An extensive interview with Sergey Novikov, the art director of Digital Opera, was featured in «Showmaster» magazine, a publication focusing on show technologies and individuals. The interview covered Novikov's work as a set designer, the utilization of multimedia technologies in theatre, and Digital Opera Saint-Petersburg.
Excerpts from the interview are being published, while those interested in reading the entire interview can download the magazine from the website.
Marina Bagirova, the chief editor, inquired, «Is multimedia in the theatre a cost or a saving?»
Sergey Novikov responded, «Good multimedia is an expenditure. Poor multimedia may lead to savings. It's essential to strike a balance. There are not many specialists in Russia working with multimedia for the theatre. They are not trained in this area yet; it's a developing aspect for the theatre. I can assert that it is not inexpensive. Theatre management often believes that having an image on the screen suffices. In reality, we may have a low-powered projector and poorly rendered videos. This raises questions about the video artist's education, experience, and past works. Proficient specialists are costly, and modern equipment is essential; otherwise, only a fraction of the envisioned concept can be conveyed.»
M.B.: «Who are the outstanding video artists in this field?»
S.N.: «The remarkable Ilya Starilov works for the Theatre of Nations, Mariinsky, and the Bolshoi. He is a perceptive artist. There are others as well. I mentioned Ilya since he truly represents a cultural phenomenon. Several years ago in Los Angeles, we collaborated on an immersive show 'The Nutcracker' with Ilya Tseluytin, a distinguished specialist in advertising among other fields. The entire production was centered on video. Ilya served as a creative producer, assembled artists for the show, and created the art himself. At Digital Opera, we discovered an intriguing artist, Ilya Smilga, who holds a background in design and commenced working with video around five years ago, already yielding interesting results. This is how we seek out such artists; these are unique specialists, there are not many names.
M.B.: «Does the Digital Opera festival facilitate encounters with new media artists?»
S.N.: «Certainly, the objective is to uncover fresh talents and names. Last year, we expanded the festival and extended invitations to theatre directors and artists to accompany them. This led to an intriguing development, as the director formulates a meaningful solution, and the artist develops content based on the idea. We hope that directors and video artists will collaboratively create a new realm on stage, involving actors and the orchestra. This year, we're organizing a festival dedicated to the fairy tales of Alexander Pushkin. It will feature significant musical segments from operas lasting 10–15 minutes, allowing the director to completely unfold the stage. We have invited heads of the theatres, producers, and directors whom we wish to introduce to this new format. The digital language has emerged relatively recently, and we have yet to fully master it. Our task is to establish a community of individuals with whom we will explore how to effectively work with it.»