Stage Entertainment has announced the production of the musical “Ghost. Musical ghost
The theater company Stage Entertainment has announced the following production: on October 7, 2017, the MDM Theater will host the most loud premiere future theater season- the mystical musical “Ghost”, based on the 1990 Oscar-winning film of the same name with Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore and Whoopi Goldberg.
The star production team will present to the audience perhaps the most poignant and beautiful musical of our time, which will enchant with its dramatic, exciting plot; unique special effects that create the illusion of presence between two worlds; amazing hits by Dave Stewart, musician famous group Eurythmics, and Glen Ballard, songwriter for Michael Jackson, Aerosmith and Alanis Morissette. The performance will also feature one of the main musical hits twentieth century - the composition Unchained Melody, listed in the Guinness Book of Records as a song with the largest number cover versions. In total, at least five hundred variants of its execution are known in more than a hundred languages of the world, and among the most popular artists songs - such stars as Gareth Gates, Roy Orbison, Elvis Presley, group The Righteous Brothers and many others.
The main roles are played by: Molly - Galina Bezruk ("Crime and Punishment"), Sam - Pavel Levkin ("Beauty and the Beast", "Cinderella") Karl - Stanislav Belyaev ("Crime and Punishment", "Pride and Prejudice").
Second casts and performers minor roles: Alexander Kazmin, Yulia Iva, Alexander Sukhanov, Dmitry Yankovsky, Igor Portnoy, Ivan Rak, Yulia Churakova, Victoria Kanatkina, Alena Firger, Maxim Kosolapov, Ivan Koryakovsky, Yulia Timoshenko, Ekaterina Lisochenko, Irina Potekhina, Artem Bykov, Vasily Chernenkov, Galina Nikitina, Irina Satyukova, Galina Shimanskaya, Andrey Fedorov.
Currently, Stage Entertainment continues to search for a performer to play the medium Oda Mae, who was played by Whoopi Goldberg in the film.
“After The Phantom of the Opera and Ball of the Vampires, the musical Ghost will be the third “mystical” production in a row at the MDM Theater,” comments the head of the Stage Entertainment theater company, producer Dmitry Bogachev. – This is, of course, a coincidence, but, in fact, the choice of production is not accidental. "Ghost" is a touching and life-affirming story about love that can overcome any obstacles - even death. And, perhaps, to the modern viewer It’s worth reminding once again that there is nothing more important than sincere feelings and faith in a loved one.”
The musical's score was created by Dave Stewart, a member of the Eurythmics, songwriter for Katy Perry and Bon Jovi, and Glenn Ballard, who has collaborated with Alanis Morissette, Michael Jackson, Aerosmith and Christina Aguilera. The libretto was composed by the film's screenwriter, Bruce Joel Rubin.
The world premiere took place in 2011 in Opera House Manchester. The musical ran on the West End, Broadway, and was also staged in South Korea, Italy, Hungary, Mexico, Argentina, China, Brazil, Australia, the Philippines and Taiwan, and toured the UK. The premiere of the production in Berlin is scheduled for autumn 2017.
According to the plot of the musical, the life of a young couple Sam and Molly is just beginning: the long-awaited move to new apartment, pleasant family chores, plans for the future... But one evening everything changes dramatically: a robber attacks the lovers and kills Sam. His soul is stuck between the world of the living and the dead, because he learns that the robbery and murder were staged, and now Molly is threatened deadly danger. From now on, Sam is a Ghost, who at all costs must protect his beloved and punish the criminals. Ghosts from another world and the medium Oda Mae Brown come to his aid, but will Molly believe them?..
The production had its world premiere at Manchester Opera House on 28 March 2011, and premiered at London's Piccadilly Theater in the West End on 19 July 2011. The Broadway run of the production began on March 15 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theater with the official premiere on March 28. Throughout its theatrical history, the musical “Ghost” has received many theater awards and nominations, including TONY and Laurence Olivier Award.
Material provided by the press service
On October 7, the MDM Theater will host the premiere of the mystical musical “Ghost,” based on the 1990 Oscar-winning film of the same name with Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore and Whoopi Goldberg. The main roles of Molly and Sam are played by a theater and film actress, finalist of the competition " New wave –
2016" Galya Bezruk and Pavel Levkin, familiar to viewers from their roles in performances of the Chekhov Moscow Art Theater, as well as in the acclaimed musicals "Beauty and the Beast" (The Beast) and "Cinderella" (Prince Topher).
