My debut as a guest stage director at the Mariinsky Theatre was the world premiere of a children's opera written by the young composer Rustam Sagdiyev. The libretto of The Adventures of Kintaro is based on myths and legends of ancient Japan. The main character on his journey through the land of dreams encounters the shapeshifting cats Bakeneko, the talking stone statue Jizo-sama and the cunning sorceress Nopperapon who holds the beautiful Sazaki captive.

Created jointly with the set designer Olga Kovalenko, the production has become one of the hits of the children's repertoire at the New Stage Prokofiev Chamber Hall of the Mariinsky Theatre, still attracting full houses five years after its opening night. The premiere of The Adventures of Kintaro was the basis of a long-term collaboration with the composer Rustam Sagdiyev. We have produced more than a dozen premieres on the stages of Russia's leading musical institutions and in the online space.