On November 15 and 16, on stage of the Russian Drama Theater in Tashkent, the actors of Satyricon performed Jokers based on the play of the same name by Alexander Ostrovsky, staged by Evgeny Marcelli. The next day, on November 17, the Artistic director of the theater Konstantin Raikin performed a solo performance In My Own Voice. The Satyricon tour took place in Tashkent as part of the Big Tour program of the All-Russian tour and concert plan and the international project Russian Seasons, which is held in Uzbekistan with the support of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
“I have a wealth of experience communicating with Tashkent,” noted Konstantin Raikin. – This is a very important place in my professional life and professional memory. This is the city where I gained experience in my youth. I used to come here with concerts and big theater productions. This is why I feel great excitement when I meet again with the city of my springtime. I am extremely happy about our tour here and hope our contacts with the audience in Tashkent will continue.”
On November 15 and 16, the Satyricon artists performed Evgeniy Marcelli’s production of Jokers, in which Konstantin Raikin played the role of the retired officer Obroshenov. This is a performance-paradox based on Ostrovsky’s play, little known to the audience, but nevertheless comprising the entire world of the playwright. In the Satyricon’s production the director Evgeniy Marcelli introduced to the cast the main characters of four more iconic plays by Ostrovsky – Thunderstorm, Without a Dowry, The Forest and The Snow Maiden. The play enlarged in meaning and entered the vast open space of Ostrovsky’s theater. Everything in this performance is part of a game and everyone is a joker, including the higher forces that gave men such a complex and curious phenomenon as life.
“Not everyone is accustomed to such a way of presenting Ostrovsky – modern, fast-paced, without the attributes of the time in which Ostrovsky lived,” suggests the Artistic director of Satyricon. – This is our view of the work of the great playwright; we believe that it should not be so strictly connected with time. His plays are ageless, so what happens in them can happen at any time. We have worked out the formula: “Question: when does this happen? The answer – always. Where does it happen? Everywhere”. This is an everlasting, universal, timeless story.”
On November 16, Konstantin Raikin, Rector of the Higher School of Performing Arts conducted a master class at the VGIK branch in Tashkent.
The second production presented on tour in Tashkent is the solo performance In My Own Voice, in which Konstantin Raikin recites verses by his favorite poets. In the new version of this program, poems by David Samoilov and Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin are heard from the stage, creating a show that Raikin calls “the performance of his life.” He recites poetic lines, as if playing many dramatic roles, preceding them with short stories about the authors and sharing thoughts on life and country.
“Being an artist and performing poetry on stage is a very difficult task. Working in a large hall, holding the attention of the audience alone for two or three hours… My solo performance is part of our repertoire. It is based on poetry, which I love,” said Konstantin Raikin.
We express our gratitude to the general information partner of the project, the international news agency Sputnik Uzbekistan!
Sputnik – up-to-date information about events in Uzbekistan and the world. Follow the news on the website and telegram channel Sputnik Uzbekistan.
We also thank the official information partner of the Russian Seasons project, the Interstate Television and Radio Company Mir , and the radio partner of the Russian Seasons project, the Federal Radio Station Radio Russia.