On the eve of the premiere, Pavel Levkin told the Moscow 24 portal about why he left for New York, remembered how Demi Moore almost lost her role, and explained how the musical “Ghost” and Tyutchev are connected.
– After “The Phantom of the Opera” and “The Ball of the Vampires,” the musical “Phantom” will become the third “mystical” production in a row at the MDM Theater. What is this story about?
– It sounds corny, but this story is about love. There is a certain mystical component to it, which only enhances the plot. Directors and actors have this concept of “increased stakes.” These are the most aggravated circumstances on stage, when the character is on the brink: this is always interesting to watch. According to the plot, in the life of a young couple Sam and Molly, sharp turn– a robber attacks the lovers and kills Sam. His soul is stuck between the world of the living and the dead and tries to protect his beloved from danger.
- So Sam becomes a ghost. How is this effect of presence between two worlds created? It's pretty easy to put this into film. And on stage?
– The production has a very powerful visual component: unique special effects (including sound), with the help of which the desired effect is created. But what is more important is faith in the proposed circumstances. This is the task of directors and actors - to create a certain world on stage that they, and therefore the audience, will believe in.
– In general, today it is difficult for the viewer to believe in anything. In my opinion, the worst indicator is when at a performance someone checks the time or their mobile screen lights up.
- This is true. But for me, theater is, first of all, energy, it is what attracts. Now directors are looking new language, gravitate toward documentary films, we are changing and theater must change. If today's audience saw live the great Moscow Art Theater performances with Evstigneev, Efremov, Smoktunovsky, it would hardly have the same impact as on the people of that time.
But what should musical artists do? We have certain genre boundaries, but even within these boundaries we ensure that the viewer believes and is involved in the story. In this sense, genre does not matter. The viewer either connects to what is happening, empathizes or not. There was initially some skepticism towards musicals in our country. But I see that the musical as a genre is developing in Russia, there is interest both from the audience and from dramatic artists who are ready to try themselves in something new.
In "Ghost" we have a powerful component - it's music. The musical features stunning hits from Dave Stewart, musician of the famous band Eurythmics, and Glen Ballard, songwriter of Michael Jackson, Aerosmith and Alanis Morissette. The performance will also feature one of the main musical hits of the 20th century - the composition Unchained Melody, listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the song with the largest number of cover versions. In general, music is surprisingly organically intertwined with this story.
The film was made in the 1990s. But the musical will be adapted to our time. There is no point in trying to recreate the era of 1990s America on stage, as in the film - this story is timeless.
– This film is known to everyone, many already have their own associations, which are quite fixed; there is no escape from the image of Patrick Swayze. Do you read this role differently?
– I’m not afraid of comparisons, I don’t have the task of outplaying Patrick Swayze, in some ways it’s easier for me, he’s not my idol. I really see this character in my own way. We went to New York, were at the subway stations that are shown in the film, in a cafe next to their house, and saw New York through the eyes of our heroes. We also learned some interesting facts about the filming of the film. For example, Demi Moore, who was almost immediately cast in the role of Molly, came on the first day of filming with short hair. Everyone was shocked, they even thought about looking for a replacement actress, but then they realized that it suited her character very well. All these facts, stories, jokes give a greater understanding of this story.
Who is Sam to me? He is honest, purposeful, happy. But he is not perfect, like all people. He loves his girlfriend, but during his lifetime he never told her this. All she heard in response to her confessions was “similar.”
– Is this familiar to you?
– Yes and no... I, like Sam, have my pros and cons, that’s understandable. I know this feeling - being afraid to voice something secret. As, you know, Tyutchev said: “A thought expressed is a lie.” Feelings are sometimes really scary to name. When you put them into words, they can sometimes lose their meaning. Today we rarely communicate in person, more and more calls, SMS, social media, we rarely look into each other’s eyes, we are afraid to say “I love you.”
The musical "Ghost" is about this too. Everyone will experience it differently. And, perhaps, someone will leave the hall and say to another person what he has long wanted, but was afraid - “I love you.”
The brilliant musical “Ghost” at MDM has already won more than one heart! Read my detailed review, it will be interesting! Let's sort everything out and really give useful tips for those who are just planning to visit it.
The new musical "Ghost" made a lot of noise in the capital. After all, this production is recognized as the best on Broadway in the last 50 years, and how could it be otherwise if it was created on the basis of an Oscar-winning film that probably everyone has seen! A story of eternal love that breaks down all barriers and will touch even the hardest heart.
