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Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 (or simply The Great Comet) is a sung-through musical adaptation of a 70-page segment from Leo Tolstoy's 1869 novel War and Peace. The show was written by composer, lyricist, playwright, orchestrator Dave Malloy and originally directed by Rachel Chavkin. It is based on Part 8 of Tolstoy's novel, focusing on Natasha's romance with Anatole and Pierre's search for meaning in his life.[1] The musical originally ran at the Ars Nova in 2012, followed by 2013 stagings in both the Meatpacking District and the Theater District of Manhattan, a 2014 Spanish-language staging in Quito, Ecuador, and a 2015 remounting at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Great Comet premiered on Broadway in November 2016 at the Imperial Theatre, and closed in September 2017. The original Off-Broadway production of the show had Phillipa Soo and Dave Malloy playing the roles of Natasha Rostova and Pierre Bezukhov respectively. Once the show was taken to Broadway, Denée Benton and Josh Groban made their Broadway debuts in the roles of Natasha and Pierre. The musical received positive reviews, particularly for Phillipa Soo, Denée Benton, and Josh Groban's leading performances, as well as for the production's score, direction, and scenic design. The show was nominated for 12 awards – the highest number of nominations in the season – for the 2017 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Original Score, Best Book of a Musical, Best Actress in a Musical for Benton, Best Actor in a Musical for Groban, Best Featured Actor in a Musical for Lucas Steele, and Best Direction of a Musical for Chavkin. It won two awards: Best Scenic Design for Mimi Lien and Best Lighting Design in a Musical for Bradley King. SynopsisAct IThe musical starts in 1812, Moscow, Russia, by introducing the characters ("Prologue"). The audience is then introduced to Pierre Bezukhov, a depressed, unhappily married man who feels he is wasting his life ("Pierre"). He is a good friend of Andrey Bolkonsky, who is away fighting in the war. Andrey has recently become engaged to Natasha Rostova. Natasha and her cousin, Sonya Rostova, arrive in Moscow to visit Natasha’s godmother, Marya Dmitrievna, and wait for Andrey to come home ("Moscow"). Natasha is to meet her future in-laws, Andrey’s sister, the lonely Mary Bolkonskaya, and his father, the old Prince Bolkonsky who are trapped in a hateful co-existence ("The Private and Intimate Life of the House"). However, their meeting ends in disaster, as Natasha finds Mary cold and Mary finds Natasha vain, with Bolkonsky behaving bizarrely and dismissing Natasha ("Natasha & Bolkonskys"). Natasha leaves, missing Andrey more than ever and recalls the time they first met ("No One Else"). The next night, Natasha watches an opera with Sonya and Marya. Natasha catches the eye of Pierre's brother-in-law Anatole Kuragin, a notorious rogue and womaniser ("The Opera"). Anatole visits Natasha in her box to flirt and leaves her with feelings she has never experienced before ("Natasha & Anatole"). Anatole arrives home after the opera and goes out drinking with his friend, Fedya Dolokhov, and Pierre. They are met by Hélène Bezukhova, the unfaithfully promiscuous wife of Pierre and shamelessly suggestive sister of Anatole. Anatole lusts for Natasha, although it is revealed he is already married. Hélène flirts with Dolokhov, who taunts Pierre by raising a toast to "married women and their lovers". A drunk Pierre finds Dolokhov's behaviour insulting and challenges him to a duel. Pierre accidentally wounds Dolokhov and Dolokhov, despite being a renowned crack shot, miraculously misses him. Before they all leave, Anatole asks Hélène to invite Natasha to a ball that evening and she agrees ("The Duel"). They leave Pierre, who reflects on his near-death experience and realizes that despite wasting his life, he wishes to live and find love ("Dust and Ashes"). The next morning, as Natasha is preparing for church, she is confused about her feelings for Anatole at the opera and questions whether they mean she has betrayed Andrey, fearing that something may stop them from being together ("Sunday Morning"). Later that day, Hélène visits Natasha and invites