Sherlock Holmes and the Extraordinary Cross: disabled dogs roamed the Moscow scenes
In March, the capital's theaters again actively turned to classical texts, and the Mikhalkov brothers managed to enter the same water three times. For more information, see the traditional review by the critic Vlad Vasyukhin, especially for Izvestia.
The White Guard
Maly Theatre
The Maly Theater, which has been considered a symbol of conservatism and tradition for many years, has won the attention of viewers this season who had previously avoided Ostrovsky's House. And after two sensational sold—out performances — "The Defense of Luzhin" and "Anna Karenina" - Maly shot, literally and figuratively, with a high-profile premiere by his main director Alexei Dubrovsky. The production of Mikhail Bulgakov's famous and long-suffering "Days of the Turbins", which exists in three editions, is timed to coincide with the 135th anniversary of the author and the 100th anniversary of the first incarnation of the play on the Russian stage.
Located on two levels, the scenery (set designer Maxim Obrezkov) separates the Turbins' warm family world, raised above the ground, this almost dollhouse with its legendary cream curtains, and the military arena. Among the crowded acting ensemble, which includes Vladimir Nossik, Viktor Nizovoy, Igor Petrenko, who are applauded, it is worth highlighting the young ones — Ivan Trushin as Shervinsky, Denis Kornukh (Lariosik) and movie star Angelina Strechina (Elena Talberg), who made her debut on the Maly stage in the only female role in the White Guard.
"The Seagull"
Mossovet Theater
Andrei Konchalovsky released his first "Seagull" at the Paris Odeon in 1987, and 23-year-old Juliette Binoche was among the performers there. In 2004, on the stage of the Mossovet Theater, he had a Russian version, which critics almost unanimously ridiculed and even declared a "complete and unconditional failure." In his new treatment of Chekhov's play, the 88-year-old master retained a lot from the previous production, including part of the acting ensemble. The reaction of the writing fraternity will be clearly more benevolent — not only out of respect for creative longevity and not because Konchalovsky began to write better, but simply others worse.
It would be a strong exaggeration to call the premiere performance modern in form. Rather, it is an example of a non-boring classic. The director almost does not shock the audience — neither by radical reading, nor by breaking patterns, nor by visual effects. Let's say the picturesque witchy lake is reproduced on stage without real water, as before, and the worker Yakov no longer dives into it naked. But there were erotic episodes that we won't spoil.
Yulia Vysotskaya, who used to play Nina Zarechnaya, predictably became Arkadina, and Alexey Grishin from Treplev "grew" into Trigorin, but for some reason the famous fiction writer in his performance got lost on stage, neither fish nor meat. But the energetic Vysotskaya gets applause for showing off new stunning costumes from Tamara Eshba, for yoga asanas and jumping rope, but she doesn't pull the blanket over herself. The new edition focuses on young artists Glafira Lebedeva (Nina) and Denis Zainullin (Kostya). They play tremulously, nervously, gamely.
"Without witnesses"
Nikita Mikhalkov's workshop "12"
In the early 80s, Mikhail Ulyanov invited Nikita Mikhalkov, who wanted to try himself as a theater director, to stage Sofia Prokofiev's psychological drama "Conversation without a Witness" on the stage of the Vakhtangov Theater. Persistent rehearsals began, however, it did not reach the premiere, because the director was suddenly given the opportunity to film the same play on Mosfilm, and the theater management considered it "unethical and unpatriotic" to simultaneously release the play and the film. The movie with the same Ulyanov and Irina Kupchenko in 1983 was a success at the box office and at festivals. But now you have to live in Russia for a long time! — the stage version has finally appeared, which is also doomed to great attention, in no small part at the expense of another star duo.
Mikhail Yefremov and Anna Mikhalkova, who have not come out to the audience for several years, are playing with pleasure and fearlessness former spouses who are raising a teenage son together, for whom this is her first theatrical experience. The action of the play, written in the year of the Moscow Olympics, has been transferred to our time, everyone has got mobile phones, and the detailed animated decorations by Yuri Cooper recreate a modern apartment and allow you to instantly transfer the action to different parts of it. However, the story of the betrayal committed by Efremov's character and the events of the current nighttime conversation without witnesses have remained almost unchanged and may not seem quite relevant to someone...
"Faust"
The Theater named after Vakhtangov
Andrey Timoshenko, the chief director of the Arkhangelsk Drama Theater, who raised it to a serious level, is not looking for easy fame. For his debut on the stage of the Vakhtangov Theater, he chose the most difficult material, moreover, verbose and in verse. The search for the meaning of life, the search for faith and the answer to the question: why Faust, who sinned a lot, does not go to hell — this is how the director defined the main motives of his appeal to Goethe's philosophical tragedy.
Not all viewers managed to unravel the director's idea. The long timekeeping (after the first show, the performance was reduced by half an hour to three and a half) and illustrativeness to the detriment of the meaning became reproaches to the spectacle, but on the whole it turned out to be large-scale, metaphorical and visually impressive (artist Themistoklas Atmadzas). Although we admit that the wheel of fortune on a giant pendulum is already a rather hackneyed image. A strong cast, first of all, the venerable Evgeny Knyazev in the title role, the bright and ironic Vladimir Logvinov as Mephistopheles and the sensual Maria Volkova (Gretchen) — a weighty argument to take a place in the audience.
"Sherlock Holmes and everything"
The space "Inside"
No matter what text Anton Fedorov takes on, in the end, the audience is likely to receive a spectacle in his signature style — a comedy of the absurd. A fresh performance based on Conan Doyle's short stories is another confirmation of this. Fans of the fashionable director are happy: there is something to think about and laugh about! Once again dissecting classics, once again grotesque, freaky, psychologically alternative characters, who are brilliantly embodied in stylish costumes and decorations by permanent members of the Fedorov team — Semyon Steinberg, Natalia Rychkova, Sergey Shaidakov and others, again gags of varying degrees of wit, quotes, jokes and Easter eggs for attentive viewers and the theater within the theater reception (the first corpse greets the audience already in the foyer).
Other slightly shocking novelties include a live three—legged dog named Thatcher, who is also fighting an insidious evil. At the same time, Sherlock Holmes himself uses not so much his deductive method as he relies on intuition. However, she lets the famous detective down: his statement that there will be no more murders refutes another incident. In the end, it's still a happy ending.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
