Teatro Lirico D’Europa is the most successful opera touring company in Europe and the US. 

Featuring the Sofia Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, and as seen in the Feb. 2002 issue of OPERA NEWS in a four page article entitled ROAD WARRIORS by Richard Dyer, Teatro Lirico D’Europa is the only opera touring company traveling with a full orchestra of 47-50 members and chorus of 40 singers, as well as outstanding professional vocal soloists from the major opera houses of Europe and the USA. 

Teatro Lirico D’Europa was created in 1986 by the late Yves Josse, a French performing arts promoter, and Bulgarian opera singer, Giorgio Lalov, who debuted at La Scala at the age of 26, and who conducts hundreds of auditions throughout the year in major cities around the globe to hand pick principal soloists for each of its productions. 

Teatro Lirico D’Europa has completed over 3,000 performances world wide including six major USA tours.  The popular company embarks on its 7th major American tour in winter 2005 with over 60 performances of several different full scale operas, presented at the most outstanding venues across the U.S. 

The company travels with a symphonic orchestra, a large chorus of trained singers, and professional dancers when required. Soloists for the productions are chosen from auditions held in major cities around the world including New York. They are mature, seasoned professionals in the midst of important careers. Teatro Lirico D’Europa performs Mozart’s NOZZE DI FIGARO at L’Atrium Theatre on the Island of Martinique in April 2005 and returns to the Tuscany Festival in Sienna, Italy this summer. The company will have its first tour in TAIWAN in 2005 as well.

"This is the 8th season of touring in the U.S. for this hardworking European company, and its opening in Boston with Verdi's popular "Rigoletto" was a propitious occasion, indeed. With smart and colorful sets by Valentin Topencharov and a moody use of lighting by Giorgio Bajukliev, this production had all the feel of big theater. The sets filled the stage of the Cutler Majestic fully and added to a mood for this production that was at times both elegant and at others ominous.  Well done!

But sets and lighting were not all that shone last night. The magic of this production was an outstanding cast that could not only sing, but act as well. I must acknowledge at the start the wonderfully honed instrument of Russian soprano Larissa Yudina, whom we saw dazzling the audience in last year's "The Magic Flute." She thrilled us then with her Queen of the Night rendition of "Der Halle Rache Kocht in Meinem Herzen" (The wrath of hell is burning in my bosom), and she thrilled us again last night as the vulnerable and innocent Gilda. Ms. Yudina is gifted with amazing tonal clarity and vocal agility, and she put it all to good use in a performance that was wonderfully moving in all the right places. Brava!

Equally up to the task was baritone Vytautas Juozapaitis who's tortured characterization of Rigoletto was near flawless, strong and acted with intelligence and emotional depth. Mr. Juozapaitas has a full baritone that displays nice range and clarity, and coupled with the ease with which he commanded the stage, provided just the right measure of appeal that communicated to the audience the conflict and suppressed rage the character, no doubt, felt toward those who used and mocked him. Nicely done!

In the role of the Duke of Mantua was tenor Igor Borko. Mr. Borko has a remarkably flexible tenor voice that is balanced and smooth, and when reaching for the higher notes, is remarkably flexibly and full even at the higher range. He gave a realistic and underplayed performance that made his character seem more human and flawed than evil and devilish. As with the rest of this fine cast, he remained consistently vocally strong throughout and navigated the stage nicely and with solid presence. Bravo!

I particularly liked the deep, rich bass sound of Mikhail Kolelishvili, who sang the dark role of the assassin Sparafucile, and the lovely, of mezzo-soprano tones of Viara Zhelezova who sang the role of Sparafucile's sister. Ms. Zhelezova was particularly sensuous as she enticed the Duke, while gliding her hands along her exposed midriff and hips - a nicely adept addition, adding to the realism of the part she played. 

The role of the chorus and orchestra here was and is important, and last night this chorus was both animated (natural in their movements on stage) and full-sounding. It was a well-balanced performance that added considerably to everything else that was going on on stage. The orchestra, under the leadership of Krassimir Topolov gave a fine rendition of the score, a performance that, in the end, had to be considered a big plus for all.

Teatro's "Rigoletto" had all the shine of a big stage production supplemented by the talents from a superb cast of performers who could sing up a storm and act as well. In a word: Wonderful! If the rest of the season matches this production in artistic quality, it's going to be one hell of a good season for opera in Boston."