her to the ball, praising her beauty, and Natasha agrees to attend. Hélène privately revels in the scandalous idea of her brother and Natasha getting together ("Charming"). That night at the ball, Natasha is met by Anatole, and they dance. Anatole professes his love to Natasha, who tries to tell him that she is already engaged. Ignoring this, Anatole kisses Natasha, leading her to fall in love with him in return ("The Ball"). Act IIAfter his duel with Dolokhov, Pierre begins studying to search for enlightenment. Natasha is further torn between her feelings for both Andrey and Anatole ("Letters"). Sonya discovers letters between Natasha and Anatole and learns of their relationship. She confronts Natasha and desperately explains her distrust of Anatole, but Natasha bursts out in anger at her and leaves. Natasha writes to Mary and breaks off her engagement with Andrey ("Sonya & Natasha"). Alone, Sonya reflects on her love for her cousin and her determination to save her, even if she will lose her closest friend ("Sonya Alone"). That evening, Anatole and Dolokhov prepare for an elopement between Anatole and Natasha. Dolokhov attempts to change Anatole's mind, but is unsuccessful ("Preparations"). Balaga, their troika driver, arrives to take them to Natasha's house where they will retrieve her before departing ("Balaga"). When they arrive at Natasha's house, citizens of Moscow are there to bid their goodbyes to Anatole and Natasha, but are thwarted at the last moment by Marya ("The Abduction"). Marya scolds Natasha, who then reveals to Marya and Sonya that she broke off her engagement with Andrey and reaffirms her love for Anatole, whom she still believes is unmarried. Natasha screams at Marya and Sonya and bursts into tears as she waits all night for Anatole ("In My House"). Marya calls on Pierre in the middle of the night and explains the situation to him, begging him to handle the crisis. Pierre tells Marya that Anatole is already married ("A Call to Pierre"). Pierre, outraged, searches Moscow for Anatole while Marya and Sonya tell a grief-stricken Natasha that Anatole is already married. Pierre eventually finds Anatole at Hélène’s house ("Find Anatole"). Pierre, close to violence, orders Anatole to leave Moscow and burn all his correspondence with Natasha. A terrified Anatole agrees, but manages to squeeze travelling money out of Pierre in the process ("Pierre & Anatole"). Natasha attempts to take her own life by poisoning herself with arsenic, but lives ("Natasha Very Ill"). The next day, Andrey returns home from the war and is disoriented about the refusal of marriage he received from Natasha, which he asks Pierre about. Pierre explains the scandal to him and pleads with him to be compassionate, but Andrey is unable to forgive Natasha and cold-heartedly tells Pierre that he will not ask for her hand in marriage again ("Pierre and Andrey"). Pierre visits a shattered Natasha, meeting her for the first time, and comforts her. During their conversation he expresses if he were the best man on Earth and if he were free he would gladly marry her, giving her hope ("Pierre & Natasha"). After their meeting, Pierre experiences a moment of enlightenment as he watches the Great Comet of 1812 soar across the night sky ("The Great Comet of 1812"). MusicThe score, written and orchestrated by Malloy, merges Russian folk and classical music with indie rock and EDM influences. The piece, described by Malloy as an "electropop opera," is sung-through, with just one line of spoken dialogue coming in Pierre and Natasha's only scene together.[2] On stage, nearly all of the actors play musical instruments augmenting the show's orchestra. Pierre plays the accordion briefly, and plays large sections of the score on the orchestra's piano.[3] The libretto contains many passages taken word-for-word from Aylmer and Louise Maude's 1922 translation of Tolstoy's novel.[4] Musical numbers
