In Macbeth, themes of corruption, resistance resonate for Ukrainian members of Calgary Opera chorus

By Eric Volmers, Calgary Herald, Apr 19, 2023

There is a scene in Giuseppe Verdi’s opera Macbeth involving a group of Scottish exiles on the English border lamenting the fate of their homeland. Their country has been turned into a tomb, full of death and destruction in the wake of the titular anti-hero’s erratic grasp for power.

In Calgary Opera’s production of Macbeth, the refugees are played by a sprawling chorus of singers that includes mezzo-soprano Stephania Romaniuk, a Toronto-born, Alberta-raised, third-generation Ukrainian-Canadian. When the chorus sings the darkly moving Patria Opressa, or Oppressed Homeland, it deeply resonates with the singer.

“I personally have to hold back the tears,” she says. “I always think of Ukraine in that moment.”

Like much of William Shakespeare’s work, Macbeth has resonated with audiences since the Bard penned it in the early 1600s. It was of its time, of course, reportedly written as a tribute to King James I. But themes of corruption, the perils of unchecked ambition and the long-term impact of political violence always seem painfully contemporary no matter what the period. In 1847, when Verdi’s Macbeth was first performed, parts of Italy were under Austrian domination and the composer was a strong supporter of Risorgimento, Italy’s independence movement. Verdi’s interest in exploring tyranny and freedom was in line with Shakespeare’s.

For Romaniuk, there are clear parallels to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

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