Bolshoi protests over Gergiev ticket increases
OperaBolshoi goers have been complaining on Russian social media about huge price increases at the Bolshoi since Valery Gergiev was granted supreme power last year by Vladimir Putin.
A good seat in the stalls has shot up from 15,000 rubles (US$166) to 50,000 ($550). The cheapest unsighted seat is now 8,000 rubles ($88) instead of 3,000 ($33).
Hey Russians, it costs money to wage a war, what do you think, you’d live your life in blissful ignorance in Moscow pretending nothing is happening and attend the ballet and not expect to pay anything? The Iranians need to be paid for their drones, the North Koreans need to be paid for their missiles, the Chinese need to be paid for their electronics, the Wagner Group needs to be paid for their salaries.
There is only one complaint about prices that sellers take any notice of and that’s if what they are selling doesn’t sell.
I think fondly of my 1.50 Rouble ticket for Giselle at the Bolshoi in the 1980’s. Terrific performance and I was so close to the ceiling painting yet still could see all the stage. Had a great conversation with the Russians around me about Ballet and opera in general (and Pushkin of course!). Exited the theatre at the end of the performance and got caught up with the rehearsals for the military parade in Red square the next day.
Same here at Salzburg.
Was Salzburg EVER inexpensive?
I would protest at Gergiev alone without any consideration of ticket prices. If there’s one good thing Putin’s war has given the world it’s that other countries have been spared Gergiev’s toothpick waving antics. Pity Ukraine pays the price daily though.
It’s wonderful to have friends in high places. VG will never work in the West again. No loss since he was a very highly overrated conductor. Apparently he is an overrated theater administrator also!
How do the Bolshoi ticket prices compare to the Marinsky? And how does the cost of living compare between the two cities?
When I lived in Moscow 20 years ago, the Bolshoy actually did a fair amount of dynamic pricing. Tickets to Nutcracker or Swan Lake were pretty steep, but Prokofiev’s Fiery Angel or Rimsky’s Snegorushka (?) were pretty cheap. This was pre-renovation Bolshoy.
Those prices are pretty steep. Well, maybe people will carp a little less about the MET and Peter Gelb.
They don’t seem to mind paying for Putin’s war.