On March 12, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. The second branch of the National Academic Grand Opera and Ballet Theatre of the Republic of Belarus has been established in Novopolotsk, Valentina Kishchenko, Head of the Culture Department of the Novopolotsk City Executive Committee, told a BELTA correspondent. The agreement on its establishment was signed by Vladimir Gridushko, General Director of the Grand Opera and Ballet Theatre, representatives of the Novopolotsk City Executive Committee, and the open joint-stock company "Naftan". The document provides for cooperation in the organization of guest performances by individual artists and showings of opera and ballet performances of the Grand Theatre. Performances and concerts will be held monthly on the stage of the Naftan OJSC Palace of Culture. According to preliminary arrangements, the first performance will take place at the end of April. As Valentina Kishchenko explained, the initiative to establish a branch of the Grand Theatre in Novopolotsk came from the local authorities and was met with a sincere response from the theatre. Before signing the agreement, the theatre's management familiarized themselves with the capabilities of all stage venues in Novopolotsk and concluded that the stage of the oil refiners' Palace of Culture was the most convenient. "However, no matter which stage the artists of the Grand Theatre of Belarus perform on, the quality of their performances will always be excellent," Valentina Kishchenko quoted the theatre's General Director as saying. In turn, the people of Novopolotsk promise sold-out performances for the artists. "Opera and ballet are loved and appreciated in Novopolotsk, and the interest in the performances of the Grand Theatre and its artists is enormous," the interlocutor stated. The first branch of the Grand Theatre of Belarus was established in December 2011 in Mogilev. During this time, the Grand Theatre successfully presented the ballets "Giselle" and "Don Quixote", an Evening of Old Romance, and a concert of vocal music with the participation of the string quintet "Serenade" on the stage of the regional Palace of Culture and the "Mogilev" concert hall. -0-

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