Shakespeare's "Antony and Cleopatra" has been staged thousands of times but has probably never been presented in the form of historical kitsch - until now. A new version of Shakespeare's tragedy from the St. Petersburg-based theater troupe "Comic-Trust", which premiered this week, blends together genres and styles of visual theater to create a spicy visual cocktail.

The "Comic Trust" troupe features just three performing members - Natalya Fisson, Nikolai Kychyov and Igor Sladkevich - and director Vadim Fisson.

Cleopatra, the "Comic-Trust" version, is a woman of "classical oriental shapes", who is, well, slightly rotund, but possessing tremendous personal power and a voracious sexual appetite. The director himself will make a stage appearance, as nothing less than Mars, the god of war - with a friendly nod to the Terminator. Some of the Shakespearian verse - albeit in translation - will be spoken, but not much. Compared to the troupe's nearly wordless "Second Hand" and emcee-hosted "Cabaret Naphthalene", the verbal element of "Comic Trust" repertoire has indeed developed. The prologue presents genuine Shakespeare but a knowledgeable spectator will spot it's the intro to a different drama. To be safe, have a quick glance at "Henry VIII" before the performance.

The premiere, in fact, is an adaptation of an existing street show which was first performed by "Comic-Trust" in France last year and has been performed in Germany and Portugal since.

"Antony and Cleopatra" is playing at the Lensoviet Palace of Culture, Metro Petrogradskaya, from Feb. 20 through Feb. 22 and from Feb. 26 through Feb. 29.

News source: www.sptimes.ru
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