rasputin in russia opera by jay reise produced in moscow · in the horrifying final scene of the...

Rasputin in RussiaOpera by Jay Reise produced in MoscowOctober 13, 2008

"Rasputin," an opera with music and libretto by music professor Jay Reise received its Russianpremiere performances October 1-5, 2008 at the Helikon Opera in Moscow. Furtherperformances are scheduled for January 28 - February 1, 2009 (Tickets information:helikon.ru/tree/?lang=eng&id=7

Described at its New York premiere by the Washington Times as “a spellbinding, challengingand profoundly beautiful creation," “Rasputin” was commissioned by the late Beverly Sills andthe New York City Opera in 1988 as the Soviet Union was nearing its end. Now twenty yearsafter, Dmitry Bertman has produced and directed the opera in Moscow translating its lyrics intoRussian (Reise's preferred original choice). Bertman has wanted to stage the opera since itsAmerican premiere but only now, curiously enough coinciding with the legal rehabilitation of thetsar, has he been able to do so.

The opera is based on the notorious career of the so-called Mad Monk of Russia, GrigoryRasputin. Born in Siberia, Rasputin came from an underground Christian sect with rituals thatincluded flagellation and orgies. Rasputin gained the unquestioning support of the tsar andtsarina, Nicholas and Alexandra, by using hypnosis to relieve the sufferings of their hemophiliacyoung son, Alexei. Rasputin’s debauchery and apparent influence on the royal family helped todiscredit the tsarist government and contributed to the Russian Revolution in 1917.

Reise explained, "Although all the scenes in the opera are founded on events that actually tookplace, I relied more on the legend of Rasputin than the actual historical facts."

The cast of Russian superstars included Nikolay Galin in the role of Rasputin, NataliaZagorinskaya as Tsarina Alexandra, and Nikolay Dorozhkin as Tsar Nikolas II. Rasputin'sassassin, Prince Felix Yusupov, was played by Vasily Efimov. The musical director andconductor was Vladimir Ponkin.

The set consisted of gigantic Fabergé eggs nestled in egg crates highlighting the contrast betweenthe exquisite world of the aristocracy and the rough-hewn lives of the working class thatoverthrew it in 1918. A roller coaster of musical moods and emotions, enhanced by a spinningstage-set, ranged from the intimacy of the royal nursery to a zany cabaret to the brutalassassination of Rasputin. In the horrifying final scene of the opera the tsar and his family areexecuted accompanied by a raging Lenin, an infuriated crowd and a frenzied atonal orchestra.

Reise, who is a professor of music at the University of Pennsylvania, said the production was,"Everything I hoped it would be - and more. Director Dmitry Bertman has captured the spirit andtiming of both my music and libretto and infused it with many bold gestures as well as thousandsof wonderful details. The singers were marvelous and the orchestra played splendidly."

The Moscow Times said, "Reise's score ... underline[s] and reinforce[s] the dramatic events onstage. Especially effective is Reise's use of traditional tonality -- including quotes from PyotrTchaikovsky's ballet "Swan Lake" and the Russian imperial hymn -- for the music of Nicholasand Alexandra, as well as atonal dissonance to conjure up what he calls, in a program note, "thebrutal and chaotic new world of the 20th century."

Rasputin (Nikolay Galin)

Tsarina Alexandra Fedorovna (Natalia Zagorinskaya)and Rasputin (Nikolay Galin)

Court scene from the performance

Rasputin curtain calls

Composer Jay Reise