No argument, Russian singers have stolen the show at Wexford Festival Opera in recent years. Fans of their full-blooded operatic tradition will be cheered by the news that the Kirov Opera and Orchestra are paying their first visit to Ireland in June. Belfast and Omagh will host two performances on June 11th and 12th, in which the 210-strong company will be led by the conductor and pianist, Valery Gergiev. The artistic director of the Marinsky Theatre of St Petersburg, home of the Kirov, he was recently honoured with the resonant title "People's Artist of Russia".

On June 11th the combined company will present a Pushkin Opera Gala in Belfast Waterfront Hall, with a staged selection of extracts from operas inspired by the writing of Pushkin, including excerpts from Boris Godunov, Eugene Onegin and The Queen of Spades.

The following day the Chorus will perform Rachmaninov's Vespers in the Church of the Sacred Heart, Omagh, at 4 p.m., in a gesture of solidarity with the town. The Vespers will be performed in memory of those who lost their lives and were injured last August, and will commemorate those who have died during the past 30 years of the Troubles. Packages including tickets for the Waterfront Hall concert, hotel accommodation and rail/coach transport to Belfast will be available for people travelling from the Republic. Bookings from Waterfront Hall box office, tel: 01232 334455.