Review —
Starting with some random information. I have to mention I have bootlegs of the show in several cast compositions many times but, especially since the show closed now, I was glad I managed to see some of the last performances live. In fact, I only had a ticket for the 30th at first and thought I would only make it to the stagedoor on 29th but when around 3,5 hours before the show as by a wonder a ticket appeared, I, of course, decided to take it in a heartbeat. Since I was staying in an apartment not very far from the theatre I went there a little earlier and met outside with friends. After a while I then noticed that someone was greeting me and when I turned around I figured out it was Elena, who just came to the theatre to get ready for the show. I then rushed to greet her as well, she congratulated me on getting to Piter again (since ofc she knew about my ✨adventure✨ at the border control the other day😵💫) and I also managed to hand over the bouquet of flowers I bought for her. 🥰 Honestly, after this small, coincidental meet-up my mood already went up by 1000 but by then I did not even expect just how much better this evening was still going to become. We then went inside the theatre, met some more friends there and just walked around, taking pictures. I also got a programme of the show which I asked some of the actors to sign the next day.
The show - I honestly don’t think I’ll be able to even closely describe my amazement about this show in words but overall it really was a breathtaking and fantastic experience and (no shade to other productions, I love the musical in general) I am now even more convinced that the Russian production is my favourite out of them. The costumes are gorgeous, the whole cast and ensemble is great, the orchestra and the music itself are also amazing… I was already impressed when the show started with Kirill’s Doctor Jekyll from the off giving some kind of “introduction” to the show and sort of explaining how every person is split into good and bad etc. also I really loved the stage design and how the scenery on stage switched for almost every scene, starting with scenes in the madhouse and then switching to Sie Danvers’ home, the red rat, and Doctor Jekyll’s Study or Laboratory all the time. 'Lost in the darkness' and 'I need to know' right at the beginning were really great scenes and I also have to remark that 'facade' (and its 1000 reprises) and the ensemble dancing scenes in general were really impressing. At the end of act 1 Hyde was sort of lighting a flame on stage and even though I sat in the 7th row, I was able to feel the warmth on my face.. (I’ll just mention my absolute favourites now bc otherwise it’s gonna be too long) One of my favourites was definitely the engagement scene, which was absolutely adorable. Also the fact that Henry and Emma wore matching clothes almost made my heart melt.🥺 I also adored the 'his work and nothing more' part. 'Alive' and 'dangerous game' were some really hot scenes as well, as was confrontation. At 'a new life' and ‘once upon a dream' I had trouble holding back my tears. And, I know it’s a very unpopular opinion, but ‘in his eyes' will forever be among my most favourite scenes in the whole show. Especially in this composition because Elena and Nataliya just sounded really great together. The final also left me in tears. This time was by the way one of the shows where Emma also dies in the end :'( So overall, the whole show was amazing.
Cast - starting with Jekyll/Hyde of course. As you might know, my favourite J&H unfortunately hasn’t been playing since 2018, so I had no chance of seeing him. Nevertheless, I saw both Kirill and Roman now and they were both great, though very different (about Roman I’ll write in the other review). To sum up, Kirill was an exceptional J&H, he found the perfect balance between a very introverted doctor who is pretty much focused on his work only and evil, savage Mr Hyde. To me personally, his Henry even seemed less sociable and a bit more cold/withdrawn than some other portrayals I’ve seen. While for others it seems the extreme obsession with work only developes over the course of the show and they did care a lot more for Emma before all that, he really seems to have chosen his work as his top priority right from the start and she only comes second. Nevertheless, the chemistry between him and Elena (and Natasha as well) was really good and they seemed like a very sweet couple during their engagement. Moreover, I have noticed that you sometimes see Hydes who are acting more beast-like and wild while others, like Kirill’s, seem to focus more on the evil, maniac side of the character. Overall, I really enjoyed his portrayal though. Emma. My favourite. I have to admit I wasn’t a huge fan of Emma and always thought she’s a rather boring character - until I saw Elena’s portrayal of her. I could write hours about how much I love her Emma, but to sum up she was just amazing, both vocally and acting-wise. Her Emma was very tender, always loving, kind and supportive towards Jekyll, but at the same time she had this strong and independent side to her, which was visible especially in her interactions with stride at the beginning. She’s pretty much driven by her love for Henry, never leaving his side and always believing in him, even if nobody else does, even though it is noticeable that she has her doubts later on and that she really suffers from her fiancé’s constant absence and Lena just portrayed all of this perfectly. Nataliya as Lucy was also great. I really enjoyed watching her 'bring on the men' and the scenes in the red rat in the beginning but at the same time I suffered with her during 'a new life' and her death left me in tears as well. It’s just impossible to not feel touched by her story seeing how such a kind-hearted woman who never gives up believing in her dream and hoping for a new life, despite her position in society, has to go through so much suffering…
stage door - first of all, right after the show I got a chance to take a picture with Emma in costume and after that and after I went to get my jacket from the wardrobe, I went out to the stage door, met some more friends there and then we waited for the actors together. There were masses of people that day, so I was really worried I wouldn’t be able to take photos or ask for autographs. I almost didn’t notice when Elena came out because she was surrounded by such a huge crowd of people. Luckily, my friend told her that I’d like to see her and ask to sign something again and she came to us right away, took some pics with me and signed my photo album with the photos with her from another concert in September before she left. She’s the sweetest, honestly, I can’t even describe how much I love her <3 When the crowd started to disappear I also managed to take a picture with Kirill. We stayed for a little longer and suddenly noticed that someone had placed some huge plastic cherries next to Kirill in front of the stage door. They were gone again later, but up to this date, we haven’t figured out why they were standing there. I showed Elena the photo with the cherries later and asked whether she knows, since I suggested it might’ve been a present for Kirill, but she didn’t know anything about it either. We later figured out they were taken away from a café nearby and placed there. Why is still unknown. Anyways, that was my first Jekyll&Hyde💗 I’ll write the second review tomorrow! If you have questions/remarks whatsoever, feel free to ask, comment, text me etc)
Should I post some of the photos as well? :D