Within the framework of the project The Return of Dmytro Bortnyanskyy’s First Opera ‘Creonte’ to the World, the key task was not only to restore the work to the stage, but also to conduct extensive scholarly research and digitise the complete set of the opera’s musical heritage. This includes the score, orchestral parts, vocal parts, choral score, the harpsichord part, which had to be recreated, as well as the clavier for singing with piano. This was reported to LB.ua by the author of the project, UNESCO Artist for Peace and conductor of the National Opera of Ukraine, Herman Makarenko.
During the round table discussion Cultural Diplomacy During Wartime: Promoting Bortnyanskyy’s Opera ‘Creonte’ in Europe, held on 13 January in Kyiv, one of the project’s patrons, Professor Mykola Prodanchuk, Director of the State Enterprise Scientific Centre for Preventive Toxicology, Food and Chemical Safety named after Academician L. I. Medved of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, emphasised that it was extremely important to ensure the wide international dissemination of the opera’s musical heritage.
“In addition to the theatrical production, it was important that the notes and score created by Bortniansky be distributed. That is why we set ourselves the goal of creating a beautiful presentation edition of the score and sheet music for this opera, to present it as a gift from the Ukrainian people to other nations,” he said.
According to him, the electronic version of the score has already been distributed by the V. I. Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine to leading libraries around the world. The next step will be to distribute the printed edition of the sheet music to all key libraries worldwide.
“After all, this proves that the Ukrainian opera tradition began at least 250 years ago,” Prodanchuk emphasised.
Herman Makarenko noted that the successful staging of the opera 'Creonte' in October 2025, attended by representatives from various countries, significantly increased interest in the work among European partners.
Serhiy Dvornyk, Director of the Department of International Organisations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, emphasised the importance of cultural diplomacy in times of war.
“This is precisely the case when the return of one work means the discovery of an entire tradition. We at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are convinced that the international tour of this opera will not only be a significant artistic event, but also a powerful diplomatic act promoting our culture and identity,” the diplomat stressed.
According to him, Russia systematically uses historical myths and cultural narratives to justify aggression and appropriate foreign heritage.
“Today, when Russia is trying to destroy or appropriate Ukrainian culture, every cultural diplomacy project is not just an act of resistance. We offer Ukraine to the world as a source of meanings, styles and standards of high culture,” Dvornyk said.
He emphasised that Bortnyanskyy is a composer whose work shaped the European musical space of the 18th century, and that the return of Creonte as a Ukrainian product represents the restoration of historical justice.
Anglo-American writer and television presenter Marcel Raymond Theroux said that the production of Creonte had allowed him to rethink Ukraine’s role in European culture.
“For years, we were convinced that Ukraine was the younger brother of Russian culture. Maestro Makarenko’s work allowed me to appreciate the uniqueness of the Ukrainian composer and the originality of Ukrainian culture,” he said.
The founder of the Austrian publication OPERN NEWS, Stefan Burianek, drew attention to the scale of Russian cultural propaganda in Europe, particularly in Austria and Italy, and stressed the importance of promoting Eastern European artistic achievements.
“Opera is a form of art that is particularly suited to cultural diplomacy, as it combines all forms of art and attracts the attention of political and economic elites,” he noted.
German reviewer Willy Patzelt emphasised the European character of Creonte, created by a Ukrainian composer in Italy in the spirit of the Enlightenment, and stressed that staging the opera in Europe would help to better understand the values that Ukraine defends today. Lesya Voronyuk, a member of the Europa Nostra Council, called Creonte a global phenomenon and stressed that opera should become an integral part of Ukrainian cultural diplomacy.
“We need to talk about Ukraine through many cultural layers — through traditional culture, architecture, painting and, of course, through the high aesthetics of opera art.”
According to Voronyuk, the story of Creon creates opportunities for international cooperation and intellectual empathy, which is especially important when working with European partners.
Responding to LB.ua’s question about practical steps for presenting the opera on European stages in 2026 — the 250th anniversary of the premiere of Creonte in Venice — Herman Makarenko said that negotiations were already under way with Greece, Portugal (Lisbon Opera House), France, Italy, Poland and the United Kingdom.
“We are doing everything possible to restore and showcase this pan-European spiritual and cultural heritage in Venice in November 2026, 250 years after its premiere,” he said.
Serhiy Dvornyk added that the two UNESCO patronages received by the project are a “mark of quality” that greatly facilitates international communication and opens doors to cooperation.