Who performs Anna Karenina in the musical. "Anna Karenina", or Lev Nikolaevich's nightmare...

A musical based on a Russian literary classic is always a bit of a scandal. Moscow audiences are accustomed to imported Broadway stories, but they are wary of the decision to “voice” one of the pillars of Russian literature. It is not surprising that the musical “Anna Karenina” became the most discussed theatrical event of last year’s fall. At one time, Dostoevsky called Tolstoy’s novel “a huge psychological development of the human soul” - some theater critics complained that in the musical adaptation of Karenina’s love story, not enough remained of this “psychological development.” You can take any source as the basis for a musical; the main thing is to remember that the musical and this source will pursue different artistic goals and be on different aesthetic planes. For the mass audience, judging by popular reviews of films and shows, the criterion of proximity to the text is decisive: they can forgive not the most outstanding music or sluggish characters, but not the “original reading”.

Therefore, in working with Tolstoy’s legacy, the creative team of the musical “Anna Karenina” showed almost religious seriousness. As a result, the mass “ballroom” scenes seem stuffy due to the abundance of crinolines and wigs; stylistically, they are rather conventionally related to avant-garde dances in “street” scenes. Fortunately, Karenina’s birth pangs are not shown to the audience, but twice during the performance a boy appears on stage, Seryozha Karenin, who utters only one word (guess which one). The producers of the musical, Vladimir Tartakovsky and Alexey Bolonin, say that it was through the character of Seryozha Karenin that they were able to convey to the viewer the scale of the main character’s action: “If a woman decides to leave her beloved child, then what is the strength of her feelings for Vronsky!” The excesses of color in the action are compensated by the outstanding scenography by Vyacheslav Okunev and lighting designer Gleb Filshtinsky.

The characters of the key characters cannot be called sketchy, although this is often the case with the “light” musical genre. There are no negative or even simply repulsive or demonic characters - this is a good sign. Alexei Karenin evokes as much sympathy as Anna Karenina. Among the heroes of the musical there is one - a certain Manager - who is not in Tolstoy's novel: a medium figure who appears in different images wherever Anna is present. The producers describe him as follows: “This is a conductor of the will of higher powers on earth. Initially, he was conceived as a conductor who dictates to passengers the rules of behavior and conditions on the “train of life.” It is he who establishes the “rules of conduct” for the characters, sets the conditions of the game and the tone for the entire performance. He is Destiny." The Manager's zone of influence is much larger than the station. In the most dramatic scene with his participation, the character will not utter a word - at this time Anna will listen to the opera diva Patti, who sings: “Quench me with wine, refresh me with fruits.” The line, by the way, refers to a similar song in the Song of Solomon: “Fortify me with wine, refresh me with apples, for I am faint from love” - this is the “Easter egg” left in the text by the libretto’s author, Julius Kim.

The strong point of the musical “Anna Karenina” is its cast. The role of Vronsky went to Sergei Lee and Dmitry Ermak - the latter was awarded the Golden Mask last year for his role as the Phantom of the Opera. At different times, both performers of the roles of Alexei Karenin were nominated for the Golden Mask: Igor Balalaev and Alexander Marakulin. Valeria Lanskaya and Ekaterina Guseva produce an amazing Anna: restrained at the beginning, and crazy and disoriented in the end. Ekaterina says that while working on the role, she changed her attitude towards the heroine, who had not previously evoked an emotional response in her: “Anna Yulia Kima is love itself! She descended from somewhere above us, rustled, touched us and left. There is no place for her on our land, no one is able to accept her. And Vronsky failed. He is an earthly, ordinary man, one of many. An avalanche of all-consuming love fell on him, and he broke down, he had nothing to respond to such an all-encompassing feeling. I stopped judging, fell in love with my Anna, I feel endlessly sorry for her. And I’m happy that I have the opportunity to go on stage in this role. To exist in the piercing music of Roman Ignatiev, to love, die, be reborn and love again.” Guseva's heroine evokes a strong emotional response: she leaves the room in tears. This means that the magic is working, and the question of the viability of the musical “Anna Karenina” can be closed.

