The Fairytale Opera "Puss in Boots" to Premiere in Astana

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The premiere of the children’s opera Puss in Boots is a wonderful event that will be one of the highlights of the 10th anniversary season," Galym Akhmedyarov, the Astana Opera’s general director, Honored Worker of Kazakhstan, says. "Our opera house is evolving, and we always look for new forms and ways to interest the audience with the delightful world of musical art. At the Astana Opera, along with productions of world and national operas and ballets on the opera house’s big stage, the Piccolo Theatre functions in the Kulyash Baiseitova Chamber Hall, and active work is underway with young composers to create modern productions. This autumn, in the new theatrical season, we are planning to present to young viewers the first large national two-act opera Qanbaq Shal by Zholan Dastenov."

The opera Puss in Boots, created more than a century ago by the composer César Cui based on the fairytale by the famous writer Charles Perrault, has not lost its relevance to this day," the stage director shares. "It seems to me that its main idea coincides with the idea of ​​the parable about the boy who boasts of his father, presenting him as strong and omnipotent. Having become a young man, he begins to think that he knows and can do no less than his father, and having matured, he is sure that he has surpassed his parent. However, when maturity comes, and it becomes necessary to consult with someone, the father is no longer around. This story raises the topic of the value of parental wisdom, which cannot be bought with money. I think that the fairytale Puss in Boots says that you can find a way out of any situation. The fairytale teaches that you should never give up and lose heart, and to confidently reach for your goals, so it can be called motivational."

Today, it is more difficult to surprise the audience than before, especially children," Yerenbak Toikenov emphasizes. "All this is connected with the development of modern technologies, an abundance of computer games, colorful animated films, so we, stage directors, always strive to look for new ideas. In addition to technical solutions, lighting special effects and the use of projectors, we involve masters of the visual art. The projections designer of the fairytale is Azamat Kuttyguzhin, a diploma holder of the international competition of multimedia artists."