Mikhail Bulgakov
Dead Souls
Мёртвые души
Director: Ivan Popovski
Summary
Mikhail Bulgakov (1891–1940), who is apart from Gogol one of the biggest satire writers in Russian literature, was sent to the Moscow Art Theatre (MHAT) by Stalin. After the death of Mayakovsky, Stalin was probably worried that other artists might follow suit and become suicidal as the Soviet political system consistently restricted them in their creative process. At MHAT Bulgakov started working on the adaptation of Gogol's Dead Souls and Chichikov – this time in an adapted version of the
cult Russian novel – once again embarked on a hunt for souls.
The story of Dead Souls speaks of Chichikov, an average middle class gentleman, who comes up with a unique plan of how to get rich. He was going to buy dead souls of dead peasants from land owners, who at that time still ruled over peasants/serfs in Russia, and for whom landowners must have continued paying taxes as if the peasants were still alive until the new auditor lists (every ten years). Chichikov would then "settle" these souls in some far-away gubernya, pawn them at a state owned
bank, receive 100 rubles for each and then disappear. With this plan, Chichikov gets in his vehicle and stops at landowners' who partake in this somewhat unusual "metaphysical" deal.
Since the birth and the burning of Dead Souls was closely connected to Gogol's search of life on Earth and afterlife, the dramaturge Vili Ravnjak wrote in his article "Gogol's (unsuccessful) battle with death shadows" (Gogoljev (neuspeli) boj s sencami smrti): "Gogol was experiencing a fierce inner battle of two principles: the art aesthetics and the morally religious or the artistic talent and the mystical search (messianic) when he was twenty-six or twenty-seven (between 1835 and 1836,
which Gogol's biographers see as critical). Dead Souls is evidence of this battle. /.../ Even though Dead Souls is a relaxed and bright comical novel or a comical poem, there are dark shadows of death lurking in the background as reflections of the deceased – market goods that Chichikov trades with. The souls of the deceased are a meeting point of life on Earth and afterlife. They connect us with the death field, which is not in the least comical for the reader, let alone for Gogol. /.../
Therefore, the time of creation (the writing and destruction process) of Dead Souls is actually Gogol's spiritual autobiography."
The first theatre performance of Bulgakov's adaptation of Gogol's novel was put on stage by the Macedonian director Ivan Popovski, who after his studies at the Russian Academy of Theatre Arts, became a renowned theatre and opera director worldwide.
Cast
Aleš Valič k. g.Vlado Novak
Matevž Biber
Rado Pavalec k.g.
Iza Dietner k.g.
Neja Hrastar k.g.
Mateja Pucko
Miloš Battelino
Bojan Maroševič
Davor Herga
Ivica Knez
Nataša Matjašec Rošker
Maša Žilavec
Viktor Meglič
Peter Boštjančič
Nejc Ropret
Vladimir Vlaškalić
Irena Varga
Eva Kraš
Matija Stipanič
Irena Mihelič
Photo gallery
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Photo: Damjan Švarc
