ASTANA OPERA STATE OPERA AND BALLET THEATRE

Biography

In 2013 the "Astana Opera" Theatre was opened in Astana. It is the largest theatre not only in Central Asia, but also in most post-Soviet countries; it is built according to the best classical traditions of architecture in the neoclassical style, in which there is a Kazakh national flavor. The author of the project is the Italian architect Behgjet Pacolli, the authors of the sculptural compositions are the Kazakhstan sculptors M. Mansurov, T. Ermekov, K. Nurbaturov. There are 2 halls in the theatre, a large hall (1250 seats) and a chamber hall, where mainly the concerts are held. The theatre has the state-of-the-art technical equipment, cutting-edge innovations in the world of theatrical scenography are used.

The stars of the world musical art performed in the theatre: Placido Domingo, Elena Obraztsova, Valery Gergiev, Jose Carreras, Anna Netrebko, Svetlana Zakharova, Ildar Abdrazakov and many others.There were tours of Milan La Scala Theatre, Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, Teatro Carlo Felice, the National Paris Opera, and the Mariinsky Theatre. In 2014, the world tour of the creative team took place along the route: New York-Toronto-Paris-Antwerp-Rotterdam; also the tour at the Royal Theater Muscat (Oman), Graz Opera (Austria); Mariinsky Theatre (St. Petersburg, Russia), Theatro Municipal (Brazil), Rome Opera House (Rome, Italy), Teatro Carlo Felice (Genoa, Italy), Queen Sofia Palace of the Arts (Valencia, Spain), Bolshoi Theater (Moscow, Russia). The creative team was twice awarded the title of the Laureate: the State Award of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the field of literature and art for the opera "Abai" by A. Zhubanov and L. Hamidi (2018) and the International Award "BraVo" in the field of classical art in the nomination "Theater Venue of the Year" (The Bolshoi Theater of Russia, 2019).

From the very beginning, the aim of the young creative team is to create the best repertoire with the invitation of the iconic directors and choreographers of the world musical theater. The theatre's repertoire is very extensive: from world classics to the best examples of national opera and ballet art, productions by modern choreographers and opera composers. The well-known composer T. Mukhamedzhanov became the first Director of the theater. The theater has opera and ballet troupe, orchestra and choir.

The first ballet production was "The Sleeping Beauty" staged by the master of choreography Y. Grigorovich. T. Nurkaliyev was appointed the chief ballet master of the theatre, and in a short period he managed to create an interesting extensive repertoire and a strong professional troupe, the basis of which were the artists of the K. Baiseitova NOBT, which has stopped operating by that time. During this period, the theater’s repertoire included performances by Y. Grigorovich (“Sleeping Beauty”, “Spartacus”, “The Nutcracker”), B. Eifman (“Rodin”), Charles Jude (“Romeo and Juliet”), T. Nurkaliev and G. Buribayeva (“The Fountain of Bakhchisarai”, “La Bayadère”). The ballet troupe was recruited through the competitive selection, which was done by the well-known choreographers from different countries. The leading soloists Zh. Aubakirov, T. Gatauov, M. Basbayeva, G. Ussina, S. Kaukov, A. Rustemova, R. Seitbekov and many others were at the origins of the birth of the new ballet theater.

In 2016, A. Asylmuratova received an invitation to lead the artistic directing of the ballet troupe of the theater. Under her leadership, the ballet troupe has risen to a new level in the performing arts and expanded its repertoire with the pearls of the world and Western ballet classics. The ballets by Kenneth MacMillan ("Manon"), Roland Petit ("Notre Dame de Paris" and "Coppelia"), Jiri Kylian ("Six Dances"), modern famous choreographers with unique author's styles (Raimondo Rebeck, Patrick de Bana, and others) have been staged at the theatre. A. Asylmuratova is aiming to include authentic, and the best editions of the ballets of the classical heritage into the repertoire of the ballet troupe. She staged such ballets as "Swan Lake", "Le Corsaire", "Giselle", "Don Quixote", "The Fountain of Bakhchisarai", "Paquita", "Chopiniana". Andris Liepa was invited to stage the original version of M. Fokine's ballet "Scheherazade". The troupe is also working on replenishing its repertoire with the ballets on national themes: “Karagoz” directed by V. Usmanov, “Sounds of Time” by K. Zvereva, “Call of the Steppe” choreographed by Patrick de Bana.

The ballet troupe successfully performed at the Bolshoi Theatre, theatres in Italy and Spain. With each new season, the ballet troupe not only expands its genre and style range of the performances, but also rises to a new performance level under the guidance of the tutors (E. Sherstneva, K. Zaklinsky, D. Zainullina, G. Begalina, R. Seitbekov). The leading soloists of the ballet troupe are successfull not only in their theatre, but are also in demand and actively invited to perform at the famous world theaters: M. Unerbayeva (Basbayeva), B. Adamzhan, A. Beketayeva, S. Nakyspekov, E. Rakhmatullayev, Sh. Adepkhan and others.