On April 5, 6 and 19, 2024, the Primorsky Stage of the Mariinsky Theatre will present its premiere production of the lightest of Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s operas, Iolanta.
Iolanta is the composer’s last opera. It is rightfully included in the list of the most popular Russian chamber operas. Tchaikovsky was once looking for a subject for a short lyrical performance and paid attention to the one-act play Kong Renés Datter (King René’s Daughter) by the Danish poet Henrik Hertz. According to the plot the congenitally blind princess Iolanthe does not understand that she is blind because King René has ordered that no word be said about eyesight or light in his palace. However, Iolanthe’s love, readiness to sacrifice herself and passionate desire to see the light can cure her.
Inspired by that touching story, Pyotr Tchaikovsky asked his brother Modest Tchaikovsky to write the libretto. “The plot of Iolanta enchanted me with its poetry, its freshness and a wealth of lyrical moments. I immediately promised myself that I should someday set it to music,” the composer remembered. He was hard at work on the opera from July till December 1891. On December 6, 1892, the world premiere of Iolanta took place together with the composer’s ballet The Nutcracker at the Mariinsky Theatre.
The new staging is being prepared by Anna Shishkina, Stage Director of the Mariinsky Theatre, and Pyotr Okunev, Chief Designer of the Primorsky Stage. The roles will be performed by soloists of the Opera Company of the Primorsky Stage of the Mariinsky Theatre. The baton on the premiere days will be held by Pavel Smelkov, Principal Conductor of the Primorsky Stage.
