New ice show "Carmen": reviews

The most anticipated and spectacular event in the past year was the ice show "Carmen" (reviews about it you will find in our article). His world premiere took place on June 12, 2015 in the Sochi Winter Sports Palace under the name "Iceberg". More details about the production, the author, the features of the scenery and the participants themselves will be told in more detail.

Premiere of the grandiose show in Sochi

Last summer, the whole country literally froze in anticipation of the brightest and most impressive show and "special effects" show "Carmen", based on the famous work of the French author Prosper Merimee. It was a grandiose and unlike anything else premiere, which included elements of acrobatics and tricks, a light show and flamenco.

The ice show "Carmen" is a unique theatrical production, skillfully transferred by Ilya Averbukh and his production company to the ice. The singularity of the project lies in a kind of "cocktail" of styles, which the director himself used. So, the performance perfectly combines the huge in its scale scenery, unsurpassed play of actors, as well as skilful movement of athletes and other project participants on ice.

"Carmen" is a show, during which the classical work was staged not in an opera or drama theater, but in a huge ice arena. And, of course, a huge role in the success of the production was played not only by special effects, but also by the stellar cast of actors and skaters.

The main characters of the project - who are they?

Ilya Averbukh's Ice Show "Carmen" is a project in which not only the best dance groups gathered, but also the real figure skating masters. Among them, for example, is the charming Tatiana Navka, who played the role of the temperamental and charismatic gypsy Carmen, her favorite partner Roman Kostomarov, Ekaterina Gordeeva, Alexei Yagudin, Alexei Tikhonov, Maxim Marinin, Maria Petrov, Albena Denkovu, Margarita Drobyazko, Maxim Staviskiy, Maxim Shabalin and Povilas Vanagas.

In addition, professional circus, theater and ballet artists, dance groups, as well as masters of the fire show took part in the play.

Subtle nuances of the show

As expected, Averbukh's ice show "Carmen" (the photo can be seen below) won out favorably among similar productions, for example, opera or ballet. So, the beautiful and spectacular premiere was significantly different in meaning from the classic work of Merimee, to which all are accustomed.

According to many critics and enthusiastic spectators, the show's organizer did everything possible to modify the central storyline of the novel somewhat, adding new events to it. Thanks to the premiere of Averbukh, people saw the classic "Carmen" in a completely new perspective.

In addition, according to the organizers of the show, a special tone for the story lines was set by music specially selected for the premiere. It was a mix of classical melodies by Beze, Ravel and Shchedrin, as well as modern music by Roman Ignatiev, written shortly before the premiere. As a result, an unusual and sometimes even provocative ice show "Carmen" turned out.

What is the difference between "Carmen" and similar shows on ice?

Unlike similar shows, which last year were released a huge amount, for example, "Snow King" Plushenko, "Ice Age" and "Aladdin", "Carmen" has a big scope of imagination. For example, in addition to people, animals are involved in the show, although they are not always real. So, in one of the actions of the play you can see a large artificial horse that goes out on the ice and immediately begins to dance.

In addition, unusual actions are taking place on the ice itself: large barrels roll around it, it grows unusually beautiful flowers and produces fire. And at a certain point over an improvised city there is a huge carousel, on which artists roll; There are echoes of festive fireworks, huge colored caps of salute blossom. This is the result of the ice show "Carmen". Reviews about it can be found in our article.

The game of shapes and sizes when installing scenery

Global and spectacular in the show were and scenery. It is thanks to their size that the organizers of the project managed to achieve the effect of three-dimensional space and provide him with a cinematic realism of action. During the performance, the guests could see the impressive Spanish city, as if by magic appeared on the ice.

The ice show "Carmen" is carefully planned in such a way that it looks equally impressive from any point of the hall. According to the authors of the project, the desired was achieved when they refused to build a scene according to the standard "stadium principle" (when the guests are seated around the site) and gave preference to "theatrical".

As a result, the scene itself occupies only half of the entire room, and the rest of the space is the auditorium. And all the scenery turned to the audience, and the action takes place right before their eyes. It is interesting that all the sets perform not only their aesthetic function, but even make sounds. For example, during a scene with a temple, a huge church bell rings, like a real one.

