Recitals

ANITA RACHVELISHVILI AT THE ROMAN AGORA

67'

From 28/03/2023 12:00 to 28/11/2023

Description

On 18 July 2020, at the spellbinding archaeological site of the Roman Agora set directly under the Athenian Acropolis, the Greek National Opera presented a recital given by the great mezzo-soprano Anita Rachvelishvili, conducted by Lukas Karytinos and with the participation of the GNO Orchestra. The recital served as the grand opening night of “All of Greece, One Culture” – a Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports initiative.

As part of the close partnership she has forged with the Greek National Opera, Anita Rachvelishvili was delighted to accept the invitation extended to her by the Artistic Director of the GNO, Giorgos Koumendakis, to appear in the recital, and to waive her fee. The Orchestra of the Greek National Opera was conducted by Lukas Karytinos, who also waived his fee, and the concert programme included popular arias drawn from operas by Verdi, Cilea, Gounod, Saint-Saëns, and Bizet. With her imposing and powerful stage presence, her astounding vocal qualities and fullness, and her exceptionally carefully considered role choices, Anita Rachvelishvili launched her career in Georgia and –in less than a decade– took the world’s most major opera houses and festivals by storm, drawing rave reviews from the international media and a rapturous reception from opera audiences across the globe.

Anita Rachvelishvili is considered a true opera star and one of the finest mezzo-sopranos of her generation. She has a close relationship with the Greek National Opera and is performing, for free, at the personal invitation of GNO Artistic Director Giorgos Koumendakis.

The concert was streamed live around the world on www.nationalopera.gr/en, digitalculture.gov.gr, GNO’s YouTube Channel and GNO’s Facebook page. The live streaming of the concert was made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) to enhance the Greek National Opera's artistic outreach. The exclusive trailer for the concert has already received over 250,000 views on YouTube alone.

Trailer

Creative team – Cast

Conductor Lukas Karytinos

Performer Anita Rachvelishvili

With the GNO Orchestra

Reviews

Greek National Opera finds post-lockdown voice

The rich mezzo-soprano voice of Anita Rachvelishvili is scheduled to ring out on Saturday evening across the ancient ruins at the foot of the Acropolis in Athens.

Following long months of coronavirus lockdown that has left music venues, opera houses and concert halls silent across the globe, the Greek National Opera has invited the Georgian opera star to perform a recital to a small selected audience at the Roman Agora, a unique archeological site dating back to 19 BC.

It will also be livestreamed on the opera house's website to music lovers around the world.

"After all these months of a pause, it's the first time that I'm singing", said Rachvelishvili, who has performed the title role of Bizet's Carmen in some of the world's leading opera houses, such as La Scala in Milan and the Bastille Opera in Paris.

Speaking to AFP before a rehearsal on Friday, the singer said that music and the arts had been vital in helping people around the world cope with being locked indoors for months on end, isolated from friends, family and colleagues.

"When the economy goes down because everything stops, we have to remember... that we have art that gives us food for our soul".

AFP

En Grèce, vent d’optimisme lyrique sur l’Acropole

Dans l’Agora romaine, l’Orchestre de l’Opéra s’est produit le 18 juillet devant un parterre d’invités infirmiers, médecins, chercheurs. Ce n’est pas dans le cadre du festival que ce concert a été donné, mais sous le label « Toute la Grèce est une culture » associant jusqu’à mi-septembre spectacles classiques et contemporains. Ce concert a été le cadre de la première prestation publique de l’Opéra depuis le 5 mars, la star de la soirée étant la mezzo-soprano géorgienne Anita Rachvelishvili, qui aurait dû chanter en mai à Athènes sa première Charlotte de Werther.

« Le confinement m’a touchée à Berlin avant l’antépénultième Carmen avec Daniel Barenboïm, se souvient la cantatrice qui a renoncé à son cachet à Athènes. Cette représentation de Carmen a été retransmise dans le monde sans public, sensation curieuse avec le silence pour tout écho. Beaucoup de choses passionnantes que je tenais à faire ont été annulées. Mais j’ai profité de ma famille et du calme. Les prochains mois vont être difficiles, bien que l’activité reprenne en Europe. C’est la première fois que je rechante en public, et je me sens particulièrement en forme. »

Bruno Serrou, La Croix