Organizing committee of the National theatre award “Golden Mask – 2018” named nominees of the season 2017/2018. In the nominees list the Perm opera and ballet theatre is mentioned 28 times which is a record number of nominees for the Russian theatre award from one theatre. There are four premieres of the previous season that are nominated for the “Golden Mask”: the oratorio “Jeanne au bûcher”, the opera “Phaeton” and the ballets – “Nutcracker” and “Asunder”.

The dramatic oratorio by Arthur Honegger “Jeanne au bûcher” staged by one of the most significant and requested European directors Romeo Castellucci that opened the Diaghilev festival last year was named 8 times. The performance claims the award “The best opera”. The authors of the performance Romeo Castellucci and artistic director of the Perm opera and ballet theatre Teodor Currentzis are nominated as “The best work of a director in opera” and “The best work of a conductor in opera” respectively. The performers of the main parts Audrey Bonnet and Denis Lavant are nominated for the award for the best female and male roles. Therewith, Romeo Castellucci is nominated for the award as the best designer, the best light designer and the best costumes designer in opera.

Another performance claiming the award “The best opera” is “Phaëton” by Jean-Baptiste Lully premiered in Perm in March 2018. The performance is mentioned 10 times. Nominations of the stage group: artistic director and conductor of the ensemble “Le Poème Harmonique” Vincent Dumestre in nomination of “The best conductor in opera” and Benjamin Lazar in nomination of “The best director in opera”. There are also performers of solo parts among the nominees: the artists of the choir musicAeterna Elizaveta Sveshnikova and Viktor Shapovalov and the soloists of “Le Poème Harmonique” Léa Trommenschlager, Mathias Vidal and Cyril Auvity. The performance also gained two nominations for the work of a designer and the work of a light designer.

The main choreographic premiere of the previous season – the ballet “Nutcracker” by Peter Tchaikovsky - gained seven nominations. The author of the libretto and the choreographer, main ballet master of the theatre Alexey Miroshnichenko is nominated for “The best work of a ballet master – choreographer”. The performance itself claims the award in nomination “The best ballet”. Artem Abashev is nominated for the work of a conductor in ballet. The soloists of the Perm ballet Polina Buldakova and Pavel Savin claim the victory in nominations “The best female role” and “The best male role” for parts of Mary and Prince. The performance is also nominated for “The best designer in musical theatre” (Aliona Pikalova) and “The best costumes designer” (Tatiana Noginova).  

The coproduction of the Perm opera and ballet theatre and the festival Context. Diana Vishneva – the ballet Asunder – created by the famous Spanish choreographer Goyo Montero claims the victory in three nominations: “The best ballet”, “Work of a ballet master – choreographer” and “Work of a light designer in musical theatre”.

Among the nominees there is also the performance in the butoh technique created for the Diaghilev festival – 2018 by one of the most noticeable Russian new wave choreographers Anna Garafeeva. The performance is named in four nominations.   

Winners’ names will be announced on the 16^th of April 2019. An awards ceremony will be held on the Historical stage of the Bolshoi theatre.