Tanz der Vampire: Dear gods, the wrong
Sep. 24th, 2006 07:35 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
winterThose of you who have read this LJ between October 2005 and January 2006 surely remember my whining each time I had tickets to Tanz der Vampire and it turned out that the understudy/second-cast guy would be playing von Krolock. Each time I managed to sell the tickets, and I must say there was a tiny bit of vindictive joy when I heard he tore a ligament and wouldn't be playing in the May-June run at all. Then I saw him at the promos and had to admit he's a lovely guy with immense energy, a great sport and a personality that has to be summed up as his other role - Ram Tam Tugger in Cats :)
During this run, I even made special reservations for a Saturday matinée that he always took, but when it turned out that Lukasz (who, to remind you, would be first von Krolock and the vampire in this photo) wouldn't be playing the first Saturday evening and Pawel would be taking the stage at the first show I saw of the run, I wasn't too upset.
People I've talked Elisabeth with know I am not fond of Uwe Kröger. And this, I think, is the performer Pawel is best compared to, in Uwe's Death-in-Vienna phase, though his voice isn't quite as good. Alas, the qualities he shares with Uwe are the ones I don't appreciate: can't move, can't act, can sing a little :P
I was appalled with his voice at first, but I think it was just that he was very nervous during Gott ist tot - he acquitted himself in the other songs quite well, though both the lowest notes and the highest ones aren't his forte. I guess I'm just too used to Lukasz's operatic, knock-your-socks-off voice that fills the theatre and drags you in with its dark magic. Pawel doesn't have the power in his voice - he can't even outsing Malwina (Sarah) in Totale Finsternis, and at the end of Stärker als wir sind, where Lukasz easily overwhelms the entire ensemble, I couldn't hear Pawel at all.
The biggest problem was that Pawel either has no ideas of his own about the role, or has been told to forget them and imitate Lukasz instead. His vocal imitation is decent, though not a particularly good idea because his voice is weaker and it sounds like an aural photocopy. But when he moves and gestures, he has none of the grace of Lukasz, no idea where to put his hands (he kept holding an invisible orange all the time) and where with Lukasz, I can see he's so far into the role it's not a human, it's a vampire onstage, Pawel is very clearly concentrating on not misstepping rather than expressing his character's emotions. Perhaps symbolic of it is the fact that he keeps tangling in the cloak which is clearly made for the taller Lukasz. No cloak control at all.
(Oh, and I finally know why the suit fits Lukasz so badly: it looks like they wear the same one, and it has to acommodate Pawel's broader body, though it's still too tight on him. The button's at the right height for Pawel, which messes up the fit on Lukasz, but on the other hand the trousers are clearly too long for Pawel. So instead of having two well-dressed vampires, they have none.)
The silly thing is, I'm sure Pawel could be a very good von Krolock on his own. Wohl der Nacht/Wohl der Mann was his best song, and in it he created a petulant, Gothic yuppie von Krolock that reminded me of the Vienna versions of Death in Elisabeth, hissy and arrogant. He strode across the stage rather than try to glide like Lukasz, only got tangled in his cloak once, and gave the lyrics a rock bend that suited him. I applauded honestly when the first act was over.
The good thing about seeing a Lukasz-less Tanz was that it allowed the others to shine. Malwina had to carry the entire Totale Finsternis with a wooden partner and did it beautifully. Rozmus went completely crazy as Abronsius, knowing that he wouldn't get smacked down in his scenes with vampires ;) And of course Jakub was the most brilliant Herbert ever as usual - he keeps adding new things to his Herbert and it's such a joy to see. I'm immensely happy he's back as Herbert here. I also happened to be sitting (and by that point, standing and jumping up and down) right in front of him during curtain calls, and I believe the two times we met, or maybe the Phantom squee I sent him this week after his show, were enough to make him recognise me :)
So yes, Tanz season is open again. I have tickets to performances every week until October 22nd, which is when it will close for good. And then Berlin. And quite possibly Budapest.
