Vincenzo Bellini's opera Norma is a musical masterpiece of the bel canto period, and the title role in it is considered one of the most difficult in the soprano repertoire. Fans of the classic in Volgograd saw the premiere of “Norma” last Friday and received it happily. Honored Artist of Russia Anna Devyatkina shines as Norma.
Opera about the world of women
The opera premiered on December 26, 1831 in Milan, on the stage of La Scala. It was first performed on the Russian stage in 1835 – the opera was brought to St. Petersburg by a German troupe. Petersburg. Maria Callas, Montserrat Caballe, Khibla Gerzmava and other outstanding opera singers performed in the role of Norma, who is considered a gem of world classics.
Last Friday, the premiere of “Norma” was presented to the residents of Volgograd by the Tsaritsyn Opera Theater, and this, without exaggeration, became an event in the cultural life of the city. Never before had the theater touched the works of bel canto authors; Such works are not in its repertoire. The director of the premiere performance was Tatyana Nitsenko, Georgy Matevosyan was in charge of set design and Elena Pavlovskaya designed costumes. The conductor of the performance was Ekaterina Vasilyeva.
The production idea belongs to Honored Artist of Russia Anna Devyatkina. The theater season, which begins in the fall of 2025, is a jubilant season for the theater's beginnings – celebrating her 25th year serving the stage.
The author of the project says that she started working on it with particular trepidation and has been pursuing this game all her life.
“Norma is an opera about the world of women and how fragile and fleeting it is,” reflects Anna Devyatkina. “I just wanted to live the life of a woman destined to have it all – love, motherhood, betrayal, courage and nobility. This is a complex and versatile character. It combines sophistication and fragility with enormous spiritual strength. Ultimately, we all come into this world in the name of love and this is not an abstract concept. For me personally, this is true.”
The opera's plot takes the audience to Gaul in the 50s BC. The main character of the lyric tragedy, Norma, is the high priestess of the Druids. She broke her vow of chastity by entering into a sexual relationship with Roman Pollio, an enemy of her native Gallic tribe. In her heart, a sense of duty fights with passion.
Pollio, the father of Norma's two children, lost interest in her and fell in love with Adalzhiza, the maiden of Irminsul temple. Norma finds out about this and now she wants revenge… She is tormented by conflicting emotions – love, jealousy, hatred, forgiveness. Norma was able to reconcile her love for her homeland and for God, for her man and for her sons only at the price of her voluntary death.
Anna Devyatkina continues: “For many years, Norma lived by deception, she loved not only a man (and Vestals took a vow of celibacy), but also the commandant of the enemy camp, with whom she had two children. – My heroine broke her oath and found herself in the grip of fate. I understood her and completely justified her. She fell in love and used her life to pay for her sins and for the lives of her people. To express such an incredible whirlwind of emotions, you need both life experience and the ability to live those emotions on stage…”
A new approach to the classics
Vincenzo Bellini's opera tests the artistic strength and expertise of the performer. The vocal complexity of Norma's part, which appears on stage for nearly the entire performance and must master bel canto technique, is a challenge for any performer.
“I just live in this wonderful musical element, that's all,” commented Anna Devyatkina. “Perhaps the most difficult thing is to combine difficult dramatic and vocal tasks, creating a comprehensive artistic image and vocal technique that will serve this.”
Meanwhile, Norma's image is woven from contradictions. In the first act, she prays for peace in the tender, enchanting aria “Casta diva.” Later, upon learning of Pollio's betrayal, Norma strikes the sacred shield and calls the warriors to an uncompromising war, then goes to light the fire in the final scene. And of course, the audience's attention was mainly focused on Norma/Anna Devyatkina, who gave the star of the Volgograd opera scene a well-deserved ovation.
Another beautiful soprano role – the young nun Adalzhiza – was performed by theater soloist Natalya Pirogova. The wonderful duet of Norma and Adalzhiza, two friends and rivals, brought the audience real joy.
Natalya Pirogova says: “Our story is about passions, about spiritual choices, where my heroine, without even knowing it, became one of the sides of a love triangle. – Adalgiza abandoned this love in the name of honesty. Participation in this performance was a big step forward and a point of growth for me. And it was an honor to work on the same stage with Anna Vladimirovna Devyatkina, who supported me in learning the most difficult rhythms. When working with musical material, I start from myself, listening to my emotions.”
Production director of the performance Tatyana Nitsenko, who reveals the 19th century opera to a modern audience, has retained a carefully traditional approach to the classics.
“At the same time, there is some stylization in the production, which is reflected in the costumes and decorations – for example, you will not see the usual white robes of Druids and decorations with accent runes and faces of pagan gods,” comments Tatyana Nitsenko. – This is the atmosphere of ancient, pagan Gaul, the flavor of Celtic mythology. The production includes “dark lord” Donn, the Celtic underground god – guide to the world of the dead, along with his retinue. As I started diving into the material, I discovered that the central lyrical aria “Casta diva” is a divination, so that's how we started “filming” it. Norma's first appearance on stage and her interaction with the runes are a mystical ritual, the high priestess's divination of the future. I got to work together with Volgograd's amazing artists and it seems like we were able to create a very beautiful and expressive visual design for the show.”
The atmosphere of Gaul during the period of conquest by the Romans is emphasized by decorative elements: sacrificial stones, old wood, masks, animal skins and torches. The giant Celtic wheel, the Druid symbol of the cycle of life, became an enduring symbol of the ornament. Each turn of this wheel marks the next image of the show, showing Norma's life from youth to the tragic finale, recalling the eternal cycles of life, death and rebirth, the inexorable Fate.
