Link: 'Thirties Forever' in the news.

Here are links to some of the various video, reviews, and interviews from the 'Thirties Forever' workshop performance last monday...

I'm in one of them (miscredited as Edward Baskin, which is hilarious in and of itself), but they caught me completely off-guard by asking me to anwer in Russian at the last second, so my Russian here is, to be quite honest, shameful. 

If anyone asks, it's Edward Baskin who speaks awful Russian, not Adam Muskin...

Сноб/Snob Magazine

Первый Канал/Channel One News

Телеканал звезда/Star TV

Голос Америки/Voice of America

Sorry, my patented 'on-the-fly translation' won't work here... there's just too much.  Hope your Russian is good...

-A

Onstage: "Thirties Forever" at the Baryshnikov Arts Center

On August 16th at the Baryshnikov Arts Center in New York City, the 'Thirties Forever' musical workshop was performed for an invite-only audience of about 200 in the Jerome Robbins Theater.  Mikhail Shydkoi (the former Russian minister of culture) was the author of the script, idea, and is the artistic director of the project.  The cast involved approximately 10 American and 10 Russian actors, with music performed and arranged by Levon Oganezov.  The workshop was directed by Gary Cherniakhovsky.

...And the vocal coach was my good friend and colleague Taylor Sutherland, and I was the associate director.  Both of us doubled as actors as well, which was nice for a change, getting back in front of the lights instead of being in the house...

The show revolves around a concept and dream long held by Mr. Shvydkoi; to show audiences in America and Russia how similar we are by presenting us with real examples of music from the 1930's that was popular and heard in both cultures and in both languages.  The story line revolves around a Russian takeover of an American oldies radio station by the same name of the show, 'Thirties Forever', and the action takes place over the course of the thirties, forties, and today.  While the project is certainly ambitious, it underlines a very interesting, and very true point: that we as two cultures have much more in common than we realize.

Non-Sequitur: New York State of Mind...

Hello all once again...I know it's been quiet around here with the theater season in Moscow drawing to a close, but my summer is just getting started!  Throughline is coming to NYC tomorrow where I'll be doing my best to keep this site up to date with my dissertation, fundraising for my show, and anecdotes from my rehearsals at the Baryshnikov Arts Center in August!

Some folks like to get away
Take a holiday from the neighbourhood
Hop a flight to Miami Beach
Or to Hollywood
But I'm taking a Greyhound
On the Hudson River Line

I'm in a New York state of mind
 
-A

In Dialogue: Л.А. Сулержицский/L. A. Sulerzhitsky

As I was going through Sulerzhitsky's writings, I found this passage in one of his essays on his dislike of hysterics in the theater and in the house.  I found it to be particularly moving, and thought I'd just throw it up on the blog to share...

"Когда актер действительно живёт глубоко, когда его игра есть «творение» , то как бы сильно он ни взволновал зрителя – истерик не будет...Наоборот, люди даже с растрепанными нервами и склонные к истерике, поддаваясь их искусству, получат духовное удовлетворение и успокоятся душевно. Они, может быть, будут плакать на спектакле, но это будут совсем другие слёзы, - это будут тихие слёзы и скромные, не для публики, это будут благородные слёзы, умиления перед добром и красотой, слёзы о несчастиях и горе людей, в том числе, может быть, и о своем горе, поскольку и я человек и подвержен вместе со всеми страданиям, слёзы о том, почему мы все несчастны, почему жизнь не прекрасна, почему мы слабы в добре, почему мало любим друг друга и т.д., потому что настоящий талант, настоящее искусство только об этом говорит..."

And here's your on-the-fly translation...

"When an actor is truly living deeply, when his playing is the act of ‘creation’, then however strongly he may affect the audience – there will be no hysterics….On the contrary, even people with frayed nerves and tendencies towards hysterics, on giving themselves to the art will be spiritually satisfied and will be calmed in their soul.  Perhaps they will cry during the show, but these will be completely different tears - they will be quiet tears and humble ones, not for public display, they will be noble tears, emotional before the good and the beautiful, tears for the unhappiness and misfortunes of people, and perhaps their own misfortunes, as far as I am a person and am also subject to the same suffering as all, why are we all unhappy, why life is not beautiful, why we are weak in good deeds, why do we not love each other enough, and so on, because real talent, real art only speaks about this..."

I thought this was a very nice paragraph, and I found the end especially moving.  I always love having the greats on my bookshelf, helping me to keep things in perspective when it comes to art and the way we should approach it's creation.  It is truly a great responsibility to be an artist... 

-A

In the Classroom: 3rd Year Acting Exam/Экзамен по мастерству III-ого курса

Today the third year acting course (Козак/Брусникин) held their final acting exam of the year.  By the end of the third year of study, the acting exam consists of scenes from pieces that are meant to be expanded into a full-scale diploma project; a proposal for a project that can rejected or accepted by the faculty body in discussion afterwards.  In Russian, it's called a заявка на спетакль.  This acting exam was centered on the piece Материнское Поле (Our Mother, The Fields) by Чингиз Айматов (Chingis Aimatov).  Aitmatov was a soviet poet and writer from Kyrgyzstan, and this particular narrative tells the powerful story of the women of small village, their lives, loves, and incredible losses as they come face to face with the horrors of World War II.  The work was directed by Maria Zorina.

In The Classroom: The Graduating Class of 2010/Выпуск 2010 года

Today the senior course of 2010 (Золотовитский/Земцов) graduated from the Moscow Art Theater School in the Hall of Portraits in the Moscow Art Theater. 

The ceremony in the Hall of Portraits is always an emotional one, as the joy of the completion of a journey blends with the tears of saying farewell.  I also feel older with every one of these ceremonies I go to, as memories of my graduation come flooding back as if it were yesterday, and yet five years have already passed.  As I recall, the American Course of 2005 was the first course ever to have its graduation ceremony in the Hall of Portraits, a tradition that has stuck ever since.  It's nice to think that after the huge struggle and experiment that was our course, we were able to leave the school with at least one beautiful tradition for posterity, however small. 

Congratulations to the graduating class of 2010!  Успех, творчество, и везение!  Поздравляем!

-A

Link: 'Seeing Past the Present in Moscow, Part One' by John Freedman

This is a link to what looks to be a great mini-series of articles by Moscow Times Theater critic John Freedman.  I have the honor of being acquainted with John, and he always does fantastic work.

'Seeing Past the Present in Moscow, Part One'

And here is a link to his latest review of 'Money' Directed by Konstantin Raikin at the Satirikon theater.  I've already had the opportunity to watch it (in my pre-blog days!  Hence no blog entry!).  I love the picture of Sukhanov at the top of the article...he is obviously channelling Oscar the Grouch in this particular photo...

-A