Soviet-style scam: the "Eldest son" settled in the Provincial Theater
The night, the street, the lantern, two friends — Busygin and Silva — get into the house. One of them is related to the owner from fright and appears before him as a forgotten son. With such a simple preamble, one of the most famous plays of the Soviet period begins — "The Eldest Son" by Alexander Vampilov. Now the amazing story of how a random person becomes one of his own in someone else's family has found a place in the Provincial Theater under the direction of Sergei Bezrukov. The role of Sarafanov is played by theater and film actor Leonid Gromov, for whom this season was the first in the troupe.
Comedy with tears in my eyes
The Vampilov story of how an unknown young man, a student of the medical institute, Vladimir Busygin, becomes a member of the Sarafanov family in one day, remains in demand among directors to this day. In Moscow alone, you can watch nine "Eldest Sons." Despite the fact that in 35 years of his life the playwright wrote only four full-fledged plays, he was called the Soviet Chekhov.
But great fame — alas, posthumous — was brought to him by Vitaly Melnikov's film of the same name, which brought together a stellar cast of Evgeny Leonov, Nikolai Karachentsov, Mikhail Boyarsky, Natalia Egorova and Svetlana Kryuchkova.
Now the "Eldest Son" has appeared at the Moscow Provincial Theater. The artistic director Sergey Bezrukov and the director of the production Grigory Lifanov launched the 13th season.
— I am very glad that this extraordinarily tender, touching and funny performance will appear in our repertoire. Now is the time when everyone lacks warmth, sincerity, and openness. And this story brings us back to the simple, pure feelings and relationships that we've lost," Bezrukov said.
Vampilov himself called the play a comedy, but despite the humorous beginning, the viewer quickly realizes that this is a story imbued with lyricism and slight sadness.
The new son is a beloved son
There are schematic decorations of a provincial railway station on the stage. On the left side of the stage there is a red telephone booth with peeling paint and broken windows, on the opposite side there is the same shabby bench. In this recognizable environment for most Russians, two stray fellows appear: Busygin (Artyom Gubin) and Silva (Kirill Novyshev).
After a warm evening in the company of charming girls, they passionately expected to continue chatting over a cup of tea, but instead found themselves on the street. The last train had long since left, and the prospect of freezing to death at a deserted train station was becoming more and more real.
Then the friends decide to ask for an overnight stay in neighboring houses. After a series of refusals, one of them comes up with the idea to change tactics and pretend to be the illegitimate offspring of a certain Sarafanov (Leonid Gromov), who is single-handedly raising his daughter Nina (Diana Egorova) and son Vasenka (Daniil Vershinin). Unexpectedly for all the heroes of the story, he accepts another heir with open arms.
Leonid Gromov, an actor with a lot of professional experience in cinema, took up the image of Sarafanov with great enthusiasm. Yes, he is a failed musician, forced to play at a funeral. Yes, he is not the most capable composer, who has been composing either an oratorio or a cantata for the last ten years, but he still cannot fill more than one sheet with notes.
Before the premiere, Gromov admitted that he was lucky to have a director and partners. That's why the rehearsals were easy, with love, in an atmosphere of laughter and friendly jokes.
This family atmosphere is also felt in the auditorium. If images from the film version surfaced in memory before the performance, then after the first mise en scene comparisons disappear. The viewer forgets about Leonov, and about the very young Boyarsky, and about Karachentsov, whom the audience recognized after this film.
Director Grigory Lifanov at the premiere of his play "The Eldest Son"
Director Grigory Lifanov is not afraid to be academic, slightly out of date. He does not seek to extract other meanings from the Vampilov text and draw parallels with the modern age. His work shows sincere respect for the author, his work and endless love for the characters.
Carpet on the wall and cups with polka dots
Dmitry Razumov's set design deserves special attention. The main events of the play take place in Sarafanov's apartment, which rightfully becomes one of the actors. Anyone from the USSR will recognize a wall carpet with reindeer, a floor lamp of the same type, a hard couch with green upholstery, and a tea set in red and white peas.
"Oh, that's exactly the carpet my mom had," one viewer whispers. "And we just moved this dressing table to our cottage last week," the neighbor replies to her.
The director's findings were successful during the change of the mise-en-scene. Often, the lighting staff simply dims the lights while the stagehands move the scenery for the next appearance of the artists. But here, at such moments, a special screen with a recognizable Soviet mosaic was lowered, and two girls appeared on its background — the same ones who refused Busygin and Silva warmth and comfort. For a couple of minutes, they captured the attention of the audience with short sketches, while preparations for a new scene were underway behind them.
The performance looks in one go. Each actor's image is thought out exactly to the turn of the head. And this is at a high rate of action! There is a place in the performance for well-honed "shooting" with lines, as well as for pantomimes at the window, feasts to the guitar and the vivid appearance of Alexei Veretin in the role of an overly punctual pilot and Nina's part-time wayward fiance.
Vampilov's dramaturgy, framed respectfully by Grigory Lifanov, has a well-deserved effect on the audience. A frivolous deception turns into tears of happiness, although it leaves a trace of bright sadness.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