Note: An aria for Natasha, "Natasha Lost", was cut during the Broadway production but is included on the original cast recording between number 8 ("Natasha & Anatole") and number 9 ("The Duel"). "Dust and Ashes" was added for the A.R.T. production. In 2020, Malloy released a song titled "Epilogue", a solo for Pierre after the finale that wasn't a part of the original musical.[5][6] ProductionsOff-Off-BroadwayArs NovaThe musical premiered on October 16, 20s12, at Ars Nova. Directed by Rachel Chavkin[7] the show was staged as an immersive production, with action happening around and among the audience. The set designed by Mimi Lien and lights by Bradley King transformed Ars Nova into a Russian supper club. The creative team was completed by Paloma Young as costume designer, Matt Hubbs as sound designer, and Dave Malloy as musical director. The cast included Malloy as Pierre, Phillipa Soo as Natasha, Lucas Steele as Anatole, Amber Gray as Hélène, Brittain Ashford as Sonya, Manik Choksi as Dolokhov, Gelsey Bell as Mary, Amelia Workman as Marya, Blake DeLong as Andrey/Old Prince Bolkonsky and Paul Pinto (who also served as associate music director) as Balaga. The show was the first production of Ars Nova to ever transfer to Broadway. Off-BroadwayKazinoOn May 16, 2013, the show opened in the Meatpacking District at Kazino,[8] a temporary structure designed as an opulent Russian club, where the immersive production was staged, again by the same creative team. The cast reprised their roles, except Choksi, now replaced by Ian Lassiter (who temporarily took over the role for a month after which Choksi returned), and Workman, replaced by Grace McLean. Malloy left the cast on June 21 and was temporarily replaced by Luke Holloway. David Abeles then took over the role of Pierre on July 9, 2013. The show closed on September 1, 2013.[9] The show opened for a 14-week limited engagement starting on September 24, 2013 at the Kazino and moved to the Theater District, with the final cast of the previous production: Bell was replaced by Shaina Taub (Katrina Yaukey later took over the role from Taub on February 4) and Pinto was replaced by Ashkon Davaran. On December 10, 2013, the two-disc cast recording was released. The show was extended and ran until March 2, 2014.[10] American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.)The team behind the original production remounted the show at the American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with performances beginning December 6, 2015 to January 3, 2016.[11] Now expanded to a proscenium stage, the set put some of the audience onstage. Scott Stangland took over the role of Pierre, Denée Benton starred as Natasha, Lilli Cooper portrayed Hélène, and Nicholas Belton played Andrey/Old Prince Bolkonsky. The rest of the cast reprised their roles. BroadwayThe Broadway production at the Imperial Theatre began previews on October 18, 2016 and opened on November 14, 2016, starring Josh Groban as Pierre and Denée Benton as Natasha, both making their Broadway debuts. The remainder of the cast featured Lucas Steele as Anatole, Brittain Ashford as Sonya, Amber Gray as Hélène, Grace McLean as Marya, Manik Choksi as Dolokhov, Gelsey Bell as Princess Mary, Nicholas Belton as Andrey/Old Prince Bolkonsky, Paul Pinto as Balaga, and Scott Stangland as the standby for Pierre. The production had choreography by Sam Pinkleton, sets by Mimi Lien, costumes by Paloma Young, lights by Bradley King, sound by Nicholas Pope and music direction by Or Matias.[12][13] With sets similar to the A.R.T. remounting, the production took the proscenium stage, but removed almost 200 seats from the audience to accommodate the design. Again, the options of stage seats, in banquettes or dining tables, were available. The Broadway production cost about $14 million to stage, most of which was not recouped.[14] In July 2017, Hamilton alum Okieriete Onaodowan took over the role of Pierre, singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson took over the role of Sonya and Courtney Bassett took over the role of Princess Mary, both for temporary engagements.[15] On August 15, Stangland temporarily took over the role of Pierre and Ashford returned to the role of Sonya. On August 22, Bell returned to the role of Princess Mary and Dave Malloy took over the role of Pierre for the remainder of the Broadway run. The Broadway production played its final performance on September 3, 2017, having played 32 previews and 336 performances.[16] LondonOn 25 June 2024, it was announced that The Great Comet would have its United Kingdom premiere at London’s Donmar Warehouse from 9 December 2024 to 8 February 2025. The show was directed by Timothy Sheader and choreographed by Ellen Kane.