June 25/26

The Maly Drama Theatre – Theatre of Europe (St.Petersburg)

Friedrich Schiller. "INTRIGUE AND LOVE"

Stage version and director: Lev Dodin

Art director: Alexander Borovsky

THEATRE:

THE MALY DRAMA THEATRE – THEATRE OF EUROPE was created in 1944 in Leningrad. Since 1983 the theatre is headed by Lev Dodin. Under his direction
the theatre became one of the leading theatres in our country. The Maly Drama Theatre carries out a lot of international projects working with the Union of Theatre of Europe, which the theatre was invited to join in 1992. In 1993 the theatre was titled as "academic". The General Assembly of the Union of European Theatres granted the Maly Drama Theatre the status of Theatre of Europe in 1998 after the Odeon in Paris and the Piccolo in Milan. Today the repertoire includes the best plays of the World Literature. The troupe, most of them are the students of Lev Dodin, was called by Peter Brook as "the greatest theatre ensemble in the world".

DIRECTOR:  

LEV DODIN is the People’s Artist of Russia, artistic director of the Maly Drama Theatre – Theatre of Europe, professor. He is one of the leading masters of Russian and European theatres, staged for more than 65 plays in Russia and abroad. He created his own acting method, added big ideas to the theory and practice of dramatic art. Lev Dodin’s directing and productions have won many state and international prizes and awards: USSR and Russia State Prize, "Triumph" Russian National Independent Award, the "Golden Mask" Award, Laurence Olivier Award (1988), the Order of Literature and the Arts as an officer for Considerable Contribution
to Russian – French Cultural Ties and others.  In 2000 Lev Dodin was presented the highest European Theatre Award – Europe Theatre Prize, and in 2001 he received the Russian Presidential Award. In 2004 he was awarded the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" 4th class. In 2009 he was awarded the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" 3rd class.

PERFORMANCE:

"For a long time Lev Dodin has not expressed so fine, tough and brief in a simultaneous way. Neither a single trivial intonation, nor extra detail of props has penetrated the stage.This is the story of a deathful conflict between passionate and hot-tempered youth and crushing government machine in a sunset twilight of an empty space. The stage designer Alexander Borovsky made the excellent sets – massive tables and other details were effectively brought to the stage by six securities when it was necessary". Zhanna Zaretskaya, “Afisha”.

"Dodin returns to the tragedy’s text the modern breath by avoiding any forcible methods for modernizing classics, so that Bismark’s final words sound like today’s leading article. <…> Lev Dodin seized the essence of the play “Intrigue and love” – devaluation of words and what it opposes - willingness to pay with life". Olga Egoshina, "Novye Izvestya".