Azerbaijan's State Opera and Ballet Theater among TOP 10 opera houses

By Azernews

By Laman Ismayilova

Famous for spectacular performances, Azerbaijan State Opera and Ballet Theater has entered the TOP 10 opera houses in the CIS.

The list was prepared by TurStat Agency for the International Day of Culture to mark the adoption of the Roerich Pact "on the Protection of Artistic and Scientific Institutions and Historical Monuments (1935)".

The ranking also included the Bolshoi State Academic Theater, the Bolshoi Theater of Belarus, the Kazakh State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater, the Astana Opera State Opera and Ballet Theater and other opera houses.

The State Opera and Ballet Theater has played an important role in shaping the Azerbaijani opera.

The theater was built at the request of magnate Daniel Mailov and funded by magnate Zeynalabdin Taghiyev.

"Leyli and Majnun" by Uzeyir Hajibeyli,  the first opera of the entire East, was first performed here in 1908.

Today, the theater successfully hosts ballets, operas, and other theatrical performances.