The staging of Charles Gounod's opera "Faust" under the musical direction of Mārtiņš Ozoliņš will return to the Latvian National Opera on February 22, 2024. The production, which premiered in September 2016, was created by the stage director Aik Karapetian, set designer Kristaps Skulte, costume designer Kristīne Pasternaka, lighting designer A.J. Weissbard, video artist Artis Dzērve, and choreographer Linda Mīļā.
The roles will be portrayed by Artjoms Safronovs and Raimonds Bramanis (Faust), Julija Vasiljeva and Inga Šļubovska-Kancēviča (Marguerite), Tadas Girininkas and Rihards Mačanovskis (Méphistophélès), Rinalds Kandalincevs and Jānis Apeinis (Valentin), Laura Grecka and Irma Pavāre (Siébel), Armands Siliņš-Bergmanis and Andris Kipļuks (Old Faust), Ilona Bagele and Irma Pavāre (Marthe), Juris Ādamsons and Kalvis Kalniņš (Wagner).
The staging of the opera "Faust" received the Great Music Award in 2016. Its video recording was broadcast on the European culture TV channel ARTE. In 2019, this production was performed by the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra and the Trondheim Opera in collaboration with the Latvian National Opera, featuring an international cast of soloists.
Charles Gounod's opera "Faust" premiered at the Théâtre-Lyrique in Paris in 1859. The libretto, based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's tragedy "Faust," was created by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré. "Faust" was first staged at the Riga City Theatre in 1862, and the Latvian translation of this opera has been performed since 1903. The first staging of "Faust" by the Latvian National Opera troupe premiered with great success in 1918.
Aik Karapetian crafted his staging in the aesthetic of late Gothic, incorporating elements of German Expressionist silent film style. "Charles Gounod's opera provides a great opportunity to create a splendid, atmospheric, frightening, yet simultaneously entertaining performance," says Aik Karapetian.
Upcoming performances in this season are scheduled for February 28th, March 20th, April 17th, and June 19th.
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