A.N. Ostrovsky "The Snow Maiden": description, characters, analysis of the work
The approach of the New Year is signaled not only by decorated Christmas trees and bright illumination on the street, but also by many New Year's performances. The show has already begun at the Children's Variety Theater fairy tale"Snow Maiden"!
Kira and I had the honor of seeing this magical story one of the first)))
The Snow Maiden lives in solitude with Father Santa Claus. Mother Spring is invisibly present nearby: she will always support and console her. And she has a dream: to live with people, listen to their songs, dance with them tirelessly. For now, she only decides to listen to the soulful songs of the shepherdess Lelya from afar. Santa Claus, seeing her melancholy, decides to let her go, but for protection and help he sends his faithful servant Leshy with her.
The Snow Maiden meets Lel, but she doesn’t understand how such a soulful song can cost just her kiss. Kupava is ready to become a faithful friend to the Snow Maiden and introduces her to her betrothed Mizgir. But then the unexpected happens...
It’s very interesting, folk motifs sounded in a new and interesting way in the fairy tale. And in combination with dancing, it turned into a bright spectacle: there are winter fun (they “made” an excellent snowman), and the custom of giving gifts not only to the bride, but also to her bridesmaids, and a Maslenitsa round dance, when everyone takes up a colored ribbon, etc.
I really liked the costumes of the characters: bright, original, interesting, having their own unique style. The costumes of Father Frost, Snow Maiden, Leshy and Mizgir especially stood out. Kokoshnik, full skirt, blue flowers in Gzhel style: you can admire the Snow Maiden’s clothes endlessly) I still don’t understand the trick with which the big flower on the skirt changed color!
I also want to add about the scenery: aerial structures that sometimes turned into a throne, sometimes into bushes winter forest were wonderful. And a transparent curtain dividing the stage into two parts, which either twinkled with stars or was illuminated in different colors.
The original ending of the fairy tale is unexpected and, I would say, in a modern style: good songs for a strong and mutual feeling are still not enough. For me, the whole production was unexpected: for some reason I thought I would see the classic fairy tale about the Snow Maiden, but I needed to get acquainted with the original source) A.N. Ostrovsky had his own take on the story about the Snow Maiden))) The authors of the production decided that New Year- This happy holiday, so during this magical time, fairy tales cannot end sadly! Therefore, the fairy tale ends in an extraordinary way and, perhaps, not even logically, but this is the most interesting thing!
A very cozy and comfortable auditorium: a good lift, and you can also take a pillow for the child. Before the performance, children can try their hand at Russian folk games. When we entered the building Children's Theater stage, we immediately felt like we were at a fair, so noisily and cheerfully we invited the guys to join))
Bright and musical New Year's performance for children and their parents. If you are ready for a modern interpretation of a classic play, magnificent costumes, vibrant dances and a non-trivial ending to a fairy tale, then this is the performance for you! Take the New Year's spirit with you and come)
The ice has broken...
At the theater. Ermolova - new season, new life, new performances. The theater invited the young director Alexei Kuzmin-Tarasov, who proposed an original interpretation of the poetic fairy tale “The Snow Maiden” by Alexander Nikolaevich Ostrovsky. For the experimental performance at the Ermolova Theater, recent graduates of various theater schools were gathered: there were definitely not enough young actors in the troupe of the Ermolov Theater, and for “The Snow Maiden” it was precisely young creatures that were needed. The Snow Maiden is about the same age as Juliet, when love is appreciated more valuable than life, and she is chosen, trampling death, because it is no coincidence that the largest percentage of suicides is among teenagers: naive youth does not know how quickly “eternal” love passes, how much else there can be in life...
“Scenes from the outback in 12 songs,” as the director-producer described Ostrovsky’s poetic fairy tale, are quite consistent with all the times when guys and girls walked in the villages, and today in any outback they walk like that, except that the girls have matured and become bolder, and the boys are still somehow more feminine and hesitant.
From time immemorial, people have been looking for their soul mate, and whoever managed to find it was happy. In the kingdom of Berendey everything was like this, as long as day followed night, spring followed winter. But one day the usual order of things was disrupted - Spring gave birth to a daughter from Frost, and this union did not bring happiness to either mother or daughter. The loving Vesna (Elizaveta Pashchenko) has no life with Frost, and their snowy daughter Snegurochka (Veronica Ivashchenko) has no life without hot love, and even more so with her. It is interesting that Vesna in the play looks no older than the Snow Maiden, which is quite in the spirit of today (with modern means of rejuvenation, some grandmothers look the same age as their granddaughters), moreover, the woman is experienced and passionate, she easily steals the voluptuous and soft-bodied Lelya from her frostbitten daughter.
