Dutch National Opera & Ballet donates € 164,000 to Ukraine
On Sunday 13 March, Dutch National Opera and the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra gave a benefit concert, under the direction of chief conductor Lorenzo Viotti, to support Ukraine. The concert sold out within a day and – in addition to eliciting a highly emotional response from the audience – raised € 76,000. The benefit concert Opera & Ballet voor Oekraïne tied in with the national cultural campaign hArtforUkraine that was held the weekend before on 4, 5 and 6 March. Dutch National Opera & Ballet participated in this campaign and donated the entire proceeds from the performances that weekend – a total of € 88,000 – to Giro 555. This sum, paired with the proceeds from the benefit concert, amounted to a total of €164,000 for Ukraine.
OPERA & BALLET VOOR OEKRAÏNE
The Opera & Ballet voor Oekraïne benefit concert was a joint effort, featuring soprano Inna Demenkova and baritone Maksym Nazarenko from Dutch National Opera Studio, Luba Podgayskaya on the piano, and the Chorus of Dutch National Opera and the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, under the baton of chief conductor Lorenzo Viotti. Together, they presented a beautiful music programme that was incredibly varied, ranging from Mozart and Mahler to traditional Ukrainian songs. The latter in particular stirred up powerful emotions, both in the auditorium and on stage. In additon, the principals of Dutch National Ballet, Maia Makhateli and Jakob Feyferlik, performed Rudi van Dantzig’s pax de deux Voorbij gegaan to piano music by Fréderic Chopin. The audience refrained from applause in between performances at the request of Lorenzo Viotti, but gave a standing ovation once the final note had been played.
The dancers, singers, orchestra members and staff who contributed to this performance, all did so on a voluntary basis without any private gain.
