Onegin

Pyotr Tchaikovsky

Mariusz Kwiecień has had to withdraw from the production due to ill health. The role of Onegin will be sung by Stanislav Kuflyuk.

  • Act I

    63 min.

  • Intermission

    20 min.

  • Act II

    38 min.

  • Intermission

    25 min.

  • Act III

    33 min.

Duration: ca. 3 hrs

Lyrical scenes in three acts (seven scenes)
Libretto: Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Konstantin Shilovsky after Alexander Pushkin
World premiere: 29 March 1879, Maly Theatre, Moscow
Polish premiere: 4 May 1899, Teatr Wielki, Warsaw
Premiere of this production: 5 April 2002, Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera
In the original Russian with Polish surtitles

Whoever you are, whatever you have lost, you’ll never get rid of your shadow, of your emptiness – that’s what Pushkin’s hero seems to be telling us in Treliński’s penetrating staging. The silent spectre follows his every step. Like a disappointed angel, a repressed aspect of consciousness or a second observing his life’s mistakes. He toys with the hero. He magnetises the viewer. He craves contrasts. There are many polar extremes here, intensifying the emotions on the principle of complimentary opposition. Hollow spaces are pierced by sharp light, and corpse faces march to the beat of a vigorous polonaise. Disturbing, powerful, memorable. With the nostalgically recurring musical theme, arresting the flow of life, clash the red apples, vibrant like symbols of temptation. The disenchanted Onegin is a type of a hero often present in Treliński’s shows, reflecting someone on the margins of reality. He’s a superfluous man who has lost the momentum of life, his sense of astonishment, wonder, meaning. Perhaps he started out with a whole bundle of dreams, but he ends up with emptiness. The poignant theme of desolation in this staging, enhanced by the wonderful set by Boris Kudlička, accompanies one after the show like that silent spectre. Unforgettable.

Cast

Credits

Chorus and Orchestra of the Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera
Polish National Ballet
Mimes and models

Sponsors

  • Patron of Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera

  • Partners of Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera

  • Logo Perlage
  • Logo Sisley
  • Logo Albert Riele