He remains in touch with friends and colleagues in Belarus who are “working in fear,” afraid of speaking out against Lukashenko. One of those hopes is a return to his homeland. “I am looking forward with hope,” he said. He recently had an audition with the Boston Lyric Opera and is trying to secure auditions with other opera houses in the U.S., and he’s in negotiations with U.S. Silchukou has returned to the stage, collaborating with pianist Pavel Nersessian, an associate professor at Boston University, for two recent concerts in Boston and New Jersey.įor both, he put together a retrospective of some of his personal favorite pieces spanning his career from his first singing lessons to his time at the national opera, including “Papageno” from “The Magic Flute” and “Cavatina Figaro” from the “The Barber of Seville.” He capped off the shows with what he called the “jewel of the concert,” a duet with his mezzo-soprano wife. “It was very courageous for someone of his stature to walk away from all he had into so much uncertainty,” Druker said. The school has many students of Eastern European descent whose families have similar stories of fleeing oppression. “It’s pretty incredible that he’s able to share some of the experiences he’s had at some of the best opera houses in Europe,” said Margarita Druker, Star Academy’s co-director. Silchukou is making ends meet teaching 5th through 9th graders at the private Star Academy school. “You cannot be successful in a country that is a prison, and unfortunately our country is a prison right now.” “Ilya is a real patriot of Belarus,” she said.
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