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GEO
Cast Info Plot
Tbilisi State Opera 
Season 165

19 July, 2017

Season Closing 

 THE PERFORMANCE IS DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF GIZO ZHORDANIA

Zakaria Paliashvili

Abesalom and Eteri
Opera in 3 acts 


King Abio – Kakhaber Tetvadze
Abesalom – Armaz Darashvili
Natela – Natalia Volchenko 
Marikh – Marika Machitidze
Eteri – Khatuna Tchokhonelidze
Murman – Nikoloz Lagvilava
Naana – Manana Iordanishvili
Tandarukh – Philipe Ghatchava (Intern)
The Guest – Tamaz Saginadze
The Majordomo – Giorgi Mchedlishvili (Intern)
 
Chorus and Orchestra of Tbiisi State Opera 
Principal Chorus Master – Avtandil Chkhenkeli
Chorus Master – Shalva Shaorshadze
 
State Ballet of Georgia and Georgian National Ballet Sukhishvili

Conductor: Papuna Gvaberidze 
Music Director of the Production: Zaza Azmaiparashvili (Honorary Conductor)
Director: Gizo Zhordania
Assistant Director: Khatuna Bedeladze
Set, Costume and Lighting Designer: Georgi Alexi-Meskhishvili
Assistants: Costumes – Anna Kalatozishvili; Scenography – Shmagi Savaneli
Choreographer: Iliko Sukhishvili
Video Projection: David Matchavariani
Head of Production and Chief Lighting Technician: Amiran Ananiashvili
Chief Make-up Artist: Ivane Revazishvili
Chief Stagehand: Gia Geladze
Stage Manager: Ekaterine Gelashvili
Assistant Stage Manager: Marina Burtchuladze

Artistic Director
Badri Maisuradze

 
Zakaria Paliashvili’s Abesalom and Eteri is the first classical Georgian opera. Petre Mirianashvili created the libretto of the opera on a basis of the medieval Georgian folk poem Eteriani.  
Premiere held on 21 February, 1919.

It is a romantic and sad love story of Prince Abesalom and a beautiful village girl Eteri. Music of the opera presents itself an essential mix of European opera traditions and Georgian traditional music language and intonations.

Since the premiere, Abesalom da Eteri has traditionally been the opening performance of the season at the State Opera House of Georgia
ACT 1
The forest
 
The beautiful orphan Eteri’s lives unhappily together with her stepmother and stepsister. She pastures the cow by the forest brook and dreams about someone, who’d save her from such life and bring her good fortune and happiness. The hunters’ voices hears from the wood and very soon they approaches. The prince Abesalom is among them. He falls in love with a beautiful girl and asks to marry him.  In spite of his vows, Etery refuses the proposal; as a simple village girl, she fears of the possibility of being a temporary entertaining for the prince.
 
But as she returnes at home to her stepmother, she changes her mind. Believing in the sincerity of Absalom's feelings she accepts to marry him and promises eternal love.
The happy prince and Eteri goes to the King’s palace to wed. Only Abesalom’s friend and vizier Murman doesn’t share common joy: also falls in love with Etery.
Murman decides to earn her for any price.
 
Palace of King Abio

It is a wedding feast in the king’s palace. Dancing, singing and the toasts changes one another. Abesalom doesn’t see Murman among the guests and asks about him. Murman appears. He brings a beautiful and rare present; nobody knows, that the gift is bewitched. Murman has received it from devil and gave his on soul instead. As soon as Eteri touches it, she’ll get ill and no one but Murman will be able to rescue her.
The bride takes the gift. Its evil power begins acting.
 

ACT 2

Abesalom mourns his disaster in solitude; his happiness has been ended with a terrible misfortune. Without Eteri even the Sun doesn’t shine for him. The distressed gentlewomen take out ill Eteri, who is “yellow as a Consolida”. Her condition gets harder and harder. The King, Quinn, courtiers and Eteri begs Abesalom, to let her out; and as Eteri herself also asks it, Abesalom sadly agrees. Murman takes her.
 

ACT 3
The environs of Murman’s castle
 
Eteri is surrounded by the common love and respect in Murman’s “crystal castle”, but she still is not happy. Murman is called in the king’s palace. Abesalom asks him to tell him how does Eteri feel. The vizier proudly states, that she is very well and Murman himself is extremely happy. Parted from his love the prince falls ill and sends Murman for nine springs’ water of immortality.
 
The Quinn Natela, hoping, that her son may get better if he meets Eteri, goes to the Murman’s castle and asks Eteri to visit Abesalom. Heartbroken Eteri rejects and calls prince a perjurer. After that, princess Marikh tries to concert her. At least Eteri goes to the palace but it’s too late. Although Abesalom is happy to see her, he is extremely weakened and dies.  Etery does not wish to live without her love and stabs herself to death.
 
 


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