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Premiere at the beginning of the year at NTB: Bertolt Brecht's musical "The Threepenny Opera"
The "I.L. Caragiale" National Theatre in Bucharest is preparing the premiere of a new performance at the Ion Caramitru Hall, the famous musical The Threepenny Opera by Bertolt Brecht, in a stage version by Gelu Colceag.
Beginning January 13, 2024, audiences are invited to experience one of the world's most beloved musicals, nearly 100 years since its world premiere, during which time it has been performed in 28 languages around the world in numerous versions, making Brecht the second most performed playwright after Shakespeare.
The Threepenny Opera is set in Soho, London's revue district, where the seductive gangster Mackie-Shish (played by Marius Manole) enjoys his conquests to the full, leading Polly, the daughter of Peachum - nicknamed the "king of beggars" - to the altar. Feeling that their business is in danger, the Peachums wage war against the feared interloper who, with the help of the police, is imprisoned and sentenced to death by hanging. As if by magic, Mackie is saved by a pardon order from the newly crowned Queen, who welcomes him into the ranks of the nobility, making him a knight!
Gelu Colceag proposes a new version of this show on the stage of the National Theatre in Bucharest, with a special cast. Among the actors who will give life to obscure and mysterious characters are Mircea Rusu, Marius Manole, Tania Popa, Emilia Popescu, Aylin Cadir / Teodora Calagiu, Medeea Marinescu, Silviu Biris, Ovidiu Cuncea, Alexandru Georgescu, Orodel Olaru, Mihai Verbitchi, Silviu Mircescu / Mihai Muntenita, Daniel Hara, Rares Florin Stoica / Ciprian Nicula, Eduard Cirlan. The cast is completed by Andreea Alexandrescu, Irina Noaptes, Beatrice Rubica, Oana Laura Gabriela, Cristiana Ionita, Roxana Colceag, Alexandru Nicolae Mihai, George Olar, Tiberiu Enache, Horatiu Furnica, Adrian Justin Ilie - in the other roles that make up the world of the play, populated by thieves, prostitutes, beggars, blind men and policemen.
In Gelu Colceag's stage version, the drama is combined with the sensuality and burlesque of cabaret in a twilight atmosphere of the modern world.
Through a fine play of "light and shadow", exceptional acting scores are distinguished so that the immoral characters, whom we would naturally condemn, either capture us, captivate us, charm us, or arouse our pity or contempt. A world full of contrasts, in which evil has an irresistible attraction, the lawman makes a deal with the criminal, the sordid wears the garb of luxury. We love it, we laugh scornfully at this spectacle of human misery and degradation.
"The Threepenny Opera" features the music of Kurt Weill, with songs from this work becoming hits, such as the song Mack the Knife performed by Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. The composer borrows from several musical genres, such as Lutheran choral, opera, jazz, cabaret song. The dosage and accents aim to overturn the traditional values of a ridiculed society.
Ligia Duna and Elena Morosanu were in charge of the musical preparation of the performers, while Marius Leau was in charge of the musical direction, participating in the live performance, in the presence of the orchestra and musicians: Lucian Maxim (percussion), Ligia Duna (piano), Marius Leau (violin), Marius Grigorescu (clarinet), Cristian Nicolae (trumpet), Ciprian Partenie (trombone), Razvan Mihai Grigorescu (guitar).
For the first time on the stage of this cultural edifice, which recently celebrated 5 decades of existence in the centre of the capital, the audience is invited to see a play written by Bertolt Brecht, the German playwright, poet and theatre-maker, the originator of epic theatre at the Berliner Ensemble.
Throughout his career, director Gelu Colceag has staged more than 85 performances, including some of his longest-running productions at the National Theatre in Bucharest, such as Manlio Santanelli's The Queen Mother, which has been performed since 1997, almost 15 years in a row, with the great actress Olga Tudorache in the title role, as well as "Les Cotelettes" by Bertrand Blier (1998-2004) - with Radu Beligan and Gheorghe Dinica in the cast, or "Barrymore" by William Luce (1999) with Stefan Iordache in the title role. His most recent performance at TNB is "The Welkin" by Lucy Kirkwood, at the Atelier Hall.
The scenographers Liliana Cenean and Stefan Caragiu and the choreographer Roxana Colceag contributed to the success of the production.
The first performances will take place on January 13 and 14, 2024, at 7 pm. The following performances are scheduled for January 25 and 26, February 7 and 8, 2024 at the Ion Caramitru Hall. More details can be found on www.tnb.ro.
Translated by Andreea Codrea-Boeriu
