A war may be “going on out there, somewhere,” but within the walls of EMU’s blackbox theater, audience members can be forgiven for only focusing on the energy and drama happening right in front of them. “Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812,” the 2016 “electro-pop opera” that adapts a small, 70 page section of Leo Tolstoy’s great Russian novel War and Peace, finishes up its run at EMU this weekend with final performances Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evening, along with a Sunday matinee.
EMU is one of the first colleges to get the rights to produce this musical, written by David Malloy. The west-coast premiere in Berkeley, California only just finished its run in December of 2022, and, according to director Justin Poole, is, “evidence of how lucky [EMU] is to be able to perform it.” Poole had been wanting to produce the show for a while and to him, the show is, “an important piece for our community.” “This is a piece that also talks about beauty emerging from the brokenness, the triumph of the human spirit, how it talks about forgiveness, about the horrors of war,” Poole said on how he sees the show connecting with the university’s values. “Tolstoy himself became a pacifist.” In addition, he saw the opera’s “edginess” and contemporary music [resonating] well with the students, making it a perfect fit for this spring’s musical.
“Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812” (commonly shortened to either “Natasha, Pierre” or “Great Comet”) is quite a “unique show” according to Junior Hannah Landis, one of the actors who plays Natasha, along with Junior Greta Schrag. Notable for its audience engagement and interaction, where audience members are sometimes directly drawn into scenes. Junior Afton Rhodes-Lehman, who plays Sonya sees this as a “pretty special” experience and that is “a connection beyond the theater itself.” Poole was glad EMU’s performance was able to “retain” this level of interaction, a part of the original production that was mostly lost when the show moved to Broadway. Also immersive is the set, largely of a high octagonal “bar” which acts as the stage for most of the show. In addition, cast members walk among the audience, sitting at tables on the ground as well as up in the mezzanine, using “every bit of the space.” Audience members can also choose to sit around the bar for a more up close experience of some of the dancing and choreography. Midway through Act Two, the audience is invited to sing along with the performers during a significant point in the musical. Most of Act Two is, according to Poole, “nonstop action” culminating in what he calls a “powerful, transcendent moment,” that unites everyone in the room. “I just live for the last 15 minutes of the show. The emotions range throughout the show from total silliness and fun, big boisterous riotous moments of dancing and laughter to extreme pathos and tragic moments of sadness. But at the end there’s a real hopeful message that really lifts and gives you a great spiritual lift.”
Landis and Rhodes-Lehman both pointed to the rest of the cast and crew as “great people to work with.” “Joe Sietz (Pierre) sounds like an angel, Adam Hoover (Anatole) has funny little asides, and the lighting is beautiful,” says Landis. “Shannon Dove has done an excellent job as a set designer who saw [Justin’s] vision and made it a playground for us. Everytime you watch you notice something new.”
As of time of writing, tickets are still available for the Thursday and Friday evening performances but are selling out fast. The Saturday and Sunday shows are already sold out. Paul Pinto, who originated the role of Balaga on Broadway and who has been involved with the show from its beginnings will be participating in a talkback with the cast following the Saturday and Sunday performances.
