Although rarely performed, Mazeppa is considered the most powerful opera by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The libretto, which was based on Pushkin's narrative poem Poltava abounds with correspondences with the composer's life, which makeMazeppa one of his most personal works.
The political dimension of the opera is based on the conflict between the imperial Russia and Ukraine which is, though with the economical sign, pressing even today. With this staging of the Opera of the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb, Mazeppa will have its wrongfully belated first performance in Croatia.
