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angelofmusicMusical: Elisabeth
Production: Live
Theatre: Operettszínház, Budapest, Hungary
Date: 25th April 2008 - 18:00
Cast:
Elisabeth - Füredi Nikolett
A Halál - Kamarás Máté
Luigi Lucheni - Száraz Tamás
Ferencz József - Bálint Ádám
Zsófia főhercegnő - Nádasi Veronika
Rudolf főherceg - Szabó Dávid
So, I finally saw the illusive Máté live, and it is safe to say he didn't disappoint. I know he splits camps on his performance as Death, and I agree that sometimes, he can be too screaming-wannabe-rockstar, but this show was different.
I've seen various DVDs of him live and I can compare him to seeing Szilvester live as well, in the same production, so I went in not expecting to hear him singing as well as he did. He actually didn't strain himself and just sang the role rather than his usual screaming, although he did slip back into that habit a couple of times.
This Death was a desperately passionate, ardent one who is constantly teetering on the very brink of doing something he knows he shouldn't. There were hesitations, split-seconds before he would allow himself to approach, a sidelong glance, the way he would almost touch and let his hand tremble when it came close to her.
Of course, this being Máté, he couldn't just stick to the assigned choreography. For the first time in my recollection of 20+ versions of Elisabeth, during Letzte Tanz, while he's meant to be whooping away downstage, he ended up upstage and on his knees in front of Elisabeth. He pulled back from grabbing at her skirts, then spread his arms, throwing his head back and showing himself in all his desperation, before turning a racing downstage and turning back, looking at her, reaching out and screaming her name once more before vanishing.
Plus, he liked the conducting side of thing. No matter what he got up to, there would be a moment of discreet conducting while he was onstage, directing the action, always watching and keeping things he can manage in his control, all the while fighting his desire to change things with Elisabeth.
He was also a surprisingly intimate Death and really, when you have 'Útvesztő minden út' with him singing with his lips just about brushing hers and a 'Letzte Tanz' that begins with him bringing his face so close to hers, they're practically sharing the same breath it made it all the more intense.
Alas that I can't help thinking he would have played off better against Bernadett. While I do like Nikolett as Elisabeth, she seems to work much better with Szilvester. He has a different kind of energy and it works with Nikolett. Máté would suit Bernadett's Elisabeth so much better.
That's not to say I didn't enjoy seeing Nikolett performing again. She's a strong singer and a good actress, but I'm biased towards Bernadett as my first Elisabeth, although Nikolett does do the aging Elisabeth with great dignity and maturity.
Back to Máté, though, and it seems like someone decided he didn't have nearly enough glitter on. The new style seems to be "suspend head first in a vat of glue, then suspend head first in a vat of glitter". I mean it. It was like a living disco ball. Bless the Hungarians and their love of sparkly things!
And ooh! Ohh! Another thing I loved was that - like Mester Tamás - Máté is inclined to play Death as gentle towards Sophie. When Veronika did Bellaria (which I normally hate, but she makes it heartbreakingly sad), he slowly approach from behind and gently turned her face to his and kissed her with such infinite gentleness, before taking her in his arms and leading her away.
It was the most touching Bellaria/Sophie death I've ever seen and had I not been sitting in a posh box, I would have flailed. Unlike many versions, this Death didn't hate her for doing what she did. He only took an aging, grieving ill woman as gently as she deserved to be taken. I really do love Veronike as Sophie. Or just in general. She's a fantastic singer and actress.
Incidentally, I have to admit the second cast in Budapest is by far my preferred one. The First is all well and good (and I do adore Sziszi, even if he is as mad as a biscuit), but they don't seem to have the same spark as the full second cast.
Speaking of, Száraz Tamás has a loyal fangirl in me. He's an absolute star and such a nice guy as well. And his Lucheni, while gleefully playful at some points, can be freakily intimidating and you can see the sinister side behind the grinning trouble-maker.
One such point was during Hass, when the elderly gentleman asks what has been going on. Tamás stepped right in front of him, not speaking and just stared at him, his face less than an inch from the man's, slowly tilting his head to one side and smiling slightly, and when the guy tried to dodge him, side-stepped to stay in front of him. It was uncomfortable to watch but very effective.
