21.07.2017
Cinderella: creating a sense of happiness for theatregoers
Gleb Filshtinsky, multimedia director for the ballet Cinderella, knows just how to use modern theatrical technology to inject new life into a 1945 ballet.
"I have just two objectives for this production. The first is to have my two younger daughters come to the opening night and say, ‘Dad, it’s awesome!’ Especially as they’re turning eight in September, so this will be a present for them. The second is to try to create, from this classic ballet, not a museum piece but a contemporary, high-quality show. And here lies the real challenge: the original choreography and the structure of the 1945 production should not clash with the energy and speed of thought of today’s theatregoer. We have retained both, and by harnessing a number of modern technological advances, we aim to superimpose this energy onto the template of the old production. The key thing here, of course, is to maintain a balance between video, light, costumes, and choreography.
"There are definitely plenty of fans of the old, original production around. For them, Mikhail Messerer has carefully, painstakingly revived the choreography. But there will also be those coming to the theatre whose favourite fairy tale is Star Wars. This production should appeal to both groups. Whether we want to admit it or not, our main competition comes from the Disney film, Cinderella. We need to grasp this.
"Prokofiev’s music is timeless. It’s brilliant: fresh, modern, and ambitious. It is the foundation, the component that enables us to transform our Cinderella into a contemporary production. Cinderella is a great, timeless story. The transformation of a kind, hardworking, lowly ragbag into a princess never fails to move the audience. Kindness and justice always triumph. That’s what the production is about. We need to tell this story in an appealing fashion, without harming Rostislav Zakharov’s creation: to add to and develop its visual range. I am convinced that Zakharov and Pyotr Williams would not have passed up the opportunity to exploit the possibilities of modern technology, and that they would have been more radical than us.
„The production was first staged at the Bolshoi Theatre right after the war, in 1945. Theatregoers could see how a little girl dressed in rags turned into a princess, while outside the theatre, the war was no longer being fought. Inside the auditorium they could also take in the stunning chandelier. Everyone there was truly happy: just to visit a beautiful theatre, watch a fairy tale, and admire the colourful scenery on stage and the ballerinas dancing. If you had a ticket for Cinderella at the Bolshoi, then you were happy. The audience was completely open to experiencing happiness, and the ballet did not need to work hard to reinforce that.
„Times are different now. People often visit the theatre in a sceptical frame of mind, and in general, they are spoilt for choice in terms of entertainment. We have to make the colours brighter, the scenery more breathtaking, and the visual effects more intense. With the help of these things, we may be able to recreate at least a small part of that post-war happiness.“
"I have just two objectives for this production. The first is to have my two younger daughters come to the opening night and say, ‘Dad, it’s awesome!’ Especially as they’re turning eight in September, so this will be a present for them. The second is to try to create, from this classic ballet, not a museum piece but a contemporary, high-quality show. And here lies the real challenge: the original choreography and the structure of the 1945 production should not clash with the energy and speed of thought of today’s theatregoer. We have retained both, and by harnessing a number of modern technological advances, we aim to superimpose this energy onto the template of the old production. The key thing here, of course, is to maintain a balance between video, light, costumes, and choreography.
"There are definitely plenty of fans of the old, original production around. For them, Mikhail Messerer has carefully, painstakingly revived the choreography. But there will also be those coming to the theatre whose favourite fairy tale is Star Wars. This production should appeal to both groups. Whether we want to admit it or not, our main competition comes from the Disney film, Cinderella. We need to grasp this.
"Prokofiev’s music is timeless. It’s brilliant: fresh, modern, and ambitious. It is the foundation, the component that enables us to transform our Cinderella into a contemporary production. Cinderella is a great, timeless story. The transformation of a kind, hardworking, lowly ragbag into a princess never fails to move the audience. Kindness and justice always triumph. That’s what the production is about. We need to tell this story in an appealing fashion, without harming Rostislav Zakharov’s creation: to add to and develop its visual range. I am convinced that Zakharov and Pyotr Williams would not have passed up the opportunity to exploit the possibilities of modern technology, and that they would have been more radical than us.
„The production was first staged at the Bolshoi Theatre right after the war, in 1945. Theatregoers could see how a little girl dressed in rags turned into a princess, while outside the theatre, the war was no longer being fought. Inside the auditorium they could also take in the stunning chandelier. Everyone there was truly happy: just to visit a beautiful theatre, watch a fairy tale, and admire the colourful scenery on stage and the ballerinas dancing. If you had a ticket for Cinderella at the Bolshoi, then you were happy. The audience was completely open to experiencing happiness, and the ballet did not need to work hard to reinforce that.
„Times are different now. People often visit the theatre in a sceptical frame of mind, and in general, they are spoilt for choice in terms of entertainment. We have to make the colours brighter, the scenery more breathtaking, and the visual effects more intense. With the help of these things, we may be able to recreate at least a small part of that post-war happiness.“
