The 54th Festival of Opera and Ballet Arts - Stara Zagora started

The Stara Zagora Opera opened the 54th edition of the Festival of Opera and Ballet Arts on November 21 with a premiere. In the year of Puccini, the theatre presents to the audience an unusual combination of two of his one-act operas – his first score "Le Villi" and one of his last works, "Gianni Schicchi." The production is directed by Polish director Michał Znaniecki. Vladimir Kiradzhiev is the conductor.

The opera "Le Villi" has been unfairly neglected since its creation. Puccini took part in a music competition with it, but did not win it not because of the quality of the music, but due to his illegible handwriting. To this day, the opera is rarely staged, and tonight marks its first-ever performance in Bulgaria.

Michał Znaniecki, the director, said: "This is the first time I’m staging Le Villi. I worked on it during my studies at La Scala in Milan. I’m not a Puccini director because Puccini is a genius who doesn't need a director—his works are complete and entirely perfect. That's why I've always refused to direct Tosca or La Bohème. Le Villi was part of my early plans, but they didn't materialize because I didn’t have access to a ballet. Here in Stara Zagora, however, you have a ballet company, which is one of the most significant in Bulgaria, Romania, and Greece in terms of energy and quality."

Znaniecki has, however, altered the order of the works, starting his production with Gianni Schicchi and saving Le Villi for the evening's finale. He successfully weaves the two operas into a cohesive concept, with the baritone serving as the connecting figure. This decision is particularly effective when that role is in the hands of an artist like Kiril Manolov.

The festival runs from 21 November to 4 December, 2024.