On 26 September – the day marking the 120th anniversary of Dmitri Shostakovich’s birth – the Ruse State Opera will stage ‘FIRE’ at 7.00 pm: a grand production set to the music of the remarkable Russian composer, in which the ballet, soloists, choir, orchestra and children from the Children’s Opera come together in a unified narrative on stage.
Created by the choreographer and librettist Natalia Osipova, with set design, multimedia and costumes by Eslitsa Popova.
‘FIRE’ was born out of a specific tragedy – the fire that, six years ago, reduced the roof of the Ruse Opera House to ashes. But the production does not remain confined to the boundaries of this painful story. It transforms fire into a metaphor for all those fires that burn around us and within us – the fires of war and destruction, of indifference and a lack of empathy, of passion, jealousy, envy, fear, submission and rebellion.
The connection between Shostakovich and Ruse is particularly strong. The composer visited the city twice, and in 1964 he spent nearly a month here, working with the Ruse Opera team on the new production of "Katerina Izmailova". The production became a landmark event in the theatre’s history, and Shostakovich was awarded the title of honorary citizen of Ruse.
That is precisely why the presence of his music in "FIRE" takes on another dimension – it is an encounter between memory and the present, between the history of the Ruse Opera and its current stage presence.
‘FIRE’ is a performance about destruction, but even more so about recovery. It is about the person who remains after the disaster and must find the strength to start afresh. It is about the theatre, which may be closed, damaged and shaken, but cannot be erased.
Six years after the fire, the Ruse Opera House is still awaiting its full restoration. But the stage lives on. The performers continue to create. The audience continues to come. And that is precisely the strongest response to destruction.
Because fire may burn a building to the ground, but it cannot extinguish the light of art. That is precisely why the Ruse State Opera invites its audience to play an active part in the performance by folding and bringing as many paper cranes as possible – a symbol of peace and wishes come true! “Fold some papercranesandand bring them to the Ruse Opera House by 25 September at the latest and your cranes will form part of the stage set for the ballet ‘FIRE’, says Nanami Nishikaji – a soloist from Japan in the ballet company of the Ruse State Opera.
‘FIRE’ was conceived as a major stage production involving members of various creative departments at the Ruse Opera. The production was first staged in June 2024, when it opened the theatre’s 75th anniversary season – at a time when the Ruse Opera was still bearing the scars of the fire and awaiting its return home.
On 26 September at 7.00 pm, ‘FIRE’ will once again pose the question to the audience: what remains after the fire? Is there just ash left? Or is there something that cannot be destroyed – memory, the human spirit and art? The Ruse State Opera invites you to a performance in which fire is not merely a memory. It is a trial. And art is the way to get through it.
Tickets are on sale at the box office of the Ruse State Opera and online: https://entase.to/06n