REVIEW of the musical “Anna Karenina”

Moscow Operetta Theater
Libretto author - Yuliy Kim
Composer - Roman Ignatiev
Stage director - Alina Chevik
Choreographer - Irina Korneeva
Production designer - Vyacheslav Okunev
Makeup and hair artist - Andrey Drykin
Lighting designer - Gleb Filshtinsky
Premiere: October 8, 2016
Date viewed: 01/23/2018

This solemn and high-society musical met all the expectations of Muscovites; in the beautiful hall of the Moscow Operetta Theater it seemed destined to become the pearl of the trio of musicals Anna Karenina, Monte Cristo and Count Orlov. This is a completely Russian musical; its creators put the Russian spirit into the production. The great novel by Lev Tolstov, framed by the libretto and poems of Yuli Kim and the music of Roman Ignatiev, amazes with its sincerity and amazing melody. Well-honed and well-coordinated work of the cast, choir, dancers and live orchestra. The atmosphere of the performance is very pleasant, it all begins on a snowy winter day with sledding and ice skating, and the dancers skate very professionally with twists and support from their partners. And how many magnificent scenes of balls, amazingly rich interiors and crystal chandeliers the directors created; the monitors show the interior in a duet with the scenery very interestingly. The costumes of the heroes are solemnly bright, embroidered with stones, everything glitters and sparkles, but with a very subtle taste. There is a scene in the play where Anna Karenina (Ekaterina Guseva) in a black coat with a silver fox-trimmed collar sings the song “blizzard”, the loving and happy heroine glows from the inside as she walks through the station under the snow flakes, this scene instantly captivates the viewer. And, Ekaterina Guseva’s performance is so sincere that you become a fan of not only her talent, but also the musical performed by her. The main character Alexey Vronsky (Sergei Li), a seducer and handsome man with a charming voice, plays very well in the play, in love and ready to do anything for the sake of his beloved, even to take her away from her husband, and then a cold and calculating servant at court. Together they make up an amazing duet with the main character. It is worth noting the entire, well, simply the entire cast of actors with magnificent, exciting voices and acting. Watching the musical before the intermission, I thought that nothing could surprise me, so I was very impressed, but the second part completely amazed me. In the scene when everyone comes to the theater to listen to Patti, the flagellation of Anna Karenina begins and everyone gossips about her wrong life, the heroine herself is beating in hysterics, when suddenly, above, like a bright star, Patti appears on stage and sings an aria in an operatic crystal voice . For Anna, this is a cleansing wave against insults and slander, she has already made her choice, and even the persuasion of her husband Alexei Karenin (Alexander Marakulin) leaves no chance. And then a huge wheel from a locomotive appears under the ceiling, a terrifying sight and very tragic. Anna throws herself in front of a train, which drives into the center of the stage and blinds the viewer. Moving scenery throughout the action is the main thing and this is an interesting find, it is often used in musicals to quickly and completely change the picture. Many thanks to the orchestra, I don’t know exactly whether it was the orchestra of the operetta theater itself or a guest one, but it was magnificent. I would like to note that this Russian musical of ours was bought by the main theater in South Korea and staged it according to our template. Of the musicals presented in Moscow, this is the best and I advise everyone to plunge into this atmosphere, even those who do not like to go to theaters will be pleasantly impressed!

— Musicals based on Russian literary classics have always caused rather mixed reactions. Many people think that singing Tolstoy is a failed idea. How do you feel about this?

“I think that anyone who thinks this is a failed plan is mistaken.” For the simple reason that the musical is a genre for which all plots are good. At one time they said about famous directors - or -: “They can even direct a cookbook.”

In a human composition, and even more so in such a classical, literary one, there is everything that is needed for a musical: there is drama, there are human relationships, characters.

As soon as they appear, the musical is ready to embody them.

Roughly speaking, there is a genre of prose work. Leo Tolstoy saw or came up with a certain plot and embodied it in this genre. Another poet came up with a plot and embodied it in the genre of a novel in verse - and it turned out "". The plot of "Karenina", full of psychologism and conflicts, is the most fertile option for a musical. There are no low genres: even the most seemingly popular, consumer-favorite pop music is nevertheless a genre of art, and serious ideas can be embodied in it. Moreover, the musical genre is large enough to cope with the plot of Romeo and Juliet, or its remake - West Side Story, or Notre Dame de Paris. There is absolutely no contradiction here.

