Summer, music, gods and heroes – Sofia Opera invites its fans to the traditional Wagner Festival

published on 6/21/25 11:05 AM

Photo: Sofia Opera and Ballet

The summer Wagner celebrations of our National Opera Theatre unique for Bulgaria will begin this year on June 26 with the premiere of Tannhäuser – the ninth title by Richard Wagner in the repertoire of the capital's troupe.

Sofia Opera director Plamen Kartalov (left), conductor Konstantin Trinks

At the press conference dedicated to the new edition of the Wagner Festival, Acad. Plamen Kartalov – Director of the Sofia Opera, quoted a bulletin of the international non-governmental organization Opera Europa, in which the Sofia Opera is called "a focal point of European cultural influence".

The theater director mentioned the tours in the Bavarian city of Füssen with the entire "Der Ring" tetralogy, the visit to Minsk with "Siegfried" - the first performance of an opera by Wagner in Belarus at all, as well as the historic "occupation" of the Bolshoi Theater with as many as six Sofia productions after a 37-year absence of Bulgarians on the prestigious Moscow opera stage.

"We are all very proud of the Bulgarian opera singers, without whom I did not want to do this Wagner marathon. So, dear colleagues, I thank you! You believed me. I never obliged you. Some people said that Wagner would ruin your voices - on the contrary, we proved that Wagner fixes the voices, which are often not placed properly, so I am proud of you, thank you and you prove it every moment. In the production of Tannhäuser we have the best vocal presence in Bulgaria that can be heard. As in the entire "Ring". This is the national treasure that is concentrated in the Sofia Opera."

Plamen Kartalov emphasized that the new production of Tannhäuser is a happy coincidence with the jubilee holy year 2025 for the Christian Catholic world. Every 25 years, the Holy Doors of St. Peter's Cathedral in the Vatican open to pilgrims from all over the world to receive forgiveness and be blessed. And the motto of this pilgrimage to Rome is "Pilgrims of Hope".

The director sees in Wagner's opera a moral connection of the libretto and music with the message of the church and society for the consolidation of faith, for optimism and hope in today's world of wars, which has forgotten the human value of virtues, a world of self-confidence and greed of politicians, preachers of democracy and people who have given themselves over to pleasures and power. In this context, the new production of Tannhäuser with Bulgarian opera singers becomes a contemporary drama - not just about sin and forgiveness, but about the person who seeks wholeness and freedom in a world torn between extremes.

The conductor of the production, German conductor Konstantin Trinks, is well known to the Bulgarian audience and much loved at the Sofia Opera. At the press conference, he described the Opera's performing staff as wonderful: the best singers, the best orchestra members, the best ensemble.

The conductor has emphasized that there will be no foreign guests singing in Tannhäuser, which the Sofia Opera should be very proud of, because he cannot think of a German theater that can stage a Wagner opera, relying solely on its own resources, and Sofia has a double, even triple soloist cast.

"The first time I came here was in the winter of 2015, more than 10 years ago. It was a great adventure - with snow and a production of the opera Tristan. Yes, it was truly remarkable. And now it is more like coming home, to a family that I know very well and to the troupe with which I feel at home. I am very pleased that this time I came three times in advance to work with the singers. And now we are working for a week only on the music with the soloists. It is very generous for me to have all this time."

The set designer from Croatia Sven Jonke is also well known to the Bulgarian audience with his brilliant productions of Parsifal, Yana's Nine Brothers, Electra and Lohengrin. He told journalists at the press conference that opera director Plamen Kartalov gives him complete freedom to work on any concept.

After the premiere of Tannhäuser on June 26, the Wagner Festival will continue with performances of all the operas from the tetralogy "The Ring of the Nibelung" - from June 28 to July 3.

But with the end of the musical festival, which every year brings together passionate admirers of the great Richard Wagner from all over the world, the summer season of the Sofia Opera will not be over. In July and August, performances from the "Opera on the Square" series are coming up - "The Rila Hermit" with music by Father Kiril Popov and the musical "Les Miserables".

From July 11 to August 17th classical music lovers will have the opportunity to attend the sixth edition of the popular Muses of the Water Festival taking place at an open-air stage at Lake Pancharevo near Sofia.

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Photos: operasofia.bg, БТА, Facebook /Sofia National Opera and Ballet
English publication: R. Petkova

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Summer, music, gods and heroes – Sofia Opera invites its fans to the traditional Wagner Festival

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