Lel (Artem Efimov), a lethargic young man spoiled by female attention, becomes a little more energetic only after picking up a guitar. It is not so important to him that women love him, as that his listeners adore him. The sweet-voiced singer has plenty of admirers and admirers, and it should be noted that the songs he performs are quite decent, and they were written by the director himself to Ostrovsky’s authentic texts. Young viewers will enjoy compositions in the style of blues, reggae, hip-hop, and rap. The musicians from Garik Sukachev’s group “The Untouchables” are certainly good, it’s a pity that they didn’t find a decent place, and therefore on stage they look as if they were still rehearsing. It was necessary to dress them up appropriately, to involve them in the action, which would only make the performance better, and so, thanks to their presence on the stage, it turned out to be some kind of conventional concert version.
Nevertheless, the plot of the fairy tale is not lost, everything goes as it should: there is a plot, a climax, and a denouement. Mizgir, a hot young man of “Asian” blood (Rustam Akhmadeev) falls in love with Kupava (Anna Kuzmina). It is easy for a man with such a temperament to achieve a woman, but Mizgir quickly loses interest in the accessible Kupava. A much more attractive goal: to win the cold Snow Maiden, and a blonde at that! However, just love is not enough for him, he also needs to show a woman a place, so in the good and bright kingdom of Berendey, other people's morals bring confusion. No matter how hard the Tsar (Sergei Badichkin) and Bermyata (Yuri Kazakov) try to call the people to love and peace, the idyll of Berendey’s kingdom is crumbling: love is desecrated, goodness is defenseless, and even the sun does not appear in the sky. But, as you know, soon the fairy tale takes its toll, and the ice painted on the river-platform suddenly begins to crack and slide down with a natural roar (set design by Leonid Shulyakov), boys and girls, smartly shooting their eyes, find each other with songs and dances. With the songs, as we have already noticed, things are going well, but with the dancing so far it’s not good: Berendey’s subjects still can’t move decently (choreographer Ramune Khodorkaite), so for now they move as best they can.
But even with these shortcomings, which are easy to correct, the production turned out to be perky and ironic, despite some dampness (and not only from the Snow Maiden who melted at the end, whom for some reason you don’t feel sorry for at all). And the sun, which we also look forward to in Russia, still appears in the finale, and the hope grows stronger that these young people will be good. The young wine is fermenting in Ermolov wineskins, let’s let it ripen and enjoy the perfectly seasoned taste.
The play “The Snow Maiden” in the New Space of the Theater of Nations
"The Snow Maiden" at the Theater of Nations
Children are the most unbiased spectators who do not look at the name of the director or the fame of the actors... Therefore, it is especially difficult to captivate and interest them. Oleg Dolin set himself a difficult task - he decided to show everyone famous play Ostrovsky’s “The Snow Maiden” is from a completely different perspective, primarily as a kind and instructive fairy tale.
About the play “The Snow Maiden”
“The Snow Maiden” is a performance that opens a new and original project for children. It, unlike many other productions, involves a serious conversation, during which difficult questions will have to be answered. In addition, Oleg Dolin strives to bring the fairy tale closer to modern times, showing that it may well be relevant.
The premiere of the play “The Snow Maiden” at the Theater of Nations is one of the most exciting events of the fall of 2018.
Other director's events
Oleg Dolin, despite the fact that he is better known as a film and theater actor, is not the first time he has delighted young audiences with his productions. His play “Morozko” is already on stage at the RAMT. And now he surprised the guys with the modern and unusual “Snow Maiden”.
How to buy tickets to the show
Oddly enough, there are far fewer good and truly brilliant performances for children on the theater stage than for adults. That is why it is not easy to buy tickets for “The Snow Maiden”. We are ready to help you make your child happy. Why, of all the companies, should you choose us? Because, unlike our competitors, we:
- We understand how important the competent organization of family leisure is for you - for each request there is a personal manager who will answer all your questions and help you choose the best places;
- We value your time - the courier will deliver purchased tickets throughout Moscow and St. Petersburg completely free of charge;
- We care about your comfort - you can place an order not only online, but also by phone. In addition, it is possible to pay it in any convenient way: cash, by bank card, money transfer;
- We love those who trust us, so we have provided discounts for regular customers.
The play “The Snow Maiden” will certainly attract not only young spectators in Moscow, but also their parents - if only because everyone wants to instill in their child a love of fairy tales. And if this fairy tale is not divorced from modern reality, then you want to see it twice as much!
“If there are thirteen at the table, then it means there are lovers here,” noted in Chekhov’s “Three Sisters.” Thirteen characters performances indicate the same. On the stage of the M.N. Theater Ermolova played a love story in which there were victims - “The Snow Maiden”. A fairy tale? Lie! Musical performance. If the first is undeniable, then the second is still growing.