Personal background.
What could be more romantic than a wedding anniversary gift than tickets to a musical about true love? So my husband, knowing that I love such events, decided to please me with tickets. And given the presence of a small child, alas, I no longer remember when we last time went to places like this...
We already had experience visiting musicals that were staged at MDM, so we have something to compare with. We previously went to see Beauty and the Beast and Zorro. "Ghost" became our third musical in this theater.
Place of Providence: Moscow Palace of Youth (MDM Theatre)
Time: day off 13:00
Places: stalls row 18, seats in the center of the hall to the right of the aisle
Price: 3410 rubles for 1 ticket (with online seller fees 3751 rubles)
Duration: 2 hours 30 minutes (including intermission)
History of creation:
In 1990, the film “Ghost” starring the inimitable Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze and Whoopi Goldberg was released worldwide. Tragic story love made millions of viewers around the world cry at the screens; in Mexico, even upon entering the cinema, spectators were given spare handkerchiefs. The film became the highest-grossing film of 1990, was nominated for Oscars in five categories and received two coveted statuettes - for best original script and the best female role background.
Of course, such a stunning success could not be ignored, and a sequel followed very soon. Paramount Television studio has begun work on the series “Ghost”. And soon followed a musical based on the famous melodrama. The musical accompaniment of the performance was created by two most talented musician: Dave Stewart, member of Aerosmith and Glenn Ballard, songwriter for Michael Jackson and Alanis Morissette.
The world premiere of the musical “Ghost” took place in March 2011 in the UK on the stage of the Manchester Opera House. The next venue was London's Piccadilly Theater in the West End, where the performance was staged in the summer of 2011. Subsequently, the musical was staged in the most different countries: Italy, Germany, Australia, South Korea, Czech Republic, Singapore, Manila.
Along with the immense adoration of the audience, the musical captivated theater directors and critics. The production was repeatedly nominated for awards at prestigious competitions and became a laureate.
This year, the army of “Ghost” fans will increase significantly, because the musical has “arrived” in Russia.
Creators(photo from the program):
We arrived half an hour before the show started. The queue at the entrance is 3-4 people, the queue at the cloakroom is 1-2 people, The queue to the women's toilet is decent, but not yet critical)).
Interior decoration the theater hall is definitely worthy! Red and black color scheme, on the walls there are posters with the most famous buildings New York, in the center there is a glass circular showcase with programs and souvenirs, above it there is a chic multi-level chandelier. To the right are modern showcases of buffets and a store called Gift. At every step there are smiling photographers and waiters with drinks and snacks.
There are several entrances to the hall. We used the central front door and one of the side doors. It was the side entrance through the corridor that amazed everyone with its atmosphere. There was neon lighting, and on the walls there were photo wallpapers with views of New York, and also decorated with pillars similar to street signs, only the signs were more relevant - WC, BAR, GIFT SHOP. Made, of course, very atmospheric)). Probably every second person has now posted their photo on Instagram from this particular corridor, as they were taking pictures at every step)).
Auditorium quite roomy, decorated in red and burgundy colors, the chairs are not very wide, but soft and quite comfortable.
ATTENTION! Before the start they give 3 bells, after the 3rd bell the tickets at the entrance are considered invalid, as stated on the tickets themselves. If you are late after intermission, you will be allowed into the hall only 15 minutes after the start of the second act, this is stated in the theater rules. It's better to be punctual.
Drinks and snacks continue to be offered not only in the lobby, but also in the hall itself. It sounds like this: water, ice cream, whiskey, cognac, chilled champagne, chips, nuts, chocolates. The husband was very amazed that they even offered whiskey and cognac. And I felt sorry for the girl waiters, because these baskets are large and packed tightly, how hard it must have been to carry on yourself.
The plot in words from the program:
Let's consider cast.
The main characters were approved based on the results of a long and meticulous casting; they were Galina Bezruk and Pavel Levkin. A few months before the premiere, they visited New York, where they were not only inspired by the atmosphere of this amazing city, but also met with the creator of the musical, scriptwriter Joel Rubin, with whom she was interesting conversation, which is what is described in the program. I think this trip turned out to be really inspiring and fruitful.
main character- Molly.