Ice show and important money issue

The grandiosity and scale of the play is simply off scale. However, many people have questions that directly affect the ice show Averbukh "Carmen". The reviews, at least, say exactly this. So, one of the main questions is the material side of the play. According to preliminary data, the production of the show alone cost the organizers $ 3,000,000. The same sums of honorariums of star actors and all involved personnel were not disclosed. At the same time, a large share of this money was collected by charitable organizations and anonymous sponsors.

State support for the project was exclusively documentary. And only after a few months the play finally came on a daily payback. Ilya Averbukh's ice show "Carmen" can be viewed below.

Why did not the show premiere take place in Moscow?

According to the director, the premiere of the project was decided not to be shown in Moscow, but in Sochi. This is due to the fact that the props and decorations were created specifically for the Ice Arena of the Iceberg. Later they were already modernized and finalized for the Moscow stage.

By the way, from June 10 to October 2, 2016, residents and guests of sunny Sochi will once again enjoy meeting with the characters of the already loved many plays "Carmen".

"Carmen" - Ice show of Ilya Averbukh: reviews

Theater and music critics, actors, musicians and other persons of creative professions became one of the first spectators who visited the Sochi premiere of "Carmen". So, among them were the following celebrities:

• Mikhail Galustyan.
• Alena Babenko.
• Ekaterina Spitsa and others.

Almost all of them enthusiastically spoke about the premiere, praised the director, and also admired the play of non-professional actors. Most of them appreciated the charisma and acting abilities of Tatiana Navka, Alexei Yagudin, Roman Kostomarov and others. In addition, ordinary viewers also liked the play, because at the end of the action the enthusiastic audience got up and, according to eyewitnesses, still applauded standing still for 10 minutes. Later, the ice show "Carmen" was held in Moscow. Reviews about it can be studied further.

Ice show in Moscow

After a grandiose premiere in Sochi, the creative team of the ice musical went to Moscow. There, in the "Luzhniki", he daily gave performances, beginning from October 23 to November 7, 2015. This event coincided surprisingly with the Open Art Festival "Cherry Forest". As a result, the residents of the capital saw the notorious "Carmen" personally.

As in Sochi, the ice show "Carmen" in "Luzhniki" (reviews about it we write below) caused a flurry of positive emotions. According to eyewitnesses, this is unlike any show of unprecedented scale.

So, some viewers say, during one of the actions on the scene 60 actors appeared at once, which is quite unusual for a standard theatrical performance.

Others admire the skill of actors and the beauty of costumes. The third liked the fire show, as well as the roast flamenco performed by real masters of Spanish dance. The fourth was appreciated by the ice show "Carmen" in Moscow. Their responses were positive and inspiring. For example, they paint the favorite performances of specially invited acrobatics world champions - Alexis Polishchuk and Vladimir Besedin, who, according to them, got up so that the surrounding people were simply breathtaking.

How big was the Moscow show different from Sochi?

According to the organizers, the production of the show in Sochi and Moscow was almost the same (with the exception of fitting scenery, the size of which did not quite match the capital arena).

However, as in Sochi, a large number of people worked in Moscow, cranes were used that easily moved along the ice. The surface in both arenas was repeatedly checked for strength, since not only were the scenery heavy: vehicles, animals moved along the ice, and fire was also lit on it. Consequently, the thickness and strength of the surface had to be at the highest level. However, that's exactly how the creators conceived, before organizing the ice show "Carmen". Reviews about him for a long time will excite the minds of the public.

Are there any negative opinions about the show?

Of course, there are many positive reviews, but negative ones also occur. For example, some viewers unanimously decided that the role of Carmen is completely inappropriate for Tatiana Navka. Firstly, she is blond, and secondly, she does not have that Spanish spark in her eyes, which would allow her to keep the audience's attention. In their opinion, it was possible to put Margarita Drobiazko to this role. She has a kind of passion in her eyes, and a corresponding appearance.

Also, some viewers did not like the discrepancy with the classic work of Merimee. According to them, in order to create a complete picture of what is happening, it is necessary to additionally purchase a libretto. And this is a considerable amount.

Basically, this is a beautiful ice show - "Carmen". Comments and criticism regarding the presentation, indicate an unprecedented increase in the popularity of the project. Soon the organizers of the show plan to leave Russia and make a real world tour, after which they will gladly return to their homeland and share their impressions.