Autumn 2017 with Welsh National Opera is a truly international affair, be that through the German Romantic operetta of Johann Strauss’ Die Fledermaus or the grand Czech orchestration of Janacek’s final opera From the House of the Dead. Perhaps most significant, however, is a production of Mussorgsky’s Khovanshchina, performed as part of R17, a series of performances and other artistic events across Wales to mark the centenary of the Russian Revolution.
Khovanshchina is an opera set in 17th century Russia. WNO artistic director David Pountney emphasises its relevance to the modern day, from its portrayal of Russian oligarchs as war lords to the priest Dosifei’s representation of religious fundamentalism. ‘The Khovanskys are “oligarchs” in modern parlance, beyond the reach of the government, backed up by their own private army of “police”,’ he explains. ‘[Nowadays, you have] Putin, a product of the secret services, [who] has that force to back him up.’
Pountney believes that due to opera’s ability to represent ideas on a grand scale, this will be a performance that entices people interested in politics and history as much as it does music lovers. ‘Khovanschina gives theatrical form to political ideas in an exceptionally exciting and impassioned form. In our case, we have hinted in the production at several eras of Russian politics from the 17th century to the present day.’
The centenary of the Russian Revolution, an event also commemorated at this year’s BBC Proms, is something that Pountney is pleased to see acknowledged across Wales this year. ‘It is wonderful to see Wales coming together to deal with such a significant issue as the Russian revolution. Wales was, as one of the cradles of British socialism, involved with the Revolution right from the start.’ At no point however, does he pretend that the Revolution is an easy period of history to commemorate, due to the difficulty of balancing the positives of reform and social benefits with the negatives of mass murder and repression associated with the era. At the very least though, it is a work worthy of such a grand scale of production; ‘It would be inappropriate to celebrate it, but to commemorate it and acknowledge its significance is entirely justified.’
On Tour, Sat 23 Sept – Sat 2 Dec. Tickets: prices vary. Info: www.wno.org.uk
words ALEC EVANS