Ilya Bannik to Join Cast of Metropolitan Opera's IOLANTA for Select Performances

Ilya Bannik will sing the role of King René in Tchaikovsky's Iolanta on February 3, 7, 10, and 14 matinee, replacing Alexei Tanovitski, who is ill.

Bannik made his Met debut last week, stepping in to sing King René in the Met premiere of Iolanta, which is presented in a double bill with Bartók's Bluebeard's Castle.

Both operas are conducted by Valery Gergiev and directed by Mariusz Trelinski in his Met debut. Iolanta stars Anna Netrebko in the title role, Piotr Beczala as Vaudémont, Aleksei Markov as Robert, and Elchin Azizov as Ibn-Hakia. Bluebeard's Castle stars Nadja Michael as Judith and Mikhail Petrenko in the title role.

Ukrainian bass Bannik sings frequently at St. Petersburg's Mariinsky Theatre, where his recent roles have included the Four Villains in Offenbach's Les Contes d'Hoffmann, Baron Trobonok in Rossini's Il Viaggio a Reims, Samuel in Verdi's Un Ballo in Maschera, and Sarastro in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte. His other recent performances include Gremin in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin at Edmonton Opera and the Emperor in Robert Lepage's staging of Stravinsky's Le Rossignol at Canadian Opera Company, Aix-en-Provence Festival, Lyon Opera, and Dutch National Opera.

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