08.09.2016
LA BOHÈME: The life of an artist.
Najmiddin Mavlyanov
The characters in La Bohème are young and talented, with a love of life that they expect to be reciprocated. The same can be said for almost everyone involved in the upcoming production of the opera at the Mikhailovsky Theatre. Listening to a few of the artists talk freely about it, the personal relationship that they have with the characters and with the story that they will be performing on stage becomes clear.
Najmiddin Mavlyanov, tenor, appearing as Rodolfo:
I recently went back to my own performance in La Bohème, to see myself through the audience’s eyes, so to speak. Although I know the production inside out, the story still brings tears to my eyes. It has a sense of reality, of true life. It immediately takes me back to my years as a student. Back then, I also used to write poetry and compose music. I feel a great kinship with the lives of the young people portrayed in this opera. I bring my own interpretation to the role of Rodolfo, tapping into my own life experience. I come from a regular family. We are not wealthy. But even if I had grown up with money, I believe I would still feel close to the characters in La Bohème. After all, everyone without exception is familiar with feelings of darkness and hopelessness.
I only visited Paris once. I mostly tour other cities and countries. That said, I doubt the same atmosphere that drew Murger and Puccini can still be felt in Paris today. But that’s not particularly important. Be it Paris, Moscow, or Tashkent — it doesn’t matter. Even on the opposite ends of the earth, human passions and feelings are the same.
Like any creative spirit, my Rodolfo is a great dreamer. I remember myself back when I was just starting to learn... I was full of desires! But dreams can only become reality if you are constantly thinking of how to realize them. I’ve been playing Rodolfo for a long time now. The Mikhailovsky production is not my first. Of course there is a sense that I’ve travelled a long way from where I started. But there is no limit to perfection. I rarely use this phrase now, but it used to be a great motivator for me, not only in my singing, but in my personal development: reading books, learning languages... Discipline is very helpful. I learned discipline from sport. I used to box, then later trained in Muay Thai. As a teenager, I went to a professional sports camp along with my sisters, who play volleyball — they toured the entire country. These days, unfortunately, my packed schedule doesn’t leave a lot of time for sports. But I do try to play football every once in a while.
When you have over sixty performances a year, you end up working with all sorts of partners. But I’ve been mostly lucky. I’ve worked with Tatiana Ryaguzova before. We performed together in Dmitri Tcherniakov’s excellent production of Il trovatore. We are closely attuned to one another. We laugh wholeheartedly, and joke around with each other. In fact, I feel a certain camaraderie with every person on the stage. And that’s great because each soloist, each extra, brings their own unique quality to the performance. It’s a tremendous feeling to connect with all of them and to breathe as one on stage.
Najmiddin Mavlyanov, tenor, appearing as Rodolfo:
I recently went back to my own performance in La Bohème, to see myself through the audience’s eyes, so to speak. Although I know the production inside out, the story still brings tears to my eyes. It has a sense of reality, of true life. It immediately takes me back to my years as a student. Back then, I also used to write poetry and compose music. I feel a great kinship with the lives of the young people portrayed in this opera. I bring my own interpretation to the role of Rodolfo, tapping into my own life experience. I come from a regular family. We are not wealthy. But even if I had grown up with money, I believe I would still feel close to the characters in La Bohème. After all, everyone without exception is familiar with feelings of darkness and hopelessness.
I only visited Paris once. I mostly tour other cities and countries. That said, I doubt the same atmosphere that drew Murger and Puccini can still be felt in Paris today. But that’s not particularly important. Be it Paris, Moscow, or Tashkent — it doesn’t matter. Even on the opposite ends of the earth, human passions and feelings are the same.
Like any creative spirit, my Rodolfo is a great dreamer. I remember myself back when I was just starting to learn... I was full of desires! But dreams can only become reality if you are constantly thinking of how to realize them. I’ve been playing Rodolfo for a long time now. The Mikhailovsky production is not my first. Of course there is a sense that I’ve travelled a long way from where I started. But there is no limit to perfection. I rarely use this phrase now, but it used to be a great motivator for me, not only in my singing, but in my personal development: reading books, learning languages... Discipline is very helpful. I learned discipline from sport. I used to box, then later trained in Muay Thai. As a teenager, I went to a professional sports camp along with my sisters, who play volleyball — they toured the entire country. These days, unfortunately, my packed schedule doesn’t leave a lot of time for sports. But I do try to play football every once in a while.
When you have over sixty performances a year, you end up working with all sorts of partners. But I’ve been mostly lucky. I’ve worked with Tatiana Ryaguzova before. We performed together in Dmitri Tcherniakov’s excellent production of Il trovatore. We are closely attuned to one another. We laugh wholeheartedly, and joke around with each other. In fact, I feel a certain camaraderie with every person on the stage. And that’s great because each soloist, each extra, brings their own unique quality to the performance. It’s a tremendous feeling to connect with all of them and to breathe as one on stage.