We were lucky, the main characters were from the main cast, and therefore it was Galina Bezruk who played her. I must admit that I played very realistically and talentedly. The voice is gorgeous, deep, gentle and with a large range. It was felt that they were living their role! Although outwardly she does not at all resemble the heroine Demi Moore from that very film, she managed to get used to the character and fall in love with the audience.
The main character is Sam.
He was played by Pavel Levkin. Here it was more difficult for me to connect the images from the film and the musical, because the actors are absolutely different not only in appearance, but also in behavior. "Russian" Sam is more emotional, impulsive and brutal)). But I have to admit that Pavel’s voice is really impressive! It is difficult to describe in words, it must be heard.
Second main character- Karl.
On Sunday, he was played not by the main cast actor, but by Ivan Rak. I must say that I haven’t seen the performance of Stanislav Belyaev from the main cast, but Ivan Rak coped with his role brilliantly! Very authentic and skillful! And the voice... with such a voice he could easily play Sam. Sensual, deep and tender.
A brilliant heroine, without whom, probably, all the charm of the musical would not exist - Oda Mae Brown.
Marina Ivanova showed her to us, many thanks to her for such a colorful heroine! Personally, my interest in the musical awoke 100% only with her appearance)) It was she who brought all the laughter and smiles. A very talented artist! The whole room was delighted with her!
Minor characters also performed well. The mood was created and conveyed perfectly!
Suits- correspond to the time. Nothing special, but the characters and situations are conveyed very accurately. And, if you consider that we're talking about about modern New York, the choice is quite understandable.
Scenery- alas, I cannot admire here. No, the decorations are high quality! They fit perfectly into the plot of the musical. However, I probably still live with the memories of those times when there were no huge “plasmas” in the background and the scenery was built on a truly royal scale, and the beauty of the costumes was breathtaking. By the way, only in the musical “Beauty and the Beast” one could still see beautiful scenery, but it was a fairy tale, not a modern metropolis. I don’t want to find fault with this, I can only reduce the rating by a small minus.
Special effects- were! Surprisingly, they were there and they believed in them!! I don’t want to tell you what exactly it’s about, but you will understand everything and you will be surprised when you see it.
Music- those same eternal hits, they all sounded here. Both in English and Russian. And general musical accompaniment very accurately conveyed the mood and plot! In this regard, everything is great. Also, as far as I understand, but I could be wrong, some of the music was performed by a local orchestra, led by a conductor.
My personal impression:
Probably all the spectators, and certainly the female spectators, knew the plot, but they still went to see with their own eyes how our compatriots were able to convey that incredibly touching love story. And they did it! I wasn’t going to cry, well, not a little bit. But the last dance of the main characters in the finale, their songs and words... in general, all the spectators wiped away their tears. Indeed, the musical won the heart and made us think once again about how valuable this magical feeling is love. How important it is not to be afraid to talk about it to your significant other! And how vital it is to appreciate loved one, who shared this feeling with you.
Thanks to everyone who took part in the creation and production of the musical! For tears, for laughter, for correct reminders of the most important things!
Photography was allowed only at the very end. And immediately all the smartphones and cameras shot up. I apologize for the quality, but in this lighting this is the best thing that came out)).
Queues- The gathering of guests begins an hour before the performance. We arrived half an hour before and the queues were long the right places were quite adequate)).
Places in auditorium - in previous musicals, in one case we had seats in the 5th row, but almost completely on the right, in the second case, in the center, but in one of the very last rows. There was neither one nor the other good option, either your neck will begin to hurt very quickly - from constantly turning your head to one side, or you will not be able to see anything even through binoculars. To be honest, when I saw row 18 on the tickets this time, I was a little upset, I thought it was far away. And even the aisle seats, which I thought were not at all convenient. But when I sat down, I realized that it was perfect place!! The faces were not very clearly visible, but everything else was very clearly visible and the heads of neighbors in closer rows were not in the way at all)).
Conclusion: The musical is staged very well, the cast is excellent. After the musical I wanted to rewatch the film, and after rewatching it, I realized that many phrases were taken from there verbatim! Even though we had to get used to the images of the main characters again, we liked the musical. Both me and my husband)). There were children in the hall, but I don’t think a child would be interested in it, and I wouldn’t recommend taking children under 12 years old with you. I sincerely recommend it to other ages! The audience reacted very well during the performance, and at the end they simply burst into applause. And flash photos)). Definitely I recommend!
Thank you for your attention! Vivid impressions and have a nice evening to you!
