Mussorgsky’s disturbing fresco on the brutality and solitude of power, inspired by Pushkin, has a strong bond with La Scala: this was where it debuted in Italy in 1909 and where Claudio Abbado put his name to a memorable edition directed by Yuri Lyubimov on 7 December 1979. Abbado was assisted by Riccardo Chailly, who today, for his ninth season inauguration, has chosen to conduct for the first time this title of profound humanity in which personal drama is reflected in collective tragedy, made all the more rich in meaning by his choice of the first version of the opera. The stage direction of Kasper Holten, former Director of Covent Garden, adds a view of the history of Russia, heightening the emotional experience with a reflection on the value of memory and the bearing of witness.