[17] Sheader said this production would return the show to its Ars Nova roots, with a cast of 12 and band of 10 (as opposed to the Broadway edition, which had a cast of 33).[18] On 17 October, the cast was announced with Jamie Muscato, Declan Bennett and Chumisa Dornford-May starring as Anatole, Pierre and Natasha, respectively. Also featured in the cast are Cedric Neal as Balaga, Daniel Krikler as Dolokhov, Eugene McCoy as Prince Bolkonsky/Andrey, Annette McLaughlin as Marya, Maimuna Memon as Sonya, Cat Simmons as Helene and Chloe Saracco as Princess Mary.[19] The production opened officially on 16 December to rave reviews, with critics particularly praising the strength of the cast and originality of the material. United States RegionalThe Capital City Theatre of Madison, Wisconsin staged the musical from June 3-12, 2022.[20] The West Coast premiere occurred in the fall of 2022 with the Shotgun Players in Berkeley, California.[21] The Great Comet returned to the Loeb Drama Center, home of the American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, under the Harvard-Radcliffe Dramatic Club in April 2023. The Idaho Shakespeare Festival staged ‘The Great Comet’ in August of 2023. The Great Lakes Theater, Cleveland, Ohio, staged The Great Comet in September and October 2023 with Chris McCarrell as Anatole.[22] The Horizon Theatre Company, Atlanta, Georgia, staged The Great Comet in October and November 2023. [23] The Zach Theatre in Austin, Texas, staged The Great Comet in January-March 2024.[24] The Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities in Arvada, Colorado staged The Great Comet in February-March 2024.[25] Seacoast Repertory Theatre, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, staged The Great Comet in March and April 2024. [26] Cygnet Theatre, San Diego, California, staged The Great Comet in April and May 2024. [27] Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah, staged The Great Comet in May 2024 starring Ali Ewoldt as Natasha and Kevin Earley as Pierre[28] Writers Theatre of Glencoe, Illinois, staged The Great Comet from September through November 2024 starring Aurora Penepacker as Natasha and Evan Tyrone Martin as Pierre.[29] InternationalThe show had its international premiere in Quito, Ecuador in September 2014, in a Spanish-language production produced by Teatro Parapluie. A Brazilian production opened in August 2018, in Portuguese, with Bruna Guerin as Natasha, André Frateschi as Pierre and Gabriel Leone as Anatole. The production won the Prêmio Reverência popular vote Award for "Best Musical." A Japanese production, helmed by the entertainment company Toho, opened at the Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre on January 5, 2019 and ran through January 27, 2019. It starred Nogizaka46's Erika Ikuta as Natasha and Yoshio Inoue as Pierre.[30] The Korean production ran from March 2021 until May 2021, starring Haena and Jung Eun-ji as Natasha, and Hong Kwang-ho and K.will as Pierre.[31] In 2024, the production returned to Korea featuring Lee Jisoo, Yoo Yeon-jung, and Park Soobin as Natasha, and Ha Do-kwon, K.Will, and Julian Jootaek Kim as Pierre.[32] Variety also reported that productions in London and Korea were under discussion, with additional interest in China and the Philippines.[33] The Canadian premiere produced by Musical Stage Co. and Crow's Theatre was set to run from January 26 to February 14, 2021 at the Winter Garden Theatre in Toronto,[34] but was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic and consequent shutdown of theaters.[35] It was rescheduled for December 5, 2023 to March 24, 2024 at the Crow's Theatre. [36] In summer 2025, it will transfer to the Royal Alexandra Theatre.[37] The European premiere was in February 2023 at the Landestheater in Linz, Austria. [38] The Australian premiere was mounted by the Darlinghurst Theatre Company, running at the Eternity Playhouse from 7 July to 20 August 2023.[39] Reviews were positive, citing the staging and diverse casting.[40] The Chinese premiere ran from December 2023 to March 2024 at the Nine Trees Future Art Center and the Bank of Communications Qiantan 31 Performing Arts Center with Cooper Grodin starring as Pierre.[41] A New Zealand production, produced by WITCH Music Theatre, opened at the Hannah Playhouse Theatre, Wellington in April 2024. [42] Characters
