Photos by Olga Kerelyuk
ART & CULTURE | special report
Final of the Opera
2019 International Festival of Dance & Music A feast of dazzling old and new music and dance forms by Lekha Shankar
T
he 2019 International Festival of Dance and Music boasts an exciting amalgam of old and new art forms— opera, ballet, modern dance and acrobatics. “We break new grounds every year and always try to ensure that we have something for everyone. There’s a strong mix of classical and contemporary productions lined up this year too,” says the Chairman of the Festival, Mr JS Uberoi. The biggest name this year is Jose Carreras, the legendary opera singer, known as one of the ‘Three Tenors of the World’ on his farewell tour. This makes his performances even more sought after. Accompanying him will be a world-renowned soprano like
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Celine Byrne and conductor David Giménez. Also proudly presenting this year is China’s ‘National Treasure’, the multi-award-winning singer Li Yugang enacting her latest musical drama ‘Lady Zhaojun’ with nearly 70 singers and dancers. This new show is being performed outside Beijing for the first time. Also performing this year for the first time in Bangkok is the Budapest Symphony Orchestra, ‘Hungary’s most versatile and progressive symphony orchestra’ according to the Festival Chairman. They have performed in nearly every part of the world and their exciting repertoire will include Tchaikovsky, Liszt and Bela Bartok. They will be led by the world-
famous Conductor and Artistic Director András Keller. As usual, there’s a wealth of Russian ballet and opera performances and this year will include two outstanding groups— the Ekaterinburg Opera Theatre and the Kremlin Ballet. “Both companies are at the forefront of the performing arts scene not only in Russia but Europe,” states Uberoi. The Ekaterinburg Opera Theatre has won an astounding 15 Golden Mask Awards and will be enacting two striking but totally different love stories—Puccini’s last opera ‘Turandot’ and Dvorak’s most popular opera ‘Rusalko’. While the Kremlin Ballet, one of the top five ballet companies in bangkok101.com