Celebrated opera singer Teimuraz Gugushvili to be honoured at Tbilisi concert

Georgia's acclaimed opera tenor Teimuraz Gugushvili will be honoured with a Tbilisi concert and an opening of a star in his name outside the city's Opera and Ballet State Theatre this Sunday.

The stage career of Gugushvili, who has enjoyed decades of performances at prestigious local and foreign venues, will be marked with the show featuring fragments from opera classics Tosca and Pagliacci.

Guest soloist Tamar Iveri will be joined on stage by soloists of the theatre Sulkhan Gvelesiani, Vakhtang Jashiashvili, Tamaz Saginadze and Vano Galuashvili.

The celebratory evening will also feature Giorgi Tchelidze, an intern at the opera troupe of the theatre, as well as the choir and orchestra led by invited conductor Viktor Ploskina from the Bolshoi Theatre of Belarus.

Gugushvili's professional career will also be marked with the opening of a star bearing his name outside the theatre, following the concert.

The Georgian tenor graduated from the Tbilisi State Conservatoire in 1976 before undergoing internship at the academy of the famed Teatro alla Scala in Milan between 1982-1983.

He has performed as soloist of the Tbilisi Opera and Ballet Theatre since 1978 and served as professor at the city's conservatoire.

Gugushvili's stage appearances have included over 30 roles including principal characters in opera classics Rigoletto, Aida, Abesalom and Eteri and Eugene Onegin. The singer has performed on stages throughout the former Soviet Union as well as international tours in Europe and the United States.

The celebrated tenor is also a recipient of state awards and titles including the People's Artist of Georgia, Zakaria Paliashvili and Zurab Anjaparidze Georgian State Prizes and the Order of Honour of Georgia.