A rarity among Tchaikovsky’s operas, The Enchantress (also known as The Sorceress) is presented here in a live performance by the esteemed Nizhegorodsky State Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet; Pavel Reznikov, conductor (Moscow, 1984). Sung in Russian; subtitles in English, French, and Russian, Color, 4:3, 156 min., All regions.
Tchaikovsky’s The Enchantress was composed during a happily reclusive period in the composer’s life. Living in a country house in Maidanovo, he described himself as “contented, cheerful, and quiet.” In the spring of 1885, Tchaikovsky discovered Shpazhinsky’s play The Enchantress, which greatly attracted him as an operatic subject, affording him the chance to express dramatically a long-cherished phrase in Goethe’s Faust, “Das Ewig-Weibliche zieht uns hinan” [the eternal-feminine draws us upwards]. Indeed, his characterization of the good-hearted and passionate inn-keeper Nastasya (affectionately called “Kuma” – literally, “godmother” – by her admirers, and branded an “enchantress” by her enemies) is one of his most fascinating operatic portraits. This 1984 production, performed by an excellent cast fully committed to the work, makes a strong case for The Enchantress as an unjustly neglected masterpiece.
Artists
Larissa Zyryanova (Nastasya - 'Kuma'), Vladimir Stepanov (Prince Nikita Kurlyatev), Lyudmila Korzhakova (Princess Yevpraksiya Romanovna), Vadim Valyuta (Prince Yuriy), Alexander Pravilov (Mamirov), A. Perfilova (Nenila), E. Sedov (Ivan Zhuran), Dimitri Sukhanov (Foka), L. Lebedovskaya (Polya), N. Bogutsky (Payisy), A. Burlatsky (Balakin), M. Sanotsky (Potap), Mikhail Larin (Lukash), A. Perfilov (Kichiga)
Nizhegorodsky State Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet, Pavel Reznikov