Valery Gergiev and the Bolshoi: a plan to unite leadership
A major newspaper reports that Valery Gergiev, the artistic director of the Mariinsky Theater and named People’s Artist of the Russian Federation, is set to lead the Bolshoi Theater. The claim originates from three sources cited by the outlet.
The publication asserts that Gergiev would split his time between Moscow and St. Petersburg, managing the Bolshoi while continuing his duties at the Mariinsky and its orchestra. The announcement is expected to be unveiled on November 16 in St. Petersburg and presented at the St. Petersburg International Cultural Forum.
Vladimir Urin, who has led the Bolshoi Theater since 2013, is reportedly stepping down at his own request.
Joint Directorate
Reports confirming Urin’s departure and Gergiev’s appointment also come from a source referenced as Puree. Changes in leadership are anticipated to occur before year’s end.
Some reports suggest the Bolshoi and Mariinsky offices could be merged, with the St. Petersburg chief overseeing both institutions at once.
INSIDE Bolshoi Theater on the site socialbites.ca indicates that confirmation could not be obtained regarding Gergiev presiding over the Bolshoi.
The Bolshoi’s press service declined to comment, directing questions to the founder.
Fontanka in St. Petersburg reached the Mariinsky Opera House for reactions and was told they were not aware of any appointment.
“Valery Abisalovich is currently in Moscow, and the festival is underway in Zaryadye”, stated the theater.
The Ministry of Culture commented that they do not discuss rumors about personnel changes.
According to the newspaper’s source, a key condition for Gergiev to take on the Bolshoi role was the ability to combine the positions of director and artistic director at the Bolshoi Theater.
There is speculation that part of the Mariinsky administration could move to Moscow after the conductor’s appointment.
Earlier this year, Vladimir Putin and the Mariinsky’s artistic director discussed a revival of the Imperial Theaters Directorate, which could encompass both the Bolshoi and Mariinsky.
The president recalled that the Imperial Theaters once operated under a directorate that kept top teams aligned, and he suggested that reviving this structure could yield broad benefits.
Gergiev replied that the Bolshoi and the Mariinsky together represent one of the strongest musical and theatrical traditions on the planet. He argued that aligning state resources and institutional goals from the 1990s could open significant opportunities.
Gergiev’s career
Gergiev studied at the Leningrad Conservatory and earned recognition by winning the Herbert von Karajan competition in Berlin and the All-Union Conducting Competition in Moscow. Afterward, he joined the Kirov (now the Mariinsky) Theatre as an assistant conductor and led his first major appearance in the winter of 1978 with Sergei Prokofiev’s War and Peace.
Since 1996, he has served as artistic director of the Mariinsky Theatre.
Under his leadership, Wagner’s Parsifal (1997), Lohengrin (1999) and The Ring of the Nibelung (2003) returned to prominence on the St. Petersburg stage.
The Mariinsky Theatre Symphony Orchestra has expanded a broad orchestral repertoire under Gergiev, including Beethoven, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Mahler, Sibelius, Prokofiev, Shostakovich and works by Berlioz, Bruckner, Rimsky-Korsakov, Strauss, Scriabin, Rachmaninov and Stravinsky. Contemporary composers such as Messiaen, Dutilleux, Ustvolskaya, Shchedrin and Kancheli are also part of the ensemble’s ongoing exploration.