War and Peace
The idea of reconstructing the original version of Prokofiev’s opera War and Peace resulted from the opportunities provided by Celtic-Cossack Connections: to collaborate in the performance of a work which neither of the two Conservatoires would be likely to tackle on their own, which needed the participation of native Russian singers, which would present a challenge, and which would make an international creative impact.
The opera has a long and tangled history: first conceived in the late 1930s, it was started in the months before the Second World War – which gave it contemporary relevance and political backing – and in its first form was completed in the spring of 1942. This initial version failed to find approval with the Soviet authorities, however, and the opera was subjected to continual revision in the eleven years until Prokofiev’s death in 1953. By this time it had grown to 13 scenes, lasting about four hours. It has been performed in many edited versions since then, but the original has remained amongst the composer’s manuscripts in Moscow.
No musical material has had to be invented for the reconstruction; the sections discarded in the revision process have been orchestrated, as far as possible in keeping with Prokofiev’s distinctive style. The outcome reveals a work much closer to the ideals of Tolstoy, with greater emphasis on the personal and intimate and less focus on the national and tableauesque.
The Opera was staged in January 2010 by a joint effort between the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD) and Scottish Opera. A student team managed this production mentored and supervised by the staff of Scottish Opera.
Creative Team
Director - Irena Brown
Set & Costume Designer - Chloe Lamford
LX Designer - Joanna Town
Production Manager - Andrew Storer (RSAMD), Darren Joyce (Scottish Opera)
Stage Management Mentor -
Stage Manager - Emma Whoriskey
Deputy Stage Manager - Kieron Johnson
Assistant Stage Managers -
Electrics Mentor - Stevie Powells
Production Electricians - Puleng Mabuya, Michella Fee
LX Board Op. -
LX Crew -
Technical Stage Mentor - Ben Howell
Technical Stage Manager - Louise Marr
Technical Stage Crew - Martin Aitken, Scott Bremner
Scene Break Down
Overture
Projection of film
Scene 1
Scene 2
Scene 3
Ball
Scene 4
Bearskin
Scene 5
Attempted Kidnap
Scene 6
Declaration of war
INTERVAL
Scene 7
Battlefield
Scene 8
Napoleon
Scene 9
Moscow
Scene 10
Death of Andre
Scene 11
Scenic Elements
6 x Masking Pillars with Returns
Slider Wall
6 x Sliders
1.2m Steel Deck Platform
1.2m x 15m x 1.2m Trucked Steel Deck Section
Flown 1920's Projection Screen
8m Wooden Ramp
Flown Wooden Structure
Napoleons Tent
3 x 20 minute Snow Drop
Technical Solutions
6 x Masking Pillars with Returns
The four masking pillars DS consisted of a hard black masker with a grey textured 600mm return that fitted onto the edge of the black masker and was secured with four back flap hinges. These had to be moved to the side during each reset so the LX team could fill their DS snow machines.
Slider Wall
This was the most major scenic piece it divided the stage in half across stage and marked the change in level of stage - behind the wall was a 1.2m high steel deck platform. This wall contained 6 door way sections that were filled by 6 sliding doors that each moved individually. The wall consisted of a solid lower 1.2m high section 5 x 250mm pillars and two side panels. It was then topped by cornicing and a canvas header stretched over a frame to continue the impression of solid wall. Even with the framed header flown separately the wall weighed 561kg and had to be flown over two counter weight fly bars.
6 x Sliders
These were the most challenging part of War & Peace:
1.2m Steel Deck Platform
1.2m x 15m x 1.2m Trucked Steel Deck Section
Flown 1920's Projection Screen
8m Wooden Ramp
Flown Wooden Structure
Napoleons Tent