Composed between 1894 and 1895, Rimsky-Korsakov based his opera on a short story, "Christmas Eve", from Nikolai Gogol's 1832 collection Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka.

[3] Oliver Knussen writes that "Rimsky is only interested in recreating the atmosphere of the folk-tale, fleshing it out for his stage pageant in a comparable way to Humperdinck in Hansel.

[4] Gerald Abraham, on the other hand, praises the vivid humanity and humour of Rimsky's setting, as well as its atmospheric strength.

[6] It was revived at the Oper Frankfurt in 2022 in a production that was recorded, directed by Christof Loy and conducted by Sebastian Weigle.

[7] It was chosen performance of the year by the critics of Opernwelt and has remained the Christmas offer at the house, then conducted by Takeshi Moriuchi.

[8] Tableau 1: Christmas Eve in the hamlet of Dikanka The widow Solokha agrees to help the Devil steal the moon.

While the storm rages, Solokha rides up to the sky and steals the moon, while the Deacon and Oksana's father, Chub, are unable to find their way.

A sumptuous room, brightly lit The Devil puts down Vakula in the tsaritsa's court and disappears into the fireplace.

Vakula requests the tsaritsa's boots to the music of a minuet, and his wish is granted because of its unusual and amusing nature.

We witness the procession of Kolyada (young girl in a carriage) and Ovsen (boy on a boar's back).

Courtyard beside Chub's house Oksana listens to some women exchanging gossip about Vakula, who is believed to have committed suicide.

Lysenko's and Rimsky-Korsakov's Christmas Eve operas and Tchaikovsky's Vakula the Smith/Cherevichki are all based on the same story by Gogol.