The Met Summer Series: Eugene Onegin (Tchaikovsky)

Lost in Translation
 

Tchaikovsky’s name is well known to American audience. It is hard to imagine Christmas celebration without his music to the Nutcracker ballet. His Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty are symbolizing what the Russian ballet is. Surprisingly those masterpieces were not his favorite creations. Tchaikovsky wrote: “if ever music has been composed with true passion, with love of the plot and the characters, then it is music to Onegin. I was melting and vibrating from inexpressible delight when composing it. And if even a tiny part of what I experienced when composing this opera echoes in the listener I would be gratified and I do not need anything else.”

Tchaikovsky wrote 10 operas of which Eugene Onegin is by far the best known. But it is not that often staged outside Russia. It is difficult to sing in the Russian language, it is very difficult to portrait the characters without deep understanding of Russian history and traditions. Tchaikovsky was in love with his heroine Tatiana. Pushkin, whose novel in verse was adopted for this opera, called Tatiana ideal women. Why is in a western interpretation Tatiana is portrait as a moody teenager?
 

Something was lost in translation.

My name is Stassya Pacheco. I was born in St. Petersburg Russia. I studied music in Music College, history and languages at the University and art in the Hermitage. Working as a teacher of music, tour guide and interpreter my goal was and is to bridge the cultures and peoples. I would like to make the opera experience more meaningful and enjoyable by sharing with the audience my knowledge of Pushkin’s poetry, Tchaikovsky’s music and the historic background of Eugene Onegin.