Chisinau hosts first performance of opera for children by Moldovan composer

Chisinau, 5 June /MOLDPRES/ - The first performance of an opera for children and parents „Apolodor, călătoria unui pinguin” (Apolodor, the Travel by a Pinguin), made by Moldovan composer Ghenadie Ciobanu for a well-known poem by Romanian writer Gelu Naum, stage management by Vlad Ciobanu, took place at the Chisinau-based National Centre for Education through Art on 1-4 June.    

In the play, the parties are assigned to students from the Chisinau Music Theatre and Fine Arts Academy.

Contacted by MOLDPRES, composer Ghenadie Ciobanu said that this was the first opera for children from Moldova, with several tales staged previously.

“I liked very much Apolodor, this penguin tenor in the choir of the Bucharest Circus from the poem of Gelu Naum. The penguin, overwhelmed by the longing to see its brothers, starts its journey looking for its family, in a travel full of adventures and dangers. Thus, it crossed mountains, seas, countries and oceans, deserts, experiencing ordeals, in order to eventually reach the South Pole. Afterwards, the penguin returns to the Bucharest Circus, as it misses its friends. This subject impressed me very much and I composed music specific for each country crossed by Apolodor. Musical archetypes from diverse cultures are found here. We wanted to make an opera both for children and parents – for the entire family,” Ghenadie Ciobanu said.       

Attending the event, composer and conductor Gheorghe Mustea stressed that it was about a show with much music, dance and acrobatics. “This music captivated me, well-constructed in terms of form, as well as the ballet performed. This is a show of mixed genre – between opera and ballet. I welcome the idea of Ghenadie Ciobanu to come back to the world of childhood. I wish a long life to this work,” Gheorghe Mustea added.             

Apolodor, the Travel by a Pinguin, is the second opera by Ghenadie Ciobanu. The first one was „Ateh sau Revelaţiile prinţesei khazare” (Ateh or Revelations by Khazar Princess). The work was composed in 2004, for three monologues by Serbian author Milorad Pavic and performed in Chisinau and Bucharest.    

(Reporter N. Roibu, editor M. Jantovan)