SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, May 17, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812,” if you don’t know anything about the show, may sound like an oddly titled historical play good for a sleepy night at the theater.
And even more so if you hear the show is inspired by a chapter from Leo Tolstoy’s “War and Peace,” the 1869 Russian novel, with a first edition of 1,225 pages, the bane of generations of high school English students.
But do not be fooled.
Pioneer Theater Company’s production of “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812” is deeply passionate, darkly lush, and full of complex characters. The lyrics are set to electropop music, at times discordant, always able to surge through the audience and take listeners for a wild melodic voyage.
The Dave Malloy musical is accompanied by a pit orchestra and eight on-sage roving musicians, playing a variety of string instruments, accordions, and even a clarinet. Much of the music is energetic, with a strong beat, some of it with a Russian gypsy vibe.
The half dozen or so main characters, dressed in lavish historically inspired gowns or jackets, introduce themselves to the audience in song, quite briefly, often just singing their name and that they are young, or beautiful, or their fiance is at war, or they are promiscuous.
The audience can tell right away this show is going to be a lot more startling and lively than they guessed.
The musical — about love, compromises, deceit, possible rash decisions and potential consequences — has a mix of light and heavy moments. As a possible trigger warning, one character considers ending it all when there seems to be no way forward. But the story does end with a level of hope.
Ali Ewoldt is excellent as the innocent Natasha. Her character’s every hope and dream shows on her expressive face and in her amazing singing voice. Other amazing voices belong to Kevin Earley, playing Pierre, Aleks Pevec, playing Anatole, Ginger Bess, playing Helen, Melandie Fernandez as Sonya and Mary Fanning Driggs as Marya D.
But this is one of those rare productions where there really is not a weak voice. Every voice delivers all that the roles demand.
Sets by Jo Winiarski provide numerous locales within one structure, which is rich in details and finishes, versatile, and colored in red and shadowy jewel tones. The lighting, by Paul Miller, adds illumination and ambiguity to the set, and a certain vulnerability and threat.
Costumes by Patrick Holt capture the opulence and social status and the rugged utility of working class clothing, all of which help flesh out the characters.
And the music, directed and conducted by Phil Reno, adds a visceral passion to the piece, at times seeming to capture the beating heart and pumping blood of a young person feeling overpowering emotions.
Director and choreographer Karen Azenberg has done a masterful job of depicting a world of emotions that are felt but not physically acted upon.
Striking a balance means there are a few slow and less engaging storylines to offset the more active and thrilling, but the ending is subtle and beautiful, and finally explains the title.
“Natasha and Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812” plays through May 25 at Pioneer Theater, in its Utah premiere. And, like a comet, it may not return for a while. So to catch it while you can, find more production and theater information, and a ticket link, check this website.
