Anyuta is a one-act comic opera to a libretto by Mikhail Popov. First performed in 1772, it was one of the first operas written in the Russian language. The collection of Popov's poems, translations and plays called Dosugi (Досуги – Leisure Hours) was published at the request of Empress Catherine II. This collection also contained the libretto to the opera Anyuta. The music hasn't survived and its composer is not known, however it has sometimes been attributed to Vasily Pashkevich or even to Yevstigney Fomin although at that time he was just 11 years old. It is known that the music was a selection of popular songs as specified in the libretto.

Performance history

The premiere took place at the Chinese Theatre, Tsarskoye Selo, on September 6 [OS August 26] 1772. It was one of the most successful.

Plot

It is a story about a girl called Anyuta, brought up in a peasants' household, who turned out to be of noble birth, eventually marrying her nobleman beloved, Victor, to the sound of wedding bells.

Sources