From June 5 to June 21, the Latvian National Opera and Ballet invites viewers to the annual Riga Opera Festival. Over more than twenty-five years, it has become a cherished tradition anticipated by both Latvian cultural enthusiasts and international guests. Founded in 1998, the festival concludes the Latvian National Opera and Ballet's season each summer with the highlights of the past musical year. Since 2022, the festival program has also included ballet performances.
The festival opens on June 5 with the grand production of Giuseppe Verdi's opera “Don Carlo," which was created by the music director and conductor Frédéric Chaslin and stage director Klaus Guth. On June 8 and 16, audiences will be delighted by Gaetano Donizetti's sparkling opera "L’elisir d’amore," under the musical direction of Martins Ozolins and staged by Sven-Eric Bechtolf. On June 19, there will be a performance of Charles Gounod's opera "Faust," directed by Aik Karapetian with Martins Ozoliņš conducting.
Classical ballet enthusiasts are invited to Juris Karlsons' ballet "Antonia #Silmači" with choreography by Aivars Leimanis on June 7, and Louis Joseph Ferdinand Hérold's ballet "La Fille mal gardée" with choreography by Frederick Ashton on June 9. Contemporary ballet fans will be thrilled by choreographer Marco Goecke's ballet "Nijinski," featuring music by Frédéric Chopin and Claude Debussy. This production will tour to Ljubljana, Slovenia, in mid-June. The ballet season will conclude on June 15 with the modern ballet "Viy. The Nights of Horror," choreographed by Radu Poklitaru and composed by Alexander Rodin.
In commemoration of the victims of Communist genocide, Giuseppe Verdi's “Requiem” will be performed at the Latvian National Opera on June 14. Under the musical direction of Mārtiņš Ozoliņš, this grand opus will feature soloists Juliya Vasilieva, Elmina Hasan, Matteo Lippi, and Egils Silins, along with the State Choir Latvija, the Latvian National Opera Chorus, and Orchestra.
As usual, the season and festival will conclude with two magnificent Gala concerts – on June 20 at the open-air concert hall "Mītava" in Jelgava and on June 21 at the Latvian National Opera.
Full schedule of the Riga Opera Festival available HERE.