This operetta had its first night in 1874 at Vienna's Theater an der Wien and though this went virtually unnoticed, its future performance history was a very happy one. It was later to become a popular and frequently performed work at the world's great opera houses which is not surprising: its combination of gay and inventive plotline plus brilliant, spirited music by Johann Strauss II went down well with the public. Even famous opera singers find plenty to test their skills in the virtuoso arias and ensembles with which this classical operetta proliferates, while its masked ball basis provides plenty of scope for imaginative producers. At one time, Mstislav Rostropovich and Boris Pokrovsky dreamed of producing Die Fledermaus at the Bolshoi. However, the honor of giving the opera its first Bolshoi Theatre production goes to a younger generations, who have already made names for themselves in the music world. The very young opera director, Vasily Barkhatov has made a successful debut at the Maryinsky. Moscow music lovers will remember the Swiss conductor, Christoph-Mathias Mueller, for his fine performance with Russian National Orchestra. Golden Mask winner, designer Zinovy Margolin, who collaborates with the Maryinsky, St.Petersburg Opera, the Boris Eifman Ballet Theatre, Rostov Music Theatre and other well-known musical and dramatic theatres, will be working at the Bolshoi for the first time. As for the famous couturier, Igor Chapurin, who has been invited to design the Die Fledermaus costumes, this will be his third Bolshoi Theatre production.

Die Fledermaus (The Bat) is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genee