Did you like my review? Welcome to my page, I hope that the rest of the reviews will be also interesting and useful to you!
The musical “Ghost” by Glen Ballard, Dave Stewart and Bruce Joel Rubin is on the Moscow stage today. Stage Entertainment's production tells an amazing love story. A love that even time itself has no power over.
This performance is successful stage fate, it was successfully performed at many venues. The Russian premiere was also a great gift to the public. Expressive music, original production, special effects, and of course, brilliant performers - isn’t this the key to everyone’s success? famous works. There is also a special appeal in “Ghost”: its characters exist in parallel worlds without seeing, but feeling each other. This mystical connection gives both the strength to once again prove their love and pass all the tests prepared by fate.
If we talk about music, then it is “by ear”. Suffice it to recall UnchainedMelody - a real world hit, which was in the repertoire of such stars as Elvis Presley or The Righteous Brothers. The directors promise to surprise with the scenography; there will be levitation and other interesting finds in the performance.
Despite the fact that most are familiar with the plot of the 1990 film of the same name, where the main roles were played by Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze, watching the play is very interesting. "Ghost" - wonderful fairy tale for adults, a hymn to love and goodness.
Theatergoers can order tickets to the musical "Ghost" today. Don't stay away from the big premiere.
There is an addition to the lineup of Russian musicals - Stage Entertainment has announced the start of work on the production of "Ghost" - the Russian version of the popular Broadway musical by Dave Stewart, Glen Ballard and Bruce Joel Rubin, based on the film by Jerry Zucker with Patrick Swayze in leading role. "Gazeta.Ru" went to Bogachev to find out about the future production, and also talked about the results of the last season, the market for Russian musicals, as well as the first Broadway premiere of a Russian producer - the musical "Anastasia" by cartoon of the same name about an orphan from royal family, a survivor of the death of the Romanovs.
Scary season
— How do you assess the results of the ending season? The year was, to put it mildly, interesting, or rather, turbulent in terms of the economy. And you had two big performances going on at once: “Cinderella” and “The Vampire’s Ball”.
— The year was in economic sense scary, but it was predictable.
For the last two years, I have been listening with amazement to the statements of the country's leaders about stability, good prospects, economic growth, prosperity and social well-being.
This cannot even be called populism - any person with a decent school education, having compared the factors influencing the economy, can draw simple conclusions and make their own bleak forecasts for the coming years.
Ramil Sitdikov/RIA Novosti Musical “The Phantom of the Opera”
We started preparing for hard times in advance. Well, as far as one can prepare for this at all. Last year for us became the first unprofitable one in the last decade, despite the fact that the second year of daily rental of “The Phantom of the Opera” showed good result and the production as a whole was very profitable. In the first year, about 600,000 tickets were sold, in the second - about 400,000. But other projects of the past year partly devalued the overall result.
As for The Phantom of the Opera, its potential in Moscow was far from exhausted!
I had every reason to assume that he would go for the third and fourth year; “Ghost” was supposed to become an absolute and unsurpassed record holder for the duration of rental. As a result, it broke the record both in duration and in the number of viewers, but the results did not fully live up to my ambitious expectations precisely because of the poor state of the economy and the strong drop in consumption levels.
— So your company is at a loss?
- Last season - yes. In this, I hope, we will reach “zero” profitability, thanks to the fact that we have revised the inputs, regrouped and were prepared to meet the expected economic difficulties. We refocused our creative and production plans on less expensive projects, optimized costs, and increased work efficiency. Big job was done.
If in the previous decade the budgets of each of our productions, with the exception of The Phantom of the Opera, were in the range of 3-4 million euros and above, now we are trying to stay within the range of 2-3 million euros.
We are a for-profit theater company that relies on ticket sales and private investment, so we have no choice but to be efficient and effective.
— Does this sequestration affect quality?
- Well, what are you talking about? There is and cannot be any direct relationship between budget cuts and the quality of the production - the artistic value of a performance and its recognition by the audience are not determined by the amount of money spent. Great productions have often been created with minimal means. Theater is, first of all, the talent of its creators, directors and performers.
“Golden Mask”, or Who are the Judges
— There is not a single one of your performances on the list of Golden Mask nominees. Aren't you offended?
- They are not there for purely technical reasons - they must appear at the box office before August or September in order to be included in the current year’s nominations. These cutoff dates were determined by the Masks organizing committee. For commercial reasons, we are starting rentals later - in October.
