The Heart of Art Beats Again This Week on AKM Stages

Istanbul Atatürk Culture Center will bring together numerous programs ranging from major productions to retrospective exhibitions between 6-12 April for art enthusiasts. Throughout the week, the magnificent stage production of Carmina Burana and the philosophical depth of Faust will captivate audiences, while concerts spanning from Balkan melodies to modern classics will delight listeners.

"DOSTANE"
Istanbul State Modern Folk Music Ensemble will perform at AKM with a special concert titled "Dostane". Valued artists Sevingül Bahadır and Cihan Okan, who have been the voice and face of the ensemble for years, will reunite for this special evening. The artists will deliver an unforgettable performance not only through powerful interpretations but also through their stage presence and the intimate connection they will establish with the audience. The "Dostane" concert will bring to the stage years of dedication, friendship, and the unifying power of music.

"Dostane"- Istanbul State Modern Folk Music Ensemble; 7 April at 19:30 at AKM Theater Hall.

FROM RUMELIA TO THE BALKANS: MELODIES OF A SHARED HERITAGE
Istanbul State Turkish Folk Music Chorus will meet art enthusiasts with a concert titled "From Rumelia to the Balkans: Melodies of a Shared Heritage". The musical heritage spanning the vast cultural basin of Balkan geography, known as "Rumelia" during the Ottoman period for centuries, will come to life again in this concert. Turkish songs, urban songs, dance melodies and rhythmic dances shaping this rich legacy will meet audiences on stage through a comprehensive narrative.

In the concert, Şükrü Alkan and Çimen Yalçın will perform as soloists. Following concerts previously performed to sold-out audiences at Atatürk Culture Center and CSO Ada Ankara, the artists will take the stage again with expanded repertoires. The concert program will bring together different cultural colors spanning from Rumelia to the Balkans; beloved melodies, sorrowful and spirited rhythms and the stage energy of folk dances will interweave. The repertoire will include works that have stayed in listeners' memories as well as selections from Turkish songs loved by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.

From Rumelia to the Balkans: Melodies of a Shared Heritage-Istanbul State Turkish Folk Music Chorus; 8 April at 19:30 at AKM Theater Hall.

CARMINA BURANA
Carmina Burana meets art enthusiasts as a "choreographic stage cantata" with a cast of approximately 250 people comprising soloists, orchestra, chorus, ballet artists, children's chorus and ballet, Modern Dance Istanbul artists and special design teams.
The work, where Carl Orff's unique music meets impressive dances and technological innovations, will take the stage as a collective undertaking in all its aspects, leaving unforgettable marks in the memory of art enthusiasts.
In the production where all technical capabilities of Atatürk Culture Center Turkish Telekom Opera Hall will be utilized, the stage sets will almost dance as well.
Under the direction of Conductor Zdravko Lazarov, with Volkan Ersoy and Ayşem Sunal Savaşkurt in the directing chair, the choreography of Carmina Burana is entrusted to Deniz Özaydın, Berk Sarıbay, Özgür Adam İnançç, Alper Marangoz and Ferhat Güneş.

Carmina Burana-Istanbul State Opera and Ballet; 9 April at 20:00 at Turkish Telekom Opera Hall.

ISTANBUL STATE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA DENIZBANK CONCERTS
The concert organized within the framework of Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra DenizBank Concerts will be conducted by Italian conductor Alfonso Scarano. Slovenian clarinetist Darko Brlek will perform as soloist on the evening. Brlek will perform Mozart's final concerto, the Clarinet Concerto in A Major.
In the second section of the program, Igor Stravinsky's "Pulcinella Suite", which bears traces of 18th-century Italian music, will be performed. The concert will continue with Ottorino Respighi's "Roman Festivals", composed under the inspiration of Rome's striking landscapes.
Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra will present select masterworks from the classical music repertoire and offer audiences a rich musical experience in this special concert.

Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra DenizBank Concerts; 10 April at 20:00 at Turkish Telekom Opera Hall.

FAUST
Ankara State Theater will meet audiences at AKM Theater Hall with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's masterpiece "Faust". The production, brought to the stage through Zehra Aksu Yılmazer's translation, Ali Berktay's adaptation and Ayşe Emel Mesci's direction, will center on humanity's search for knowledge, power and meaning. The large cast will make the philosophical depth and dramatic intensity of the work visible on stage. The production will bring the spiritual transformation of humanity following the Industrial Revolution to today's audiences. Faust, which will be staged during the 75th anniversary of State Theaters, revives a classical text with a contemporary interpretation.

