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Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District
"Shostakovich's lurid opera of sex and violence, Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, is famous for being banned by personal decree of Joseph Stalin in 1936. Dramatically revived by Shostakovich's close friend, the cellist and Soviet émigré Mstislav Rostropovich, in 1979, Lady Macbeth is now an international hit. In the first-ever study of this beloved but still controversial opera, this book asks whether audiences have become so distracted by its traumatic reception history that they overlook what is truly shocking about it: namely, Lady Macbeth's frank portrayal of sexual violence against women. Arguing that Shostakovich himself vacillated over how consensual its central sex scene should be, the book grounds the opera's presentation of women, sexuality, and sexual violence in both real-life events and the culture of early Soviet Russia"--
In this detailed study of Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, Pauline Fairclough offers a radically new interpretation of one of the twentieth century's most popular operas. Banned by Joseph Stalin after he went to see it in early 1936, Lady Macbeth was never heard again in Shostakovich's lifetime. In her examination of original sources from the very first productions of the opera in 1934, Fairclough shows how Lady Macbeth was understood by contemporary Soviet audiences and how its shocking portrayal of sexual violence against women was rooted in the culture and everyday reality of early Soviet society.
An opera out of time? -- From “pornophony” to masterpiece : how the West was won -- Staging sex in the 1930s : what the libretto tells us -- Sex, society, and Soviet femininity -- Postlude : Lady Macbeth today.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2025]