Plus, he's added some quirky bits to his repetoire. During the arpeggio at the end of Kitsch, he played his way down the ramp as if he was playing an airkeyboard as he danced down. He also bounced more :)
And something I hadn't noticed - In Neues Sortiment, when he comes out after Death's turned Sisi down, he's not showing off the kitschy stuff again, but showing a selection of weapons for Death to choose for Sisi's end. I'd never noticed, but he's all "Lookit! A shiny gun! Or how about this nice knife? Or rope! I got rope!" :D And Death is all "... plz go 'way, kthx"
Likewise, I adore Adam and David, who - as always - didn't disappoint. Adam will remain my favourite FJ for a long time, I think. Very few have managed to pull off the quiet dignity and the sorrowful solitude that FJ had to endure, when all he wanted to do was be with the woman he loved.
And yay for David, a Rudolf with a spine :D With this whole cast, I can honestly say there isn't a scene I don't like. I'm not usually a fan of "Wenn Ich Dein Spiegel War", but David does it with such a level of pain and desperation and pleading without sacrificing his dignity. It's nice to see it without Rudolf turning into a lip-quivering mess. Plus, a rather longer Death/Rudolf kiss than usual, which is clearly a great gift to the fangirls :)
Other things of note: the angels were even more lively and bouncy than usual and whoever was the shrieking one was having a great night. Hot Hungarian Rebel remains hot and Hungarian. The cute little side-character moment things were fun (ie. the soldier boy flirting with Helena and his girlfriend getting annoyed and informing Ludovica that she's not bothered by Nene's great news and the couple spending the next two minutes bickering and the girl refusing to toast Nene). Ludovica on the whole, plus she makes a fantastic Frau Wolf, who was really being downright dirty with Lucheni, who did a thorough job of excavating all the bills from her cleavage :D
The only downside of the whole thing remains the clumsy changeovers between some of the songs. They love their set pieces, and while I appreciate the symbolism of their sets, I have to admit they're not the most graceful movers. Seeing them all being dismantled while waiting for Tamás showed just how hefty some of those pieces are, and I don't envy to set dressers and prop handlers because they have to change almost every 4-5 shows.
But on the whole, really, I could be quite happy never to see Elisabeth live again, knowing I have seen it done wonderfully, with a cast who couldn't be better and who worked together wonderfully.
And lastly, adorable moment during the bows: Máté getting suddenly shy and boyish and kissing Nikolett's hand and looking all bashful and surprised when he got wolf-whistled and screamed at. Plus, the whole lot got a standing ovation for nearly 10 minutes and everyone was in squee-face. Hungary knows how to do musicals, that's for certain :)
Production: Live
Theatre: Operettszínház, Budapest, Hungary
Date: 25th April 2008 - 18:00
Cast:
Elisabeth - Füredi Nikolett
A Halál - Kamarás Máté
Luigi Lucheni - Száraz Tamás
Ferencz József - Bálint Ádám
Zsófia főhercegnő - Nádasi Veronika
Rudolf főherceg - Szabó Dávid
So, I finally saw the illusive Máté live, and it is safe to say he didn't disappoint. I know he splits camps on his performance as Death, and I agree that sometimes, he can be too screaming-wannabe-rockstar, but this show was different.
I've seen various DVDs of him live and I can compare him to seeing Szilvester live as well, in the same production, so I went in not expecting to hear him singing as well as he did. He actually didn't strain himself and just sang the role rather than his usual screaming, although he did slip back into that habit a couple of times.
This Death was a desperately passionate, ardent one who is constantly teetering on the very brink of doing something he knows he shouldn't. There were hesitations, split-seconds before he would allow himself to approach, a sidelong glance, the way he would almost touch and let his hand tremble when it came close to her.
Of course, this being Máté, he couldn't just stick to the assigned choreography. For the first time in my recollection of 20+ versions of Elisabeth, during Letzte Tanz, while he's meant to be whooping away downstage, he ended up upstage and on his knees in front of Elisabeth. He pulled back from grabbing at her skirts, then spread his arms, throwing his head back and showing himself in all his desperation, before turning a racing downstage and turning back, looking at her, reaching out and screaming her name once more before vanishing.
Plus, he liked the conducting side of thing. No matter what he got up to, there would be a moment of discreet conducting while he was onstage, directing the action, always watching and keeping things he can manage in his control, all the while fighting his desire to change things with Elisabeth.
He was also a surprisingly intimate Death and really, when you have 'Útvesztő minden út' with him singing with his lips just about brushing hers and a 'Letzte Tanz' that begins with him bringing his face so close to hers, they're practically sharing the same breath it made it all the more intense.
Alas that I can't help thinking he would have played off better against Bernadett. While I do like Nikolett as Elisabeth, she seems to work much better with Szilvester. He has a different kind of energy and it works with Nikolett. Máté would suit Bernadett's Elisabeth so much better.
