Ukrainian opera honoured with Royal Philharmonic Society Award – photo
The opera "Chornobyldorf" by Ukrainian composers Roman Hryhoriv and Illia Razumeiko received the Royal Philharmonic Society Award in the Opera and Musical Theatre category in the United Kingdom.
Source: UP. Culture, citing the press release from the Opera Aparta formation
Among other entries considered for this award were the operas "Dialogues of the Carmelites" by Australian director Barrie Kosky and "Innocence" directed by Simon Stone, created in collaboration with companies from Amsterdam, Helsinki, San Francisco, and the Royal Opera. The winners were determined by a group of classical music experts from the United Kingdom.
Quote: "This is a surprise for us because we are not exactly a British opera. But it is a very pleasant surprise because we won against productions from two of the world's largest opera theatres with huge budgets. Our ad-hoc opera studio, occupying 20 square metres in the Composers' Union, triumphed over these giants of the opera industry. We are very grateful to all our partners," said composer Illia Razumeiko.
The Royal Philharmonic Society of the United Kingdom was founded in 1813 and is one of the oldest music societies in the world. The award from this institution has been presented since 1989 for live performances of classical music.
Quote: "In fact, it's not a personal recognition; it's recognition for Ukraine. Such honours should be celebrated collectively because they are a true confirmation of the resilience of the country as a whole and our cultural sphere," added composer Roman Hryhoriv.
The UK premiere of "Chornobyldorf" took place as part of the UK/Ukraine Season of Culture during the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival (hcmf//), where it garnered favourable reviews and critiques from the British media. The opera recording was broadcast on BBC Radio 3 for a month.
About "Chornobyldorf"
The archaeological opera "Chornobyldorf" tells the story of the descendants of humanity who survived a series of technological and climatic catastrophes and are now building a post-apocalyptic settlement on the ruins of a nuclear power station.
The composers began working on the project in 2020, and the premiere took place at Mystetskyi Arsenal in October of the same year. In addition to the composers, the opera's premiere featured Ukrainian poet Yurii Izdryk, Austrian actress Anne Bennent, choreographer Khrystyna Slobodianiuk, and dancer Mariia Potapenko as part of the performance.
Since then, the opera has received Ukrainian recognition, notably winning 5 awards at the theatre festival-award GRА ("Great Real Art"). In December 2021, "Chornobyldorf" was recognized as one of the 6 best operas in the international competition Music Theater Now.
In addition to the United Kingdom, "Chornobyldorf" toured in the Netherlands, Austria, Italy, Lithuania, and the USA. As noted by the composers, it will soon be presented in the Czech Republic.
At the end of 203, Roman Hryhoriv and Illia Razumeiko were honoured with the UP-100 award.
At the beginning of 2024, Roman Hryhoriv and Illia Razumeiko announced the upcoming release of their new opera, GAIA-24. The Ukrainian premiere is set for 10 May in Kyiv, followed by its opening at the leading European O.Festival in Rotterdam on 16 May.
"GAIA-24 is a large opera that we have been working on since June of last year, when the Russians blew up the dam of the Kakhovka Reservoir. We would also like to showcase it in the United Kingdom if we are invited," said Illia Razumeiko.
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