Faust-Ankara State Theater; 10 April at 20:00, 11 April at 15:00 at AKM Theater Hall.

TURKISH TELEKOM PRIME COFFEE CONCERTS-THREE MASKED TALES: BRAHMS, RESPIGHI, KORNGOLD
The concert "Three Masked Tales: Brahms, Respighi, Korngold" organized within the framework of Turkish Telekom Prime Coffee Concerts will take place at Atatürk Culture Center. Pianist Deniz Gür and violinist Alican Süner will perform at the concert. The duo will offer audiences a rich musical experience with their repertoire bringing together different periods and styles. In the program, Brahms' Second Violin Sonata from his mature period will be performed. This work, written by the composer on the shores of Lake Thun, will present an elegant musical narrative through its lyrical and balanced structure. Subsequently, Ottorino Respighi's "5 Pezzi per Violino e Pianoforte" will be performed. In the final section of the concert, Erich Wolfgang Korngold's "Much Ado About Nothing" suite, inspired by William Shakespeare's work of the same title, will be performed.

Turkish Telekom Prime Coffee Concerts-Three Masked Tales: Brahms, Respighi, Korngold; 11 April at 11:00 at Turkish Telekom Opera Hall Lower Foyer.

EDUSA-"AN ANATOLIAN TALE"
Istanbul State Opera and Ballet will present its new production "Edusa – An Anatolian Tale" with multiple performances in April. The work brings to the stage the wealth of the Lydian Kingdom, political tensions and human stories located on Anatolian lands today. "Edusa" has been designed not merely as a period piece but as a reflection of Anatolia's thousands of years of historical memory on stage. As a Turkish-language opera, the work was first staged on 28 March and continues to meet audiences in April. The music of the work was composed by Güldiyar Tanrıdağlı, and the libretto was written by İskender Pala. Director Caner Akın, noted for his "Gilgameş" production, continues his innovative stage language and contemporary approach in this production as well, bringing together traditional opera narrative with experimental staging and powerful visual design elements.

Edusa-"An Anatolian Tale"-Istanbul State Opera and Ballet; 11 April at 15:00 at Turkish Telekom Opera Hall.

AKM SUNDAY RECITALS-MEHVEŞ EMEÇ PIANO RECITAL
Mehveş Emeç will perform a piano recital organized within the framework of "AKM Sunday Recitals" before art enthusiasts. Regarded among the most important pianists produced by our Republic, Emeç continues to establish strong connections with audiences through thematic programs renewed each season, while continuing to attract attention with her impressive stage performance.
The recital program will include dramatic and sorrowful works in minor keys by Johann Sebastian Bach and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart as well as Robert Schumann's renowned work "Vienna Carnival". This selection will come to life on stage through Mehveş Emeç's distinctive interpretation approach.

AKM Sunday Recitals-Mehveş Emeç Piano Recital; 12 April at 20:30 at AKM Theater Hall.

TRANSITIONS: EMEL CANKAT RETROSPECTIVE
The retrospective exhibition "Transitions", which brings together Emel Cankat's artistic production spanning from the 1970s to the 2000s, will meet art enthusiasts at Atatürk Culture Center. The exhibition will address the artist's more than thirty-year painting practice through four distinct periods and will make the transformation in the production process viewable through a comprehensive perspective. The curatorial structure will present the formation of Emel Cankat's painting language and its changes over time in a chronological flow.

In the first section of the exhibition, the artist's transition from the education process to the production process in the 1970s and early period works shaped between abstract and figurative will be presented. In the second section focusing on the 1980s, the production process in which landscapes of nature and city become more defined and the artist becomes more visible in private and institutional galleries will meet audiences.
In the third section, works from the 1990s in which Chinese ink becomes a central means of expression will be highlighted. In the final section, works from the 2000s that evolved into a softer and more tranquil narrative language through the relationship between light and surface will be exhibited. The curation of the exhibition is undertaken by Dilara Yalçın, Elif İnci Gökgöz and Yasemin Yemişçi.