On 23 December 2018, at the Sofia Opera were celebrated 30 years since the premiere of the opera “Don Carlo” by Giuseppe Verdi on the Sofia stage. The Director of our first opera theatre Acad. Plamen Kartaloff announced solemnly that the spectacle is dedicated to the 90th Anniversary of the composer and conductor Ivan Marinov, with whom together they staged a series of Bulgarian and world opera masterpieces during the past years. In his welcoming speech Maestro Kartaloff reminded of the star names of the famous Bulgarian soloists, who took part in the memorable premiere three decades ago.
For the celebration of this feast, in the spectacle was provided the participation of eminent Bulgarian soloists from the international opera stage: Alexandrina Pendatchanska in the role of Élisabeth de Valois, the Queen of Spain, and Kamen Chanev, who presented himself as Don Carlo. They exceeded all expectations and the audience gave endless and enthusiastic standing ovations for their talent and absolute devotion on the stage.
An exceptional contribution for this remarkable evening had our splendid bass Dimitar Stanchev, who like 30 years ago, also now amazingly incarnated himself in the role of the Grand Inquisitor. Spontaneously inspired by his famous colleagues, Svetozar Rangelov offered to us an unforgettable Filippo II, the King of Spain, radiating fascinatingly the dramatism and the magical emotionality of his character.
The audience generously and enthusiastically appreciated the performance of the young baritone Atanas Mladenov, for whose appearance in the role of Rodrigo, Marquis of Posa, will be spoken still long time. Wild applauses from the audience received the young talent Aleksandrina Stoyanova-Andreeva too, who virtuously performed also the most difficult culminations in the part of Princess Eboli.
Like always, the orchestra of the Sofia Opera with its conquering performance presented in the most perfect way Verdi’s famous opus, this time under the inspired conducting of Michael Balke. Most sincere compliments we ought to address to the chorus of the Sofia Opera, under the direction of Violeta Dimitrova, who like always brilliantly contributed to the artistic triumph of this impressive spectacle.
The revival of this grandiose production was made by the director Vera Petrova, who wonderfully resuscitated the artistic ideas and the created till now by Maestro Kartaloff.
The hundreds of fortunate people, attending this Anniversary spectacle, long and ardently commented their satisfaction from the performances of the soloists, the chorus and the orchestra of the Sofia Opera, and many of them stepped on the stage itself, in order to embrace and congratulate personally their favourites for their magical talent.
Once more, again and again we convinced ourselves that like our sacred temples “St. Alexander Nevsky” and “St. Sofia”, in immediate proximity of them is located also the Sofia Opera – а real temple of the operatic art, of the Bulgarian culture and the artistic creation.
Venelin TOMOV