a conspicuous element in the cultural life of Germany, France, Switzerland, Denmark, and other countries. This year the highlight of the tour is Verdi’s Aida, which was performed 6 times with great success in various cities of Denmark. The very number of performances points to keen public interest not only in this opera, which is, of course, in the repertoire of many European companies, but primarily in the Kyiv troupe: it has a stable creative reputation in Denmark (since 1996, the Kyiv company has performed a number of classical operas in Denmark, including Mussorgsky’s Boris Godunov, starring Anatoly Kocherha; Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin and The Queen of Spades; Borodin’s Prince Igor; Verdi’s Rigoletto and Puccini’s La Boheme). This tour had been long expected, because every performance played to packed houses, with every one of the 2,000-3,500 seats occupied.
Denmark is a comparatively small country by European standards, but it boasts a dynamic cultural life and is eager to learn about other countries’ creative achievements. There is a very active integrative process in this sphere, as evidenced by the spring season billboards in the cities visited by the Ukrainian National Opera, promoting Enrique Iglesias, the Bonn Symphony Orchestra, the Beijing National Opera, and exotic African groups that play native music practically unknown in Europe.
Danish cultural policy is further proof that there is no such thing as cultural provincialism in Western Europe. Unique exhibits are found in the capital and practically every industrial center, including exhibits of the Cairo Archaeological Museum, ballets and operas staged by the Mariinsky Theater of St. Petersburg, concerts by famous symphony and chamber orchestras from London and Vienna. I stress this fact because some Ukrainian periodicals have been saying lately that the National Opera’s tour is being held on the outskirts of Europe. This is far from true: the latest tour began in Argus, the second largest city after Copenhagen and a major cultural and university center. The start of the tour proved successful: the concert hall was packed on both nights and both performances with different casts were enthusiastically received by the habitually aloof Danish public, which applauded every aria. At the end the Danes greeted the soloists, conductor Volodymyr Kozhukhar, and stage director Dmytro Hnatiuk with a stormy standing ovation. One of the performances was attended by Natalia Zarudna, the newly appointed Ukrainian ambassador. It was a very pleasant surprise, because the fine tradition of Ukrainian diplomats attending concerts by touring Ukrainian ensembles was discarded long ago. The resumption of the Ukrainian diplomatic mission in Denmark and its Danish counterpart in Ukraine is undoubtedly an important event in the economic, political, and cultural life of both countries. Our company will tour Denmark next year and there are plans for further creative contacts.
Our performances were a success in other Danish cities and towns: Albertslund, Alborg, Horning, and Vejle. Verdi’s Aida, one of the world’s operatic masterpieces, allows the Ukrainian company to reveal its fullest creative potential, which is enhanced by soloists with exceptional voices. This spring the Danish public realized that Kyiv is famous not only for boxers, soccer players, Eurovision winner Ruslana, the Orange Revolution, but also for its first-class operatic troupe, which is highly regarded in many countries. Colorful vocal and dramatic renditions, voices answering all Verdi standards in terms of range and beauty were demonstrated by Kyiv Opera soloists Svitlana Dobronravova and Tetiana Anisimova in the title role; Anzhelina Shvachka and Tetiana Pimenova (Amneris), Oleksandr Vostriakov and Oleksandr Hurets (Rhadames), Roman Maiboroda and Ivan Ponomarenko (Amonasro), Bohdan Taras (High Priest), Vasyl Kalybabiuk (King of Egypt), Olha Nahorna (High Priestess), and Stefan Fitsych (Messenger). Without analyzing the performance of each singer, I would like to note the common denominator of all six performances: resounding success. The Kyiv singers conferred on the very demanding Danish opera buffs the pleasure of a classical production of a classic opera. This is a rare phenomenon these days because over the past several years, operatic art has experienced a tangible deformation courtesy of stage directors who have been presenting modern interpretations of Verdi, Puccini, Leoncavallo, and Donizetti.
Despite the tight schedule (foreign impresarios know how to make the most of hired talent), the Ukrainian singers showed exceptional mastery and vocal culture, fully demonstrating the opera’s musical dramaturgy, something few other companies can boast. Every performance, as usual, was highlighted by the Kyiv Opera Choir (chief conductor: Lev Venedyktov), which currently ranks with the world’s best, as well as by the symphony orchestra whose excellent performance is invariably praised by critics. In Denmark we not only performed one of the best operas in our repertoire, but also demonstrated the superb level of the modern Ukrainian vocal school. The cast displayed mastery and a truly European level, thus setting the groundwork for the further integration of the National Opera of Ukraine into European music life. There was another noteworthy aspect of this springtime operatic tour. Whereas in the past we mostly performed Russian composers in Europe (e.g., Mussorgsky, Tchaikovsky, Borodin, Shostakovich, Prokofiev), which are very popular with foreign opera buffs, and because the Kyiv Opera was considered one of the best expounders of their works in the Slavic world, today impresarios are inviting us more often to perform classical European pieces, as evidenced by the tour of Denmark with Aida. Before long, opera devotees in Spain will be enjoying another gem from the repertoire of the National Opera of Ukraine, Puccini’s Turandot. The tour of Spain is scheduled for April and May and will include 18 performances.
