Performed in Russian (with synchronised English supertitles )
World premiere: 21 Oct 1900 Mariinsky Theatre, St Petersburg
Premiere of this production: 08 Mar 2005
The performance has 1 intermission
Running time: 3 hours
This tale is truly fantastic! And what a rare old-fashioned Russian treat for the eyes and the ears it is!
Rimsky-Korsakov music is suitable for this traditional folktale of loss, reconciliation and forgiveness, full of recognizable Russian folk music motifs interspersed with sweet arias.
The chorus gave us that unique Russian timbre, lullabies and joyful festive sounds that touch the heart.
The Tale of Tsar Saltan (Skazka o care Saltane in transliteration) is an opera in four acts (six tableaux) with a prologue, by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov to a Russian libretto by Vladimir Ivanovich Belsky, based on the poem of the same name by Aleksandr Pushkin. The full title of both the opera and the poem in English is The Tale of Tsar Saltan, of his Son the Renowned and Mighty Bogatyr Prince Gvidon Saltanovich, and of the Beautiful Princess-Swan.