The Bolshoi Theater in Moscow on October 9.
(Credit: Mikhail Japaridze / TASS / Sipa USA)
(CNN) -
An actor at the famous Bolshoi Theater in Moscow died Saturday in an accident on stage during an opera.
The Bolshoi, one of Russia's most prestigious theaters, said the incident occurred during a change of scenery at Sadko, an opera by Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov.
The Moscow prosecutor's office opened an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the accident, and the Tverskoy Interdistrict Investigation Department is conducting a pre-investigation check at the scene.
State media identified the cast member as 38-year-old Yevgeny Kulesh.
The interior of the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow after the incident.
CNN cannot verify what is covering the blur in the photos published and pixelated by the Moscow Prosecutor's Office.
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"The opera was immediately stopped and the audience was asked to leave the hall," the theater said in comments collected by the Interfax news agency.
The remainder of the performance was canceled and the public reimbursed.
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The incident took place at the rear of the stage, where Kulesh "took the wrong direction" while descending the scenery, according to a law enforcement source, the Russian state news agency TASS reported.
The cast member has been identified by state media as 38-year-old Yevgeny Kulesh.
The Interfax news agency cited a source, according to which the actor was crushed by a ramp during a change of scenery.
The Bolshoi has already suffered tragedies in the past.
In July 2013, a veteran violinist died after falling into the orchestra pit.