Ruse State Opera
Ruse State Opera
As early as the 19th century, temporary opera, choral and symphonic ensembles began to form in Rousse as a result of the serious encounter with the European musical culture, which reached Rousse through the Danube River. There are performances and fragments of various titles with the participation of various choral formations and instrumental ensembles, some of which show strong ambitions to create serious opera art, such as Wagner's “Tannhäuser” (1901), „Ernani“ by Verdi (1904), "Faust" by Gounod (1910), etc.
The first serious and permanent structure, which performs opera music was created in 1891 by Atanas Paunov and Triffon P. Triffonov - Music Society "Lyra". Later in the city are formed various private musical and opera companies, which with different success present some famous titles from the world opera literature and managed to arouse the interest of the people of Rousse to the opera theater.
As a result of the increasingly popular opera genre, in 1919, was founded an Opera Society - the institution that after various transformations we now know as State Opera - Rousse. The conductors of the compositions are Dimitar Ivanov and Yordan Minkov, and for the stage presence Bacho Kiro is extremely helpful. The first premiere is on 23rd April 1919 - the opera "Kamen and Tsena" by Ivan Ivanov.
In the first years, dozens of performances by Bulgarian composers (many of which are forgotten today), such as "Tahirbegovitsa" by Dimitar Hadjigeorgiev and „Gergana“ from Maestro Georgi Atanassov - a title that is due to his interest several times in the period 1929-1947, but also various operettas such as “Corneville's Bells”, “The King's Pig”, “Strong as a Turk”, and so on. Realizing the fact that serious operative activity is very difficult (through which over the years The Opera Society had to stop its activity several times), as a result of the new state policy after 1945, in 1949 the Society was nationalized and transformed into a "Public Opera - Rousse ". The first premiere of the already state opera is "La Traviata" by Verdi - on November 27, 1949. The conductor Konstantin Iliev, stage designing artist Assen Popov and the stage director Dragan Kardzhiev left permanent traces in the development of the theater.
In his first years as a state institution, Rousse Opera House is under common administrative management with the Rousse Theater and is housed in the Profitable Building. In 1952, after a successful performance a year earlier in the review of opera theaters in Sofia with "Don Pasquale" by Donizetti, Rousse Opera is now a completely independent administrative unit and its first director as such is George Chendov.
By 1954, the main conductors of the Rousse Philharmonic Orchestra (Konstantin Iliev, Dobrin Petkov, Ruslan Raychev) were also conductors of the Rousse Opera, from the period 1954-1955 Rousse Opera received its first major conductor - Romeo Raychev. In the following decades, Bulgarian musicians such as the conductors Boris Hinchev, Michail Angelov, Dimitar Manolov, Ivan Filev, Vesselin Baychev, Milen Nachev, Methodi Matakiev, Georgi Dimitrov, Nayden Todorov work; stage directors Dragan Kardjiev, Mihail Hadjimishev, Evgeni Nemirov, Dimitar Uzunov, Stefan Trifonov, Avram Georgiev, Plamen Kartalov, Pavel Gerdjikov, Boyko Bogdanov, Ursula Horner, Ognian Draganov; Choreographers Assen Manolov, Margarita Arnaoudova, Assen Gavrilov, Petar Lukanov, Hikmed Mehmedov, Silvia Tomova; the scenographers Assen Popov, Ani Hadjimisheva, Petar Popov, Venera Nasldennikova, Dimitar Kirov, Maria Trendafilova, Ivan Savov, Radostin and Boyana Chomakovi, Tsvetana and Boris Stoynovi; the choirmasters Atanas Dimitrov, Tomina Sidova, Hristo Stoev and Steliana Dimitrova.
Season 1955-1956 is one of the key moments in the history of the Rousse Opera. In 1955 The Rousse Opera performed its season in Sofia with the titles "Les pêcheurs de perles" (The Pearl Fishers), "Cavalleria rusticana", Rigoletto, “Die Entführung aus dem Serail” and the ballet "Rivals" by Paul Härtel. In the same year, the new opera house - the emblem of the city of Rousse, where the State Opera - Rousse is housed until today, was built. The first premiere in the new opera house is on February 5, 1956 - the opera "Evgeni Onegin" by Tchaikovsky.