Father Frost, according to Ostrovsky, the father of the Snow Maiden, has been removed from the play. Spring-red appears before the audience in a padded jacket and felt boots - Spring would not have come to our northern regions in any other outfit. With a large janitor's shovel, she collects traces of her husband's presence from the stage - snowdrifts. However, the story is a fairy tale, and therefore the snowdrifts come to life and turn into berendei sleeping under the snow: it is warmer under the snow. They also want to warm up Yermolovsky’s audience with “Spring Tale,” but it is perceived with coolness.
Alexey Kuzmin-Tarasov in this performance is one in three persons - the author of the idea, embodiment and music. There is enough music in the play and the audience is quite happy with it. “The Snow Maiden” is defined as “Scenes from the Outback in 12 songs,” so N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov’s operatic creation remained untouched. But the text by A.N. Ostrovsky, written 140 years ago, fits freely into the rhythms of folk, reggae and rock and roll, performed by the musicians of Garik Sukachev’s group “The Untouchables”. After all, the author of the play also had songs in mind, and therefore such a musical interpretation does not seem alien to the original source. The music in the play is lively and fiery, and the singers do not cause any complaints - everything is in tune: the sounds, the voices, and the swaying of the audience's legs. And yet “The Snow Maiden” is far from a musical, because twelve songs are diluted with “scenes”.
The Snow Maiden is a winter, festive character, but A.N. Ostrovsky wrote a spring fairy tale, and therefore Moroz’s daughter, who took after her father in spirit, will not have long to celebrate. Veronica Ivashchenko, who plays this role, appears either as an angular, tousled (from the forest) “bluestocking” (in a blue dress), or as a spectacular cold blonde, on whom field wreaths every now and then wither - a sharp temperature difference. Well, there are some motifs from a children’s party and a white and blue fur coat with an inventory number. The Snow Maiden desires love without having any idea about it. For her, in the play, an arrogant and arrogant person, love is something like a dress code, without which she will not be allowed to attend the party on the occasion of Yarilin's Day. That’s why she pronounces the words: “Mom, give me love!” with a dispassionate, everyday intonation like: “Mom, give me money!” The Snow Maiden will dress up both her figure and her heart, but this outfit is akin to what Medea gave to Creusa, a dress soaked in poison (in this case, love). The ending is known - “melts, melts, disappears.” The Snow Maiden will leave a wet spot and dry eyes of the audience.
For reasons stemming from childhood, the twists and turns of “The Snow Maiden” cannot surprise you, so you expect a reason for surprise from the actors. And you get it. The actors of the play, recent graduates of theater universities, strangely enough, did not bring the heat and energy of youth to the performance. On the contrary, they play according to the weather - “the sun is shining, but it’s not warming.” Not that they can be called “Thugs” (play by Kirill Serebrennikov), but their reaction and dynamics leave much to be desired. The performers are slow, relaxed, pampered, but their characters lack sun, there is no “golden laziness pouring from the sky” here, and the severe frosts, it would seem, should have stirred up the Berendeys. They don’t cook sbiten, and it’s not clear how they warm it up. Soul flame? But his sparks do not reach the audience. The words in “The Snow Maiden” do not “sound,” but the songs do.
Lel (Artem Efimov), the first guy in the village (and the village, judging by Leonid Shulyakov’s set, is one house long) sings with a guitar at an advantage (from which, however, he does not make a sound), together with Vesna (excellent work by Elizaveta Pashchenko) and Snegurochka. There is a barely noticeable competition between mother and daughter for the shepherdess's heart. “The guys from our backyard” are also good, like Kurilka (Anton Kolesnikov), a kind of street bully with chains on his jeans, twirling the keys to a... non-working motorcycle on his finger, or the big guy Brusila (Nikolai Zozulin). Also notable are the girls-friends of the offended Kupava (Anna Kuzmina) - Radushka (Margarita Tolstoganova) and Malusha (Valentina Oleneva), and the amusingly strange Beautiful Elena (Kristina Pivneva). From the general motley canvas of the play, only the oriental youth Mizgir (Rustam Akhmadeev) and his bodyguard, unforeseen in the play, named by the simple “Slavic” name Emil (Egor Kharlamov), stand out. If the Slobozhans of Berendeyevka would be fine with a light accent, then a clear accent does not suit Mizgir at all. However, Mizgir is a stranger in Berendeyev Posad, and therefore his oriental flair is like an addition, contrasting him with the posad guys. Another excellent feature of the actor is his deliberate seriousness in the interpretation of the proposed circumstances: the actor presents his hero with anguish, a sharp gesture, a tragic grimace, which makes him ridiculous against the backdrop of relaxed, calm “colleagues”. And this is not so much a problem of the performance as of the actor making a light production heavier. “The east is burning,” notes the Snow Maiden and, judging by Mizgir’s ardor, it seems that he will answer her; "Juliet is the sun."
