Those spectators who will go to the titled performance War and peace and…, recently included in the repertoire of the Youth Theater from Pyatra-Neamts, hoping that they will see on stage a transplant of the famous novel by Leo Mykolayovych Tolstoy, written between 1865 and 1869, they will have enough reason to be disappointed. However, dramatization was not the intention of the screenwriter and director of the play Clemens Bechtel. And I don’t think the other editors wanted that either. Otherwise, it is not very convenient. The novel is dense, dense, with a constant number of leading and secondary events that are difficult, if not impossible, to summarize satisfactorily. On the other hand, even the films he made, including the most famous, made in 1965-1967 by Serhiy Bondarchuk, were not flawless.

The dramatic script, written and refined by Clemens Bechtel while working with the actors, contains repeated references to the book. The book item itself appears relatively often in the hands of several characters, some of whom read aloud carefully selected passages from it. Important male characters are well defined, located at opposite ends, the privileged role belongs to Pierre Bezukhov, Andriy Bolkonsky and Mykola Rostov. General Bolkonsky is not forgotten either. If the charming Natasha Rostova, unfortunately, is less present, the same cannot be said about Lisa and Elena. There is also a duel, during which Pierre almost kills his opponent, that is, the man with whom Helena cheated on him. Rather, ballroom scenes and elegance are suggested to on the brakeinlight Russian aristocracy. The Battle of Austerlitz is well remembered, as well as the Battle of Borodino, and the deliberate abandonment by order of Tsar Alexander of Moscow is mentioned. His refusal to negotiate with Napoleon The episode, in my opinion, could not be more significant for the Russian mentality, which should prompt us to think even today.

But apart from that, not factuality, not preserving as many episodes as possible from the novel were the main goals of Clemens Bechtel. His main concern was not a specific depiction of war as such. Although with a lot of help from set designer Vesna Hiltmann, Alex Halka (scenic score, sound design and video mapping) and Krista Baciu (lighting design), it largely succeeds. also. The hall is divided by a floor, surrounded on both sides by the audience. The story of Pierre Bezukhov’s recognition as a son is played out on this floor, and the mentioned duel sequence takes place there. On this floor, heroes go to war and return from it with bridge functions. Several chairs moved to the left, chairs that go down and up to the stage bridge and sometimes seem to directly threaten those in the audience who are near the actors, several high-quality lighting and sound design video inserts Likewise, multiple perspectives (what you see depends on wherever you look) strongly hint at war. The war became a topic of reflection.

The return from all sides of the very idea of ​​war, its consequences for mentalities, the way of existence and thinking of people during and after great fires is, in fact, the subject of the main interest of the performance. It seems to me that we should remember that the war or, rather, the state of war was one of the main topics of reflection in the great Russian literature. Tolstoy reflected on this in War and peace, and his reflections, as they appear in the words and views of Pierre Bezukhov, Andriy Bolkonsky, his father, metamorphoses, transformations, mutations caused by the confrontation with France and Napoleon, changes imposed by him in the way of being. and thinking about Pierre Bezukhov are strictly captured and transposed in the play. These considerations coincide with or contradict the works of Dostoevsky or the later thoughts of Volodymyr Solovyov in Three dialogues about war, progress and the end of general history. The latter means a major source for an extraordinary film Malmkrog Christie Pouille. Which I remembered while watching the production at the Youth Theater.

The actualization of these thoughts, especially in the context of such upheavals today (the war in Ukraine, the bloody attacks of Hamas on Israel), seems to me a great merit of the play. It is alongside other shows on the same theme. AS Zinc boys from Bulandra (director: Yurii Kordonskyi), Cyrano de Bergerac from the Theater named after queen maria from Oradea (director: Horiya Suru) or 1978 year from the Hungarian State Theater in Timisoara (director: Tomi Janezic).

All these ideas are concretized and managed to make a significant impact on the consciousness of those present thanks to the joint efforts of the entire creative group. The first place and the place of honor belongs to the actors. He perfectly plays the role of Pierre Bezukhov Andriy Merchey Zapotocki, impresses with the way he captures the struggle and fall of the character. I don’t know if Paul Ovidiu Kosovanu really physically resembles Vyacheslav Tikhonov, Andriy Bolkonsky’s translator in Serhii Bondarchuk’s film, but I couldn’t be more sure that this role is completely different from what the young actor has done so far. on the stage. More importantly, it makes him feel good. I liked the evolution of Daniel Besleg as Andrii’s father. – Read the entire article and comment on Contributors.ro