In 1958 the Rousse Opera began, with decades of cooperation with the Romanian National Opera in Bucharest, and a year later, The Union of Composers in Moscow, as a result of which a series of titles of Russian and Soviet composers (Prokofiev, Hrennikov, Stravinsky, Shostakovich) were performed in Rousse, most of them for the first time in Bulgaria. The culmination of this collaboration was also the premiere in 1965 of the special edition of the opera "Katerina Izmaylova" by Dmitry Shostakovich. Shostakovitch himself takes an active part in the preparation of the show and works closely with conductor Romeo Raychev and stage director Evgeni Nemirov. As a result and as a gratitude for Shostakovich's collaboration with the Rousse Opera and Rousse Philharmonic Orchestra, the composer becomes an honorary citizen of the city of Rousse.
The Rousse Opera works actively for the popularization of the Bulgarian opera. Opera titles such as Tsar Kaloyan by P. Vladigerov, Yana's nine brothers from L. Pipkov, Ioannis Rex and Maria Dessislava by P. Hadjiev, Deer Kingdom by K. Iliev, The Blue bird by S. Pironkov or ballets such as Goat`s horn by Kr. Kyurkchiyski and Nestinarka by M. Goleminov are just some of the Bulgarian titles in the repertoire of the troupe over the years. During the 50s and 60s of the 20th century, a remarkable trio gains great national and international acclaim and provokes great public recognition for State opera - Rousse - three of the most prominent soloists in her history - Penka Marinova, Nikolay Zdravkov and Kiril Krastev. In 2011 the Opera House opened a bas-relief dedicated to them - The Star Trio. Besides the Trio, among the remarkable Bulgarian artists, who form the idea of the high artistic level of the theater and build its international authority are: Ivan Dimov, Snezhina Yakimova, Mimi Nikolova, Anna Angelova, Anastas Anastassov, Stefan Dimitrov, Maria Ventseslavova, Penka Dilova, Stefka Evstatieva, Ivan Konsulov, Ivan Kyurkchiev, Emilia Boteva, Galya Gorcheva, Mariana Tsvetkova, Orlin Anastassov, Martin Tsonev, Ventseslav Anastassov. With it’s intense creative life, Rousse Opera has always been attractive for stars of the world. On it’s stage, artists such as Elena Nikolay, Hristo Brumbarov, Todor Mazarov, Nikolay Gyaurov, Nikola Giuzelev, Rayna Kabaivanska, Ghena Dimitrova, Anna Tomova-Sintova, Darina Takova, Alissa Zinovieva, Nicolae Herlia, Vladimir Atlantov, Gloria Lindh, Sylvia Shash, Ava Cooper, Zinaida Palli, Peter Glossop, Jorg Schneider, Mario Malannini, Marzio Jossi, Leo Nucci, Johannes Martin Krenzle, Octav Enigarescu, Pompey Herastjanu; conductors and stage directors such as Ward Nessen, Mark Hermler, Richard Glasup, Conrad Leitner, Jon Runescu, Natalia Sats, Manfred Straubbe, Gian Gianotti, Ursula Horner, Matthias Vogt, Vera Nemirova; choreographers such as Giancarlo Vantaggio, Vitautas Grivitsas, Viktor Vlasse, Antal Fodor, Alain Bernard.
The rich creative potential of the different staff - orchestra, choir, ballet, soloists and the longstanding collaboration with the most famous names of the Bulgarian and world opera art, make State Opera - Rousse one of the leading and avant-garde opera theaters in Bulgaria. The repertoire of the theater has a wide stylistic and genre range. In it, over the years, besides the traditional works of the world opera and ballet classics, there are a large number of contemporary Bulgarian and foreign titles, which were first introduced in Bulgaria.
The Rousse Opera holds recordings in the gold fund of Bulgarian National Radio and Bulgarian National Television. It has participated in international festivals in Bulgaria and abroad - Switzerland, Austria, Germany, France, Italy, Romania and others.
In 1999, the Rousse Public Opera and the State Philharmonic Orchestra - Rousse are united in one institution, which is initially called Opera-Philharmonic Society - Rousse and in 2010 State Opera - Rousse.
The opera received the Crystal Lyre Prize a few times through the years – 2003, 2004, 2006, 2012, 2014. In 2012 State Opera - Rousse was honored with the Crystal Lyre Prize again for the production of the opera „The Nose“ by Shostakovich and after the vote of the listeners of "Allegro Vivace" at the Bulgarian National Radio in 2015, the opera is awarded the "Ensemble of the Year" prize and “Rousse” Prize.
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