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Modest Mussorgsky followed up on his popular epic Boris Godunov with his colorful drama Khovanshchina, which delves deeply into a complex and fascinating era of Russian history. Along with a number of striking characters, Khovanshchina also delivers some of the composer's most popular orchestral numbers, including "Dawn Over the Moscow River."

World of Opera host Lisa Simeone brings us the Shostakovich orchestration of Mussorgsky's Khovanshchina, in a lavish production from the Bastille Opera in Paris. The stars include bass Gleb Nikolsky, soprano Larissa Diadkova and tenor Vladimir Galusin, in a performance led by conductor Michail Jurowski.

Cast:

Conductor: Michail Jurowski

Ivan Khovansky: Gleb Nikolsky (bass)

Marfa: Larissa Diadkov (mezzo-soprano)

Andrei Khovansky: Vladimir Galusin (tenor)

Dosifei: Orlin Anastassov (bass)

Golitsin Sergei: Vsevolod Grivnov (tenjor)

Shaklovity: Murzaev (bass-baritone)

Susanna: Marina Lapina (soprano)

Scribe: Vadim Zaplechnyy (tenor)

Emma: Natalia Tymchanko (soprano)

Paris National Opera Orchestra,

Chorus, Children's Chorus