The 15th edition of the international festival of opera and ballet stars “Invita Maria Biesu” starts on Friday, September 8, in Chisinau. The music lovers are expected at 18.00 at the National Opera house at an opening concert. The event is organized by the Musicians’ Union, the Ministry of Culture, the National Theatre of Opera and ballet, and the diva of the festival is the prima Donna of national opera, Maria Biesu. According to the organizers, this year, the festival will host performers from Romania, Bulgaria, Finland, Hungary, Russia and Ukraine. The event will contain opera and ballet performances, and on September 10, there will be a charity show. The event will culminate on September 15, with a gala concert, which will take place at the National Palace. The organizers claim that in 2007, the “Invita Maria Biesu” festival will not take place, being replaced by the international contest “Madame Butterfly”, which will thus record 40 years since the appointment of Maria Biesu as the best Cio-Cio-San in the world. For the best performance of the “Madame Butterfly” role, at the International canto contest “Miura Tamaki” in Tokyo (1967), the performer won the 1st prize and the Golden Cup of the competition.