Grand Premiere of Jules Massenet’s Werther to Be Held at Tbilisi Opera Theater

Tbilisi’s historic Opera and Ballet State Theater has prepared yet another surprise for opera enthusiasts. On December 22, at 19:00, celebrated French composer Jules Massenet’s legendary opera named Werther will be premiered in Tbilisi. Exactly 76 years since its last showing in Tbilisi, the famous French opera based on the German epistolary novel The Sorrows of Young Werther by great writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, is back. The operatic version of this tragic story about the unhappy young Werther, who is driven to suicide by his unfulfilled passion for the married Charlotte, has moved audiences for generations.

In 2002, the production was premiered at Tokyo’s new National Theater and was a huge success, receiving a standing ovation. This very version of Werther is considered one of the most memorable productions, being of a classic style and well expressing the epoch of the piece.

The German-language version of Werther premiered on 16 February 1892 at the Imperial Theater Hofoper in Vienna, while its original French version premiere followed in Geneva on 27 December 1892. The first performance in France was given by the Opéra-Comique at the Théâtre Lyrique on the Place du Châtelet in Paris on 16 January 1893. Werther is still regularly performed around the world and has been recorded many times. Moreover, Massenet’s Werther is included in the program of the world’s leading operas.

The Tbilisi Opera and Ballet State Theater saw its premiere on October 16, 1904 and until the 1940s, the play was included in the theater’s regular program. In 1942, Werther was staged in Tbilisi Opera by Alexandre Tsutsunava. The main roles in the opera were performed by renowned Georgian opera singers Davit Andguladze, Vera Davidova and Davit Badridze. And after 76 years, the great opera will be brought back to life in Tbilisi on December 22, 23, 26 and 29.

The team behind the upcoming production comprises both foreign and Georgian artists and musicians: Director Joseph Franconi Lee, music directors and conductors Zaza Azmaiparashvili and Fabrizio Cassi, Scenographer Emmanuelle Favre, and Costume designer Ester Martin.

“I am extremely happy to visit Georgia for the second time already,” Conductor Fabrizio Cassi told GEORGIA TODAY. “The rehearsals went well with the Georgian orchestra and the musicians showed great commitment and hard work, so we are ready for the premiere. I’m also very happy since this will be my debut in Werther in the lead role.”

Before the grand premiere, GEORGIA TODAY also talked to Italian Director Joseph Franconi Lee, who has collaborated with Georgian opera singers before, among them Lado Ataneli.

“I’m so excited to be debuting in the beautiful state theater of Tbilisi,” he said. “I must say this is one of the most beautiful theaters I have worked in, and I have worked in the major theaters around the world. I am so impressed by the enthusiasm of theater crew, from technicians to singers. It is good that Tbilisi Opera gives young singers a chance to perform on this stage. I usually have one company or maybe two companies with one or two performances, but here we’ll have a new company every day. I’ve been working hard and they more so. I’ve never seen this much enthusiasm for Werther. It's not a job you can do every day and then go home: but they live, they think and breathe the play. Working in such an environment is a great joy for me.”

Another pillar of the great production taking us back the previous era and creating a magnificent environment on the stage with her costumes is Ester Martin. She also shared her emotions with us.

“I can't remember a period in my life that I didn't make dresses or costumes,” she told us. “From an early age, the passion for costumes led me to the theater, inside this magical world full of tutus, historical costumes and incredible stories. I grew up inside the theater as a professional dancer for ten years, then as an opera singer and from 2015 as a costume designer. I'm very happy and honored to come back to Tbilisi with this masterpiece of the French repertoire. Massenet's score is amazing. When you hear this music, you can feel all the pain, love, drama and suffering of Werther, the war inside Charlotte, Albert's evolution and Sophie’s innocence.”

By Lika Chigladze