Thus, we can only get into the nominations next year, that is, essentially, on the condition that we perform our performance for two years in a row. With daily rental, this is at least 600 impressions, which is not easy and not always achievable even with our capabilities and potential.
At the same time, it is enough for state repertory theaters to show the performance 10-20 times over the same period. In general, we, being unusual for Russia commercial theater company, we exist in other realities than “ Golden mask" Change the order and rules so that competitive program really bright, powerful, interesting, high-quality musicals of international level were included, “The Mask” for some reason does not want or cannot. It is probably better to ask the organizing committee of the award itself about the reasons for this.
We received nominations only for those performances that ran for two years - for example, The Little Mermaid and The Phantom of the Opera. And both times it was successful.
In general, it seems to me that since the musical as a genre is included in the competition program, “Golden Mask” should take care of finding real experts in this genre. Now, in my professional opinion, there are practically none. Critics, directors, composers and others nominate and determine the winners theater people who understand opera, ballet, and operetta well. They are certainly experts in their fields. But
a musical is a separate, complex, independent genre that exists according to its own laws, with a fundamentally different approach to choreography than in ballet, vocals than in opera, directing than in operetta, and so on.
As for the constantly changing criteria and rules regarding newly created original productions, productions based on existing works and replicas, here in general the organizing committee applies double standards, nominating replicas of operas or ballets and denying the same to musicals. The Tony Awards or the Laurence Olivier Awards, for example, consider and nominate all new productions, regardless of whether they have previously existed in other countries or are staged for the first time.
— Stationary musicals have been running in the country for more than 10 years. Have we formed a market and a circle of musical experts?
- Let's see who does musicals here.
Besides us, there are three main centers for the production of musicals.
This is the Moscow Operetta Theater, where musicals are performed in small blocks of repertoire. This theater exists on subsidies from the Moscow budget and enjoys all the benefits and privileges of a state institution, whose existence is not directly dependent on fees. The same, essentially, full-time authors and directors move from musical to musical: librettist, composer, director, choreographer, leading actors, which, in my opinion, limits creative search and development.
This is the Musical Theater under the direction of Mikhail Shvydkoy - non-profit organization. They started experimenting several years ago and are now gradually reaching new level their productions, inviting interesting directors and working with different authors. They work according to their own invented canons, which they optimize and improve. It seems to me that sooner or later the Musical Theater will come to an established Broadway business model that has been proven over many decades.
And finally, private commercial company Let It Show. Their first production was Pola Negri. Now they are staging the musical “Jumeo” based on the plot of “Juliet and Romeo”. Their approach and business model, based on private investment and return on investment, are the most transparent and understandable. They, like us, are entirely dependent on the audience, the success of productions and box office receipts.
"Ball" and "Cinderella"
Ekaterina Chesnokova/RIA Novosti Musical “Cinderella”
— How did your company come up with the idea to screen “The Vampire’s Ball” at the same time as “Cinderella”?
— This performance, based on Roman Polanski’s 1967 film, was performed at the Theater musical comedy in St. Petersburg, and very successfully - they received a sublicense through Hungarian producers from the Austrian rights holders - the VBW company, with which we have a long-standing, many-year relationship. Watching the enthusiastic reception of the musical in St. Petersburg,
I extrapolated this success to the Moscow market with its much greater potential and realized that Ball of the Vampires could run in Moscow with daily sell-outs for at least a year.
After the end of the show, I suggested that the Musical Comedy Theater rent out the scenery and costumes to us, and received the rights directly from VBW. I had to work with adapting the St. Petersburg play to the Moscow stage - ours is one and a half to two times larger.
Why did we decide to launch "Vampire's Ball" in parallel with "Cinderella"? This was a business decision made based on an analysis of our audience demographics.
“Cinderella” is a family musical, and to go to it with the whole family, you need to buy at least three tickets, or even four.
Ilya Pitalev/RIA Novosti Rehearsal of the musical “Dance of the Vampires”
In prosperous years, when people were not strapped for money, it was family productions that broke records of popularity. In a period of difficult economic realities and total savings, not nearly as many people can afford to spend 8-10 thousand on a family of four as we need to ensure 250-300 sold-out houses in a row. After all, we are talking about several hundred thousand spectators of one performance in one season, which no repertory theater could ever dream of! Vampire's Ball is a two-person story, and it's easier to sell. In addition, “Cinderella” is a story for all ages, tastes and preferences: its the target audience universal, and therefore somewhat blurred and more difficult to interact with. "Ball of the Vampires" is more and more certain - a loyal audience with clear tastes and preferences. We know better what she likes and how to influence her.