— “Anna Karenina” is not only a love story, but also a strong social line. What is the emphasis in the musical?

Mainly on the love story, of course. At first, the social line was spelled out in large detail in the libretto: there Levin speaks in more detail and at length - about reforms, about Russia, about the peasants. In the musical this line was not sufficiently developed. But I don’t regret it at all. I did not hide the social issues, I tried to express them together with the other authors of the musical.

Our Levin also talks about peasants, about the place where a good person should live, where he can find his meaning in life.

— The characters of Tolstoy’s heroes are revealed in long monologues, including internal ones. How does your libretto convey the characters’ characters and their torments?

— To the best of my ability and to the extent that the conditions of the genre are observed. The musical genre usually requires less detailed monologues than prose can afford. But I managed to convey the quintessence of my experiences and thoughts. Moreover, this was done in poetry - and poetry always has its own pathos and its own very useful brevity, verbal economy, which requires a special intensity of feeling. I strove to ensure that the internal monologues of the characters were well conveyed in verse, and (the composer of the musical - Gazeta.Ru), in my opinion, did an excellent job with their musical expression.

There is a human note in Karenin, and we tried our best to emphasize this note.

The last scene of the play is the scene where Karenin and Vronsky sing an aria together about their failure to respond to Anna’s drama. Both did not have enough soul for this, and both bitterly regret it.

— The idea to quote “Song of Songs” did not arise immediately. At first I decided that the culmination of the whole action should occur during a scandal in the theater - I came up with this in advance, and everyone agreed with me. But the role of singer Adelina Patti was not very clear to me. Initially, I did not intend to make some very important point out of her aria. And only then did I realize that the most important thing here was that it was she who would sing. At first I imagined that she was singing Violetta’s aria from Verdi’s La Traviata - it was very good and in content close to Anna’s own experiences. But I listened to the aria and realized: this is not enough.

Then a happy thought came to me: it would be Shulamith’s aria, Patti would sing: “Oh, my beloved...” - and so on.

I took literally four verses from this aria, but the singer repeats them two or three times. Listening to her singing, Anna suddenly understands: love is as strong as death. Life and love are now equivalent concepts for her: if love disappears, so does life. Anna sings about Patti: “She told me everything about me.”

— How did you work on the libretto? How did you build interaction with producers, who relied on whose ideas?

— We exchanged opinions: I proposed a solution to this or that scene, they either accepted it, or we continued to think together. This is how the story happened with Stiva and Levin’s visit to Anna. Initially, the composer and I decided that it would be good to write a duet between Anna and Levin in this place. Moreover, it was written: a very good duet about the meeting of two extraordinary people who felt something familiar in each other. Levin saw in Anna something more than in Kitty, and Anna felt in Levin something more sensitive, a more dear soul than the soul of Vronsky. The producers listened to this duet and said: “You wrote a declaration of love. This immediately changes everything and makes the further plot pointless.” We did not rewrite the libretto - we simply removed this part and instead made a duet between Anna and Kitty. It also had its own dramaturgy.

— Interest in musicals in Russia appeared not so long ago. Is this due to the fact that the musical presented to the audience is a colorful show using bright decorations and lighting effects, or is it something else?

— First, foreign musicals appeared in our country. Then there were the first attempts to create our own. One of the attempts to create our own musical, as we remember, ended tragically: it was “Nord-Ost”. Therefore, our audience became acquainted with musicals through films and the Internet. All the popular foreign musicals - "West Side Story", "Oliver!", "Cats" - have given our viewers an idea of what a musical is.

And when the first musicals appeared on our theater stage, the audience, of course, flocked.

What she likes about this genre as opposed to opera or operetta is a separate question. The musical is a very democratic genre that can handle any subject matter without losing depth and color.

And yet, the musical certainly has a commercial component. It is always designed for wide demand and, accordingly, for a good income. Therefore, all musical directors try to make the spectacle attractive. The audience gets a spectacle, but a spectacle filled with good meaning. This is how the genre and the public exchange: people become enlightened, their taste becomes better.