That's not to say I didn't enjoy seeing Nikolett performing again. She's a strong singer and a good actress, but I'm biased towards Bernadett as my first Elisabeth, although Nikolett does do the aging Elisabeth with great dignity and maturity.
Back to Máté, though, and it seems like someone decided he didn't have nearly enough glitter on. The new style seems to be "suspend head first in a vat of glue, then suspend head first in a vat of glitter". I mean it. It was like a living disco ball. Bless the Hungarians and their love of sparkly things!
And ooh! Ohh! Another thing I loved was that - like Mester Tamás - Máté is inclined to play Death as gentle towards Sophie. When Veronika did Bellaria (which I normally hate, but she makes it heartbreakingly sad), he slowly approach from behind and gently turned her face to his and kissed her with such infinite gentleness, before taking her in his arms and leading her away.
It was the most touching Bellaria/Sophie death I've ever seen and had I not been sitting in a posh box, I would have flailed. Unlike many versions, this Death didn't hate her for doing what she did. He only took an aging, grieving ill woman as gently as she deserved to be taken. I really do love Veronike as Sophie. Or just in general. She's a fantastic singer and actress.
Incidentally, I have to admit the second cast in Budapest is by far my preferred one. The First is all well and good (and I do adore Sziszi, even if he is as mad as a biscuit), but they don't seem to have the same spark as the full second cast.
Speaking of, Száraz Tamás has a loyal fangirl in me. He's an absolute star and such a nice guy as well. And his Lucheni, while gleefully playful at some points, can be freakily intimidating and you can see the sinister side behind the grinning trouble-maker.
One such point was during Hass, when the elderly gentleman asks what has been going on. Tamás stepped right in front of him, not speaking and just stared at him, his face less than an inch from the man's, slowly tilting his head to one side and smiling slightly, and when the guy tried to dodge him, side-stepped to stay in front of him. It was uncomfortable to watch but very effective.
Plus, he's added some quirky bits to his repetoire. During the arpeggio at the end of Kitsch, he played his way down the ramp as if he was playing an airkeyboard as he danced down. He also bounced more :)
And something I hadn't noticed - In Neues Sortiment, when he comes out after Death's turned Sisi down, he's not showing off the kitschy stuff again, but showing a selection of weapons for Death to choose for Sisi's end. I'd never noticed, but he's all "Lookit! A shiny gun! Or how about this nice knife? Or rope! I got rope!" :D And Death is all "... plz go 'way, kthx"
Likewise, I adore Adam and David, who - as always - didn't disappoint. Adam will remain my favourite FJ for a long time, I think. Very few have managed to pull off the quiet dignity and the sorrowful solitude that FJ had to endure, when all he wanted to do was be with the woman he loved.
And yay for David, a Rudolf with a spine :D With this whole cast, I can honestly say there isn't a scene I don't like. I'm not usually a fan of "Wenn Ich Dein Spiegel War", but David does it with such a level of pain and desperation and pleading without sacrificing his dignity. It's nice to see it without Rudolf turning into a lip-quivering mess. Plus, a rather longer Death/Rudolf kiss than usual, which is clearly a great gift to the fangirls :)
Other things of note: the angels were even more lively and bouncy than usual and whoever was the shrieking one was having a great night. Hot Hungarian Rebel remains hot and Hungarian. The cute little side-character moment things were fun (ie. the soldier boy flirting with Helena and his girlfriend getting annoyed and informing Ludovica that she's not bothered by Nene's great news and the couple spending the next two minutes bickering and the girl refusing to toast Nene). Ludovica on the whole, plus she makes a fantastic Frau Wolf, who was really being downright dirty with Lucheni, who did a thorough job of excavating all the bills from her cleavage :D
The only downside of the whole thing remains the clumsy changeovers between some of the songs. They love their set pieces, and while I appreciate the symbolism of their sets, I have to admit they're not the most graceful movers. Seeing them all being dismantled while waiting for Tamás showed just how hefty some of those pieces are, and I don't envy to set dressers and prop handlers because they have to change almost every 4-5 shows.
But on the whole, really, I could be quite happy never to see Elisabeth live again, knowing I have seen it done wonderfully, with a cast who couldn't be better and who worked together wonderfully.
And lastly, adorable moment during the bows: Máté getting suddenly shy and boyish and kissing Nikolett's hand and looking all bashful and surprised when he got wolf-whistled and screamed at. Plus, the whole lot got a standing ovation for nearly 10 minutes and everyone was in squee-face. Hungary knows how to do musicals, that's for certain :)
