The XXVII edition of "Maria Bieșu" International Opera and Ballet Festival will start on Friday, September 6, in Chisinau. This year's edition includes eight shows: four operas, three ballets and a gala concert dedicated to closing the event, IPN reports.

On the first day of the festival two act opera "Norma" by Vincenzo Bellini will be staged. On Saturday, the Festival will continue with the four-act ballet show "Swan Lake " by Piotr Tchaikovsky. On September 8, "Ball-Masquerade" opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi will take place." Sleeping Beauty" will be performed by Ukrainian ballet dancers on September 9.

On September 10, "Rigoletto" three act opera by Giuseppe Verdi will be staged. In the penultimate two days of the festival, September 13 and 14, there will be shown "Turandot" three act opera by Giacomo Puccini and, respectively, "Don Quixote" ballet in three acts by Ludwig Minkus. This year's edition will be concluded with a gala concert on September 15th.

The Minister of Education, Culture and Research, Liliana Nicolaescu-Onofrei, believes that the event is important for all the music fans, but also for all who are going to fall in love with music and opera or ballet shows. According to the minister, the festival will include shows in which will perform famous Moldovan artists, including those who have made a career abroad, as well as foreign artists.

The Ministry allocated 1.5 million lei for this festival.

Nicolae Dohotaru, People’s artist, noted that the inaugural show "Norma" was "one of the most beautiful works that Maria Biesu has brought onto the stage". "I am pleased that this year " Norma" will be performed with a local singer, Diana Axentii residing for years in Paris," said Nicolae Dohotaru.

Anastasia Homițcaia, prima ballerina, mentioned that of the three shows that will be performed, two are classic: " Swan Lake" and "Don Quixote", presented by "Maria Bieșu" National Opera and Ballet Theatre, and one is modern: "Sleeping Beauty", presented by the Kiev Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre. "I think ballet shows will be very successful and will have a large audience, as we have had the whole theatrical season," says the ballerina.

The director of "Maria Bieșu National Opera and Ballet Theatre ", Ion Grosu, claims that the festival has been prepared for over half a year. It will have 25 guests from ten countries.

Ticket prices for operas vary from 50 lei to 200 lei; for ballets - between 100 lei and 300 lei.