The programme of the upcoming 2023 season of Stage of the Ages is ready. The summer opera festival is the oldest and most successful cultural event in Veliko Tarnovo.
From the beginning of July till September there will be various remarkable performance under the starry sky of Tsarevets by the state operas from Burgas, Varna, Stara Zagora, Ruse and Plovdiv, as well as Veliko Tarnovo Music and Drama Theatre. The programme also includes the first visit to Veliko Tarnovo and Bulgaria of the Romanian National Opera, Bucharest, and a debut performance at the festival of Stefan Makedonski National Musical Theatre from Sofia.
The second open-air stage of the festival in Marno Pole Park will host symphony music performances and spectacles of youth ballet and dance companies from Stage of the Ages: A Look into the Future Programme.
Stage of the Ages 2023 starts on 1 July with Verdi’s Rigoletto, presented by the Romanian National Opera, Bucharest. For the first time, the Bulgarian audience will be able to enjoy the star soloists and the staging mastery of the Bucharest Opera, which is preparing a completely new version of Verdi’s opera for the open-air stage in Tsarevets Fortress.
The programme continues with the beautiful music of Verdi on 8 July, when Burgas State Opera performs “A Masked Ball”. Dedicated to sanctity of feelings and their destructive power, will offer a mix of emotions. complemented by a magnificent artistic cast.
The favourite “Tosca” of Giacomo Puccini will grace the stage on 15 July, performed by State Opera Stara Zagora. A week later Veliko Tarnovo Music and Drama Theatre will premiere their newest opera performance – Don Giovanni by Mozart.
On the next day, 22 July, the open-air stage in Marno Pole Park will host Vratsa Symphony Orchestra with Howard Shore’s “The Lord of the Rings” film score, with multimedia show and featuring solo players from the US.
The comic opera “Don Pasquale” by Gaetano Donizetti of State Opera Varna is the last opera performance for this year, on 24 August.
The traditional for the festival tribute to the Bulgarian opera is scheduled for 29 July, when State Opera Ruse performs the historical opera “Year 893” by Parashkev Hadjiev. This performance of Ruse Opera is dedicated to the 1130th anniversary of Church and People’s Council of Preslav in 893 AD and the Christianization of Bulgaria.
Classical ballet fans will be delighted to see in the programme the romantic ballet “Giselle” by Adolphe Adam, which the international ballet company of Plovdiv State Opera will present on 19 August.
The summer opera season ends on 2 September with the Grand Operetta and Musical Gala of Stefan Makedonski National Musical Theatre.
Stage of the Ages Summer Opera Season is the oldest and most successful cultural project of Veliko Tarnovo city – the historic and spiritual capital of Bulgaria. The festival is organized by Veliko Tarnovo Municipality with the support of the Regional Museum of History and Tsarevgrad Turnov Municipal Tourist Agency. Stage of the Ages was awarded the prestigious Europe for Festivals, Festival for Europe label for 2022-2023.
The 2023 festival programme is one of the highlights of Veliko Tarnovo’s presentation at the Holiday and Spa International Tourism Fair in Sofia (15-17 Feb) and the International Tourism Fairs in Belgrade and Bucharest at the end of February.
