This two-part production, based on Pedro Calderon’s philosophical drama The Constant Prince and Alexander Pushkin’s A Feast in a Time of Plague, unites in a non-linear way the story of Prince Fernando, a Christian who withstands torture while in captivity — a requiem for 20th-century history and culture — and a kind of anthology-concert of the forms of modern theatre. Pushkin’s text puts everything on a vertical plane, bringing completion to the theatrical statement. A unique and unsettling production.

In 1437, Fernando, the heir to the Portuguese throne, is captured by the Sultan of Morocco. As a ransom, the Sultan demands Fernando surrender to him the Christian city of Ceuta — a stronghold of Catholicism in North Africa. Fernando decides his life is not worth such a concession, and remains in custody with the Muslims. In real life, Fernando was recognized by the Catholic Church as a saint. Boris Yukhananov’s production, a timely statement on the danger of fundamentalism that has overwhelmed the world, is clothed in the form of a visually exquisite theatrical spectacle. Calderon’s existential drama sounds very much like a stern mystery of our days.

The Stanislavsky Electrotheatre is located in the heart of Moscow, on Tverskaya Street 23, and was founded almost a century ago in 1915 as the cinema palace — the Ars electrotheatre. After the revolution it became home to Konstantin Stanislavsky’s opera and drama studio, and not long after that, the Stanislavsky Drama Theatre. The symbolic legacy of these three locations, a cinema, an opera studio and a dramatic theatre, has been fully endorsed by the Stanislavsky Electrotheatre as it launches a new era.

TWO DAYS ONLY!

Part 1 of this production plays from 6 May 2020 at 6.30pm CET for 24 hours. 

Part 2 of this production plays from 7 May 2020 at 6.30pm CET for 24 hours.

This post was written by the author in their personal capacity.The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not reflect the view of The Theatre Times, their staff or collaborators.

This post was written by Directed by Boris Yukhananov, based on plays by Pedro Calderón de la Barca and Alexander Pushkin, Stanislavsky Electrotheatre (2015), Russia.

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