— The song “Belle” from the Russian version of the musical “Notre-Dame de Paris” - although not your translation - became a hit and entered popular culture. Would you like such a fate for some songs from Anna Karenina?

- Certainly. I would say this: if this happens, I will be happy. If this doesn't happen, I won't consider it a disadvantage. I don’t think that from our two previous musicals with Roman Ignatiev (“Monte Cristo” and “Count Orlov” - “Gazeta.Ru”), any of the arias went to the people and are now eagerly sung by everyone.

I think each of these musicals is a hit in itself, a two-hour hit.

If you remember it, then immediately from beginning to end. At the same time, I don’t see individual hits in these musicals. And the public doesn’t see them, but they go there very willingly. So willingly that when, after four seasons of “Monte Cristo,” the no less successful “Count Orlov” was already on, the public began to ask for more - and we had to show “Monte Cristo” next to “Count Orlov.”

— I want to ask you, as a writer, a question about literary interpretation - after all, in “Anna Karenina” you, in fact, do it. How would you react if someone interpreted your stuff? And what would Tolstoy say if he saw your Anna Karenina?

— I am not able to predict the reaction of Leo Tolstoy or any of his followers. It is easy to imagine that many are outraged by my treatment of his prose (or better yet, by our treatment, meaning all the directors and authors of this performance). It's a matter of taste. I am not at all ashamed of this work, and I have already said why. The musical is a special genre that can afford a lot. And if someone somehow gets around to interpreting my writings, I will be curious about it. And if we imagine that all this will be done after my life, it all depends on how much tact and taste there will be in this. Let them show the same taste and tact that I show towards.

This evening my wife and I went to the operetta theater to see this musical.
I've wanted it for a long time. No way. And so they decided, as always, to do it impromptu. Without tickets in hand. My wife was worried - how would we get in if it was written on the Internet that all the tickets had been sold? I was calm. And my intuition did not disappoint.
At the box office, only the balcony of the 2nd tier, the last row, was on sale. 400 rubles each. In general, in the middle of nowhere. We don’t need such a hockey situation - I decided, and we went outside. Then a spiky, intelligent guy came up to us and offered tickets to the amphitheater for 2500 re. I knew that they were cheaper there, but my wife wanted to go to the musical so badly that I pulled out a red piece of paper and gave it to my uncle. Later it turned out that there were two ladies sitting to my left who also purchased tickets from the spikul, but for 3,000 rubles. And to our right a couple landed who managed to buy tickets for 4,500 per person. So we haven't suffered that much financially yet. Regarding neighbors.
But the places were, alas, not great. Row 7, last amphitheater. There is only a wall at the back. If you want to go to this musical, it is better to buy the 1st row of the dress circle, you can see wonderfully from there. However, I had one undoubted advantage - I could film what was happening with a video camera, because behind me there were no Cerberus ticket attendants who instantly react to such attempts. And thanks to this, I shot a lot of footage of the musical, plus I made a 10-minute video.

Briefly about the impression. I have never seen a better musical in my life. We were also lucky in that we were included in the first team. The role of Anna Karenina was played by the magnificent Katya Guseva, and the role of Vronsky is Dmitry Ermak. He is the one who performed as a soloist in the musical "The Phantom of the Opera".

Here they are in one of the scenes of the musical.

The scene of the meeting at the station, Anna leaves for St. Petersburg.

Levin (Vladislav Kiryukhin) and Kitty Shcherbitskaya (Natalia Bystrova).

Countess Vronskaya (Anna Gurchenkova)

Stiva Oblonsky (Andrey Alexandrin)

Incomparable Katya Guseva (Anna Karenina)

The artists take their bow.

The mood after the performance was great! I will now wait for the release of the full version of the musical on the Internet. They say that the DVD is being removed for future sales.
I warmly recommend everyone to go see Anna Karenina. I liked literally everything there! Music, voices, acting, scenery, costumes. And what impressed me very much is that you can hear every word of the performers. This doesn't always happen. For example, in “Count Orlov” the music often drowned out the voice of the singer or singer. It was only later that I figured it all out after watching a video clip. And here - complete clarity.

Score - 10 points out of 10!

In conclusion - my video from fragments of the musical.