Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

The director of Russia's Mariinsky Theatre, Valery Gergiev, is also put in charge of the Bolshoi

The Russian government has named the renowned director of the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg to also lead Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre

Via AP news wire
Friday 01 December 2023 15:05 GMT

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

The Russian government on Friday named Valery Gergiev, the renowned director of the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, to also lead Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre.

Gergiev is replacing Vladimir Urin at the Bolshoi. Urin announced Thursday that he was stepping down after a decade, but didn't explain the reason behind his move.

Some Russian media said the departure of 76-year-old Urin was related to health issues. Others speculated it was linked to a letter calling for an end to Moscow's military action in Ukraine that he and some other prominent cultural figures signed after the Kremlin sent troops across the border in February 2022.

Several other theater directors who signed the letter have lost their jobs since then.

Russian President Vladimir Putin first suggested in March 2022 the idea of putting the countries' two most prominent theaters, the Bolshoi and the Mariinsky, under single leadership.

Gergiev, 70, a world-famous conductor who has been the director of Mariinsky Theatre for 35 years, has been a strong supporter of Putin and his policies.

A week after Moscow sent troops into Ukraine, he lost the job of conductor of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra and some other European theaters also cut ties with him over his failure to denounce the Kremlin's action

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in