Malloy has done such a fine job of distilling the essence of the story into song - there is virtually no dialogue, with the characters even singing descriptive narration (Natasha: “I blush happily”) - that you are not likely to spend much time peering at the program. While it’s true that the swirling romantic intrigues can be dizzying, Mr. This is all in your program You are at the opera Gonna have to study up a little bit If you wanna keep with the plot Cuz it’s a complicated Russian novel Everyone’s got nine different names So look it up in your program We’d appreciate it, thanks a lot Acknowledging the whiplash-inducing welter of characters, we are admonished thus: Malloy, who wrote both the book and the score (and originally played Pierre), doesn’t shy away from using brash, slangy language and an eclectic array of music - including a burst of thundering electronica - to bring alive a love story set among Russian aristocrats of a distant era.Ĭonsider the rambunctious opening number, which introduces the principals. The musical shares with “Hamilton” a willingness to refract a historical period through a contemporary lens. I’ll cop to some trepidation about its arrival in a traditional proscenium theater.Ĭould the show, essentially a chamber opera with a small chorus, retain its emotional potency in a house that seats more than a thousand people? Would the immersive staging, including plentiful frisky interaction between performers and the audience, be jettisoned? Was the casting of the glossy pop star Josh Groban in the role of Pierre, a gloomy and none-too-dashing aristocrat, merely a cynical move to sell tickets?
Who would have guessed that Dave Malloy’s gorgeous pop opera, adapted from a slice of Tolstoy’s “War and Peace,” would land on Broadway with all its signal virtues intact, and in some ways heightened?Īfter all, it was born four years ago in the shoe box of Ars Nova, one of the most adventurous Off Broadway companies, before moving into a specially built cabaret-style space in the meatpacking district. 3.The Imperial Theater, where the rapturous musical “Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812” blazed opened on Monday night, has never looked more imperial - or felt more intimate. 15, but that timing cut short Onaodowan’s previously-announced tenure, which was due to continue through Sept. His appearance was set as a limited run beginning Aug. Patinkin’s casting in the Broadway production as Pierre - a role originated by Josh Groban, who received a Tony nomination for his work - was announced on Wednesday. “We regret our mistake deeply, and wish to express our apologies to everyone who felt hurt and betrayed by these actions.” However, we had the wrong impression of how Oak felt about the casting announcement and how it would be received by members of the theater community, which we appreciate is deeply invested in the success of actors of color – as are we – and to whom we are grateful for bringing this to our attention,” the statement said.
“As part of our sincere efforts to keep Comet running for the benefit of its cast, creative team, crew, investors and everyone else involved, we arranged for Mandy Patinkin to play Pierre.
Producers of the musical confirmed Patinkin’s departure in a statement obtained by EW. I am a huge fan of Oak and I will, therefore, not be appearing in the show.” “I hear what members of the community have said and I agree with them. Patinkin said in a statement emailed Friday to The New York Times. “My understanding of the show’s request that I step into the show is not as it has been portrayed and I would never accept a role knowing it would harm another actor,” Mr. Mandy Patinkin is withdrawing from a planned run in the Broadway musical Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812 after the announcement of his casting was met with backlash over the fact Patinkin was being brought in to replace the show’s current star, Hamilton alum Okieriete “Oak” Onaodowan, who is black.
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