Dark and brooding, Modest Mussorgsky’s opera is a visceral, shocking psychodrama, exposing the corrupting effects of power. The 'extraordinary' (The Stage) Bryn Terfel returns to the role of the tormented Tsar in Richard Jones’ acclaimed production, while Mark Wigglesworth conducts Mussorgsky’s awe-inspiring score, packed with mighty choruses and spine-tingling drama.

A Time of Troubles and a Pushkin Connection

The opera is based on a historical subject. Its main protagonist is the Russian ruler, Boris Godunov, who reigned from 1598 to 1605 during the Time of Troubles. The opera also depicts the rise of the False Dimitry, who ruled from 1605-1606. The opera is written in Russian, with a libretto by the composer, based on the 1825 tragedy by the Russian poet and playwright, Alexander Pushkin. Pushkin was inspired by the works of William Shakespeare in his play about the tormented Russian ruler.

An opera of many editions

There are multiple versions of Boris Godunov. The original edition (1869) was rejected by the Imperial Theatre on the grounds that it lacked a large female role for a prima donna. Boris Godunov was heavily revised both by Mussorgsky (who submitted another version in 1872) and by the composers Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (in 1874) and, later, by Dmitri Shostakovich. The Royal Opera’s production, directed by Richard Jones, uses Mussorgsky’s original version, which takes the form of seven tautly constructed scenes which unfold without interval.

Modest Mussorgsky

Born in 1839 in the Russian city of Pskov, Modest Mussorgsky became a member of the so-called ‘Mighty Handful’ (Moguchaya kuchka), a group of five composers dedicated to founding a Russian national school of music. Like several of his fellow Kuchkists, Mussorgsky had no formal musical training, although his talents as a pianist were evident early on. He joined the St Petersburg Cadet School at the age of 13, where, sadly, his descent into alcoholism began: a path which would ultimately lead to his tragic death a week after his 42nd birthday. His operas, Boris Godunov and Khovanshchina, illuminate dark chapters from Russian history, combining folk motifs and choral writing from Russian Orthodox tradition. He also composed host of vividly original orchestral works, such as Pictures at an Exhibition and Night on the Bare Mountain.