“The Snow Maiden” set to music is pleasant to listen to, but strange to see. No folklore, at least folk. They saved money on the costume designer - he is not in the program, and no trace of him can be found on the stage. The actors are dressed in everyday clothes, devoid of a unified style, some in what - a summer sundress, a sweater, a dress. Musicians in hats (although they take them off), actors with thermoses and plastic cups, extraneous (not from Ostrovsky) lines... In combination with student signs of the performance, a complete illusion is created of an open rehearsal to which the public was allowed. People on stage are like people from the street, at least in terms of external characteristics, and this “democracy” is not good for “The Snow Maiden”. The lack of a unified style can only be justified by what is mentioned in the program with a capital letter, Outback. There is such a “shelter of peace, work and inspiration” on the map of the Pskov region, but it is unlikely that the costumes were based on the local residents there.
Despite the lightness of the concept and the significant editing of the text, there are interesting moments in the play, but not developed (by the director). Thus, the dialogue between the Tsar (Sergei Badichkin) and the “close boyar” Bermyata (Yuri Kazakov) turns out to be very consonant with the time (not stage, local). The Tsar complains that the people’s “service to beauty has disappeared”, in general about the decline of morals, to which the adviser offers a remedy that is universal at all times for those in power: “Issue a decree!” “Are we expecting any benefit?”, the Tsar clarifies, “No benefit,” he hears in response, “Cleansing for us.”
The state of affairs in Berendey’s kingdom is akin to Karamzin’s diagnosis - “They are stealing”, however, this kingdom is “not enough, there is nowhere to roam,” and therefore Bermyata clarifies: “Little by little.” “And do you catch it?”, His Majesty asks without much interest; – “Why catch them, / Waste your efforts? /Let them steal for themselves,/Someday they will get caught...” But, judging by the simple decoration of the royal chambers, everything has already been stolen. And the king himself, who exchanged the scepter and orb (or maybe with a capital letter?) for a massive clock and an ax, which he thrusts into the platform on stage, does not look much like a king. Although it just so happened, they are kings either with or under the ax. In a different way - only in fairy tales, where “porridge from an axe”. For "The Snow Maiden" both the porridge - a mixture of genres, and the ax - a montage of text and meanings - are symbolic.
“The generous people are great in everything,” the Tsar sings a cheerful song at the end of the performance. The Berendeis sadly sing along with the king. As befits the people under the Tsar - in chorus. A few scenes before the finale, the “generous people” rejoiced at the death sentence handed down to Mizgir, shouting: “When? At what time?". Winter and spring crops are in the field, but you also need to nourish your soul with spectacles. But the execution will be canceled, however, Mizgir’s death cannot be avoided. The people's sacrifice is manifested here in the every-minute readiness to make a sacrifice. Or rather, the sacrifice of those who do not live “in the Berendey way,” those who are not accustomed to bowing “more often, but lower.”
The musical numbers in the performance go off with a bang, but as soon as the vocalists start to recitate, the record seems to jam. The style of the performance is a kind of jam session (not musical, but artistic), which is performed without special preparation, thought or expenditure of effort. It seems that the artists on stage are having a good time, and the audience, in general, is also happy with everything. Both those on stage and those in the hall manage to have a fairly tolerable leisure time for about two hours. “The Snow Maiden” is not an evening at the theater, but a theatrical evening. There is no need to talk about interpretations of images, super-tasks and relevance here, but such an evening cannot be called lost. “The Snow Maiden” in combination with the theater’s democratic and hospitable buffet is an ideal option for meetings, while away evenings and moments when there is a strong desire to be in public. Nice, intelligent, not expensive. Not the heart, but not the wallet either. But this kind of theater, which is “not low, not high,” not only can, but must exist. “Drive away your worries: there is a time for care,” they sing in the play, and they are right.
“The Snow Maiden,” according to the director, is played in “timelessness,” but this is perhaps due to its temporary presence in the theater’s repertoire. Her appearance, however, is completely justified - the theater is not afraid to open its doors to young directors, and this is worth a lot. We are, of course, not talking about losses. “The Snow Maiden” is a universal, family, easy and spring project. “Spring is coming,” “the mind and heart are not in harmony,” but “The Snow Maiden” has every chance not to melt, but to tune in to the right mood.
"Komsomolskaya Pravda", "Theatron"
