Ballet to tell story of Ottoman sultan
ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News
The newest play by the Ankara State Opera and Ballet (ADOB), which dramatizes the short-lived reign of Ottoman Sultan Murad V, will make its world premiere May 3 in the Turkish capital. The show, “Murad V Ballet,” was promoted at a press conference April 15 at Istanbul’s Çırağan Palace that also included a short ballet accompanied by works that were composed by the sultan himself.
The Murad V ballet is a very important turning point following a number of recently works recently completed by ADOB, State Opera and Ballet General Director Rengim Gökmen said at the conference, adding that the company had been making new works for the past 64 years.
Gökmen said Ottoman history was a very big source for opera and ballet and that the increase in such works was very significant.
Osman Osmanoğlu, a descendent of Murad V, was also in attendance at the event and said it made him very pleased that the teaser for the play was staged at Çırağan Palace, where Murad V lived for many years.
He was a musician
“Sultan Murad was a very big musician. He composed more than 500 works. He lived in Çırağan Palace for 28 years. His daughter was born in this palace and also all children of his sons were born there. My grandfather, great aunts, my uncle – all were born here. My father was also born here. This is why this palace is very special to me. I did not live in Turkey; it was forbidden for me to come to Turkey. I was 35 when I could come to the country. At that time, Çırağan was in very bad condition. But now I am very happy. It is very emotional to be here,” said the royal heir.
Musicologist Emre Aracı, who arranged the music for the work, said they had tried to tell the life and thoughts of the sultan in the work.
“Murad V succeeded to the throne in 1876 after his uncle Abdülaziz. He remained on the throne for 93 days and was deposed because he had lost his mind. Then he was imprisoned in the palace for 28 years. When you look at the European press in this period, it is said that he was a respected sultan but the fact that he had a mental crisis can be seen in some of his works,” Aracı said.
Aracı said that after one century, Murad V would reborn in the Çırağan Palace where he was exiled. “This is very exciting.”
He also added that some parts of the ballet included his own works of Murad V.
Two granddaughters of Murad V, Kenize Murad and Rasini İris, were among the guests at the press conference along with many others.
Sultan Murad V, born in Topkapı Palace, died in Çırağan Palace
Sultan Murad V (Sept. 21, 1840 - Aug. 29, 1904) was the 33rd Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and reigned from May 30, 1876, to Aug. 31, 1876, when he was replaced by his brother Abdülhamid II.
He was born in Istanbul’s Topkapı Palace. His father was Abdülmecid I and his mother was Valide Sultan Shevkefza.
Murad V became the sultan when his uncle Abdülaziz was deposed, but he reigned for only 93 days before being deposed on the grounds that he had mental problems. The sultan was known to be highly influenced by French culture. He died at Çırağan Palace and was buried in Istanbul on Aug. 30, 1904.
