Like a thunderclap in the artistic Russian sky. While Moscow has just announced the development of a possible vaccine against the coronavirus, the television channel RBK TV announced that cases of covid have been detected within the teams of the two largest opera houses in Russia, the Bolshoi and the Mariinsky. At the Mariinsky in St. Petersburg, several artists have reportedly tested positive. The rehearsals of the ballet Giselle are currently postponed. Dancers who are not part of this production are requested not to go to the theater.
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The Mariinsky Theater, directed by conductor Valery Gergiev, a close friend of Vladimir Putin, was the first major Russian institution to resume its activities and to welcome the public after it was put to sleep. In a laconic statement, the institution specifies that "several ballet dancers, who complained of a deterioration in their health, were quickly suspended". The artists have been tested and "the results are expected in the near future", explains the theater, which ensures that all its employees "are regularly tested" and that only those who are negative are allowed to work.
59 people in quarantine
The situation is different at the Bolshoi, in Moscow, which has confirmed the presence of an artist for whom they have concerns. A corps de ballet dancer has some symptoms of the coronavirus. Although the result of the test is not yet known, 59 people with whom she has been in contact have been placed in quarantine and tested as a preventive measure. Dancers who have not worked with this dancer are allowed to continue their rehearsals.
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On August 1, Moscow theaters received permission to resume operations, but some of them preferred to wait before welcoming the audience again. The Bolshoi have made the decision to open their season on September 6, with Don Carlos de Verdi and a luxury cast including Anna Netrebko and Ildar Abdrazakov.
