La Scala: BORIS GODUNOV
Captured live from Teatro alla Scala, Milan
Composer: Modest Mussorgsky
Orchestra: Orchestra del Teatro alla Scala
Conductor: Riccardo Chailly
Director: Kasper Holten
Cast: Ildar Abdrazakov (Boris Godunov), Anna Denisova (Kseniya), Ain Anger (Pimen), Stanislav Trofimov (Varlaam), Dmitry Golovnin (Grigorij Otrepev), Norbert Ernst (Vasiliy Shuysky), Lilly Jørstad (Fydor), Agnieszka Rehlis (Kseniya’s nurse), Alexey Markov (Shchelkalov)
For his ninth La Scala season inauguration (the biggest event in the Italian musical calendar), maestro Riccardo Chailly conducts the original 1869 version of Mussorgsky’s Boris Godunov a title of profound humanity in which personal drama is reflected in collective tragedy, with a focus on the theme of individual guilt and its inevitable consequences.
Inspired by Pushkin, the opera follows the dazzling, tortured reign of the titular Tsar (the brilliant Ildar Abdrazakov), who seizes the throne in 1598 as society around him is on the threshold of moral crisis.
The stage direction of Kasper Holten, former Director of Covent Garden, adds a view of the history of Russia, heightening the emotional experience with a reflection on the value of memory and the bearing of witness.
La Scala: BORIS GODUNOV screens in cinemas nationally on Sat 28 Jan, Sun 29 Jan and Wed 1 Feb. Further information >>.
