Anna Achmatova opera debuts at Teatro alla Scala

The opera 'Anna A.', commissioned from composer Silvia Colasanti with a libretto by slavist Paolo Nori, premiered at Teatro alla Scala in Milan and runs until December 2, 2025. It recounts the life of Russian poet Anna Achmatova (1889-1966), focusing on her 17 months outside Leningrad's Kresty prison during Stalin's purges, where she joined other women waiting for news of political prisoners. The work alternates between Achmatova's old age in a Domodedovo sanatorium with friend Lidija Čukovskaja and flashbacks to her literary rise and the intellectual scene's destruction under Stalin. A semi-transparent box set divides the stage into ideal rooms, with projections mixing historical photos and video. Characters include her son Lev, executed first husband, third husband destroyed by imprisonment, and fellow intellectuals Mandelstam, Pasternak, Tsvetaeva, and Bulgakov. Bulgakov's dialogue introduces the theme of art versus power, with Stalin portrayed as a blood-stained figure singing a monologue inspired by Dostoevsky's Grand Inquisitor. The opera ends with Achmatova's death at dawn, awaiting her son Lev who reproaches her for his 15 years in prison.