(Lines in quotations are lyrics from the opening song, "Prologue," which introduces the characters)[45] Original principal casts
Notable ReplacementsOff-Broadway (2013-14)
Broadway (2016-17)
Critical responseThe piece was very well received by the New York press. Charles Isherwood in The New York Times called it "a vibrant, transporting new musical," and both Times theater critics included the show on their Best of the Year lists.[51] The Times' classical critic, Anthony Tommasini, called it "a breathless, roughish and ravishing quasi-opera. This is a pastiche score of a cavalier sort. Mr. Malloy lifts styles with such abandon, making willful shifts – from punk riffs to agitated Broadway ballads, mock-pompous recitative to gritty Russian folk songs or drinking choruses with klezmer clarinets – that you lose track of what is being appropriated and really don't care."[52] Time Out New York gave the piece five out of five stars, and also included it on both critics' Best of lists, stating "this is theater like no other in New York. It grounds you and transports you at once, and leaves you beaming with pleasure.”[53] Onaodowan/Patinkin controversyJosh Groban played his final performance in the Broadway production on July 2, 2017. Okieriete Onaodowan assumed the role of Pierre on July 11; he was supposed to begin performances on July 3 but needed more time to prepare. The show's creator and former Pierre, Dave Malloy, played the role from July 3 to 9.[54] Onaodowan's performance was well received, but the show continued to struggle financially with the departure of Groban. The producers attempted to bring in Broadway legend[55] Mandy Patinkin to boost ticket sales and prevent the show from closing. On July 26, 2017, a day before the official announcement, the website Broadway Black broke the news that Patinkin was set to replace Onaodowan as Pierre for three weeks, cutting Onoadowan's run short by a couple of weeks due to Patinkin's busy schedule.[56] Many fans and actors were angered by this casting decision because Patinkin is white, and Onaodowan is black. A Twitter campaign was begun by Rafael Casal, a friend of Onaodowan's, who coined the hashtag #makeroomforoak.[57] Patinkin withdrew from the show two days later, stating: "I hear what members of the community have said and I agree with them. I am a huge fan of Oak ... and I will, therefore, not be appearing in the show."[58] Pierre standby Scott Stangland played Pierre for the first week after Onaodowan’s departure.[49] Malloy then assumed the role of Pierre for the remainder of the run. The show closed a little over a month later, on September 3, 2017, citing this controversy and the declining ticket sales.[59] Awards and nominationsOriginal Off-Broadway productionSources: TheaterMania[60] Internet Off-Broadway Database[61]Village Voice[62]
Original Cambridge production
Original Broadway production
RecordingsOn December 10, 2013 Ghostlight Records released a two-disc cast album of the entire score. The cast featured Dave Malloy as Pierre, Phillipa Soo as Natasha, Lucas Steele as Anatole, Brittain Ashford as Sonya, Manik Choksi as Dolokhov, Grace McLean as Marya D, Amber Gray as Hélène, Blake DeLong as Andrey/Old Prince Bolkonsky, Gelsey Bell as Princess Mary, and Paul Pinto as Balaga.[81] Later, another disc containing highlights from the show was released. The original Broadway cast recording was released on May 19, 2017 on Reprise Records. It went on to chart at number 87 on the Billboard 200 chart, number 26 on the Top Album Sales chart, and number 23 on the Digital Albums chart. BookOn November 22, 2016 the book Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812: The Journey of a New Musical to Broadway was released. The book, edited and compiled by Steven Suskin, includes interviews with many of the original cast members, as well as the annotated script and photos of both the Kazino and Broadway casts. The book also includes a CD with five songs from the show: three from the original cast recording, and two featuring Josh Groban and a 25 piece orchestra. Notes
References
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