04:33, 28 September 2016

In Vladikavkaz, Larisa Gergieva dedicates opera "Brundibar" to memory of Beslan victims

"Brundibar" opera performance. Photo by Emma Marzoeva for the 'Caucasian Knot'.

In Vladikavkaz, within the International Festival of Arts "Visiting Larisa Gergieva", the National State Opera and Ballet Theatre has presented a charity premiere of the anti-war opera "Brundibar", which was dedicated to the victims of the tragedy in Beslan.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on September 1, 2004, militants took 1128 people hostage in the Beslan School No. 1. The rescue operation was completed on September 3, 2004. The terror act killed 334 people, including 186 children. 810 people were injured.

The opera "Brundibar" was written in 1938 by Czech composer Hans Krása with libretto by Adolf Hoffmeister. In 1943, the opera was staged by minor inmates of the Theresienstadt concentration camp. On June 23, 1944, Theresienstadt was visited by the delegation of the Red Cross and the presentation of the opera "Brundibar" became the evidence of "humane treatment" of prisoners. After the departure of the Red Cross delegation, Nazis began to massively take prisoners of the concentration camp away to Auschwitz and other concentration camps in the eastern direction. Since the end of the 20th century, the opera "Brundibar" is considered to be a worldwide symbol of resistance to terror and violence, the "Holocaustmusic" reports.

"The Theatre of Opera and Ballet has launched a special project. Firstly, for the first time, the festival focuses on children's theme. Secondly, the events described in the opera 'Brundibar' are very similar to the events that have recently happened in our Beslan," said Larisa Gergieva, the artistic director of the National State Opera and Ballet Theatre.

The performance involved children from the studio "Golden Key" of the Opera and Ballet Theatre of North Ossetia and pupils of the first music school named after Tchaikovsky, as well as artists of the Mariinsky Theatre.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.

Author: Emma Marzoeva

Source: CK correspondent