And did you notice I now have a set of moodtheme icons with Lukasz in them? :D
During this run, I even made special reservations for a Saturday matinée that he always took, but when it turned out that Lukasz (who, to remind you, would be first von Krolock and the vampire in this photo) wouldn't be playing the first Saturday evening and Pawel would be taking the stage at the first show I saw of the run, I wasn't too upset.
People I've talked Elisabeth with know I am not fond of Uwe Kröger. And this, I think, is the performer Pawel is best compared to, in Uwe's Death-in-Vienna phase, though his voice isn't quite as good. Alas, the qualities he shares with Uwe are the ones I don't appreciate: can't move, can't act, can sing a little :P
I was appalled with his voice at first, but I think it was just that he was very nervous during Gott ist tot - he acquitted himself in the other songs quite well, though both the lowest notes and the highest ones aren't his forte. I guess I'm just too used to Lukasz's operatic, knock-your-socks-off voice that fills the theatre and drags you in with its dark magic. Pawel doesn't have the power in his voice - he can't even outsing Malwina (Sarah) in Totale Finsternis, and at the end of Stärker als wir sind, where Lukasz easily overwhelms the entire ensemble, I couldn't hear Pawel at all.
The biggest problem was that Pawel either has no ideas of his own about the role, or has been told to forget them and imitate Lukasz instead. His vocal imitation is decent, though not a particularly good idea because his voice is weaker and it sounds like an aural photocopy. But when he moves and gestures, he has none of the grace of Lukasz, no idea where to put his hands (he kept holding an invisible orange all the time) and where with Lukasz, I can see he's so far into the role it's not a human, it's a vampire onstage, Pawel is very clearly concentrating on not misstepping rather than expressing his character's emotions. Perhaps symbolic of it is the fact that he keeps tangling in the cloak which is clearly made for the taller Lukasz. No cloak control at all.
(Oh, and I finally know why the suit fits Lukasz so badly: it looks like they wear the same one, and it has to acommodate Pawel's broader body, though it's still too tight on him. The button's at the right height for Pawel, which messes up the fit on Lukasz, but on the other hand the trousers are clearly too long for Pawel. So instead of having two well-dressed vampires, they have none.)
The silly thing is, I'm sure Pawel could be a very good von Krolock on his own. Wohl der Nacht/Wohl der Mann was his best song, and in it he created a petulant, Gothic yuppie von Krolock that reminded me of the Vienna versions of Death in Elisabeth, hissy and arrogant. He strode across the stage rather than try to glide like Lukasz, only got tangled in his cloak once, and gave the lyrics a rock bend that suited him. I applauded honestly when the first act was over.
The good thing about seeing a Lukasz-less Tanz was that it allowed the others to shine. Malwina had to carry the entire Totale Finsternis with a wooden partner and did it beautifully. Rozmus went completely crazy as Abronsius, knowing that he wouldn't get smacked down in his scenes with vampires ;) And of course Jakub was the most brilliant Herbert ever as usual - he keeps adding new things to his Herbert and it's such a joy to see. I'm immensely happy he's back as Herbert here. I also happened to be sitting (and by that point, standing and jumping up and down) right in front of him during curtain calls, and I believe the two times we met, or maybe the Phantom squee I sent him this week after his show, were enough to make him recognise me :)
So yes, Tanz season is open again. I have tickets to performances every week until October 22nd, which is when it will close for good. And then Berlin. And quite possibly Budapest.
And did you notice I now have a set of moodtheme icons with Lukasz in them? :D
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Date: 2006-09-24 04:26 pm (UTC)*giggles at your twitching* I actually much prefer Maya's Elisabeth to Pia, and I'm mostly into the Vienna cast to see my darling beloved Ethan Freeman, who I'm convinced truly hates me because any video involving him just has to be snail mail and just about impossible to obtain. ;D Anyway, we can work something out when your DVD arrives. :D