"Ghosts" and where they live
— Let's talk about your choice for the next season: you are staging the musical “Ghost” based on the film of the same name with Patrick Swayze. What determines the choice? After “Vampires”, were you led towards mysticism? Or is this also a production designed for couples, and is it easier to sell?
— First of all, “Ghost” is a superbly conceived story.
I saw the musical Ghost on Broadway and found myself watching very closely, even though I had seen the original film and remembered exactly how it ended.
Plus special effects, levitation, the illusion of presence between two worlds - all this really fascinates even the most experienced viewer. I'm not even talking about music: for example, main composition performance, Unchained Melody, is one of the most popular hits of the 20th century, holding the Guinness Book of Records as the song with the largest number of cover versions. At one time it was performed by Elvis Presley, Gareth Gates, The Righteous Brothers, and many others. And, of course, I noticed details of the relationship between the main characters, some nuances, and this gave me great pleasure.
— What should attract the viewer to this?
- You know, everyone actually has the belief that love still wins and that sometimes this victory is facilitated by some otherworldly, irrational forces and factors. Essentially, this is a fairy tale addressed to adults. Well, this is also a very sentimental story - in our time, when the agenda is set by TV channels from which a lot of negativity, cruelty, hatred pours out, yellow themes dominate, simple human stories is distinctly lacking. We need to be convinced again and again that compassion, love, empathy - all this is very characteristic of us, lives in us, but has somehow turned out to be artificially suppressed. Why not give these feelings freedom.
—Are you betting on sentimentality?
— Yes, of course, and I clearly see that this trend has been picked up by others. Look what's happening: Hollywood has become fascinated with comic book movies, world savers, disaster films, and action films. Meanwhile, “La La Land” is becoming the main favorite of the year around the world.
"Anastasia" lives on Broadway
— By the way, about Hollywood and Broadway. Why did you decide to stage Anastasia in New York first? Aren’t you afraid that they won’t accept you there, and that they will also say here that you’re going to Broadway with Russian exotica?
- Let's remember how the Broadway model works. Every musical is a work large group people: authors, directors, producers, artists, musicians, technicians, management... It is rare when decisions are made by one person, even if he is a leader.
I started working on Anastasia alone in 2011.
The original plan was to stage it in Moscow for the 400th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty in 2013.
I contacted the authors animated film and copyright holders, including the authors of amazing music and beautiful songs (these hits, as we know, turned out to be very loved by audiences around the world). I got what I wanted and managed to inspire writing new play Terence McNally is the best and most famous and respected living American playwright. A year and a half after we started working, we held a reading of the work on Broadway for the Broadway theater community. The reaction was so enthusiastic that it became obvious to everyone that it needed to be staged on Broadway right away!
- What's the difference?
— There is a purely practical consideration: to work on a new work and new production It’s extremely inconvenient to work with Broadway authors and directors through translators. In addition, it would be necessary to bring a large team of American professionals to Moscow for six months, which is quite expensive.
Therefore, April 24 is the premiere on Broadway, and then, a year and a half later, a new one Russian production“Anastasia” is different this time too, with a Russian production team and adapted for Russian viewers.
— Do you think Minister of Culture Medinsky will like your production?
- Is this necessary? Seriously, I don't think it will cause anyone a negative reaction. It contains one very important idea of reconciliation:
what happened in Russia 100 years ago split the whole world into two irreconcilable camps - the world of the “reds” and the world of the “whites”, the world of idealists of one kind and idealists of the opposite kind.
So, each camp had its own truth and its own untruth.
— Aren’t you afraid that they will assign you a historical examination or simply force you to bring everything to the form that the Ministry of Culture wants? Or will they simply be persecuted, like “Matilda” - this is also a semi-fictional story about the House of Romanov?
- Well, of course, you need to understand that this is a legend - Anastasia’s story didn’t actually happen, but it “could have happened”, and you really want to believe in it, like all good things. We want the viewer to first believe, and then doubt - did it really happen?
- Let's go back to Broadway. Betting in America now is a very risky undertaking.
— Of course, Broadway is the most competitive theatrical environment in the world. But on this moment a month before the premiere, we already have over one hundred thousand pre-purchased tickets. Broadway theater critics call “Anastasia” the main family hit of the season
