Incognito in Petersburg: a juicy surprise show

Have you ever tried to go to the theater without knowing what will be played and by whom? What if it allowed you to discover something open-mindedly, to have an unprepared, unbiased perception of the show? Director Alexander Grigoryants and actor Nikolai Baranov decided to run an experiment. They scheduled two shows in The Cheshire Cat Art Café that they enigmatically called “Incognito in Petersburg” and “Incognito in Petersburg-2”. Apart from the practical information (time, date, etc.) no other precision was announced.

Struck by curiosity, people were quite numerous to come to the first show – it sold out for the evening. And the welcoming speech of the director Alexander Grigoryants only increased the anticipation of the audience. Finally the show has begun. Nikolai Baranov appeared on stage in a relaxed outfit and introduced his character with natural ease: it was a noble English bachelor who was collecting and restoring paintings. Irresistible, fun and moving, he told us with touching sincerity the story of how and why he decided to take his revenge on a lady. Brilliantly presented and played, his story was gripping. With the same mixture of worry and excitement, we watched his revenge coming into life and breathlessly waited for the results.

The ending took everyone by surprise. In a matter of but a couple of sentences, the whole story suddenly took an unexpected turn that instantly raised thoughts and discussions. The audience rose as one to applaud. After that, the title and the author of the story were revealed: “Nunc Dimittis” by Roald Dahl. Realistic, psychological and ironic, this short story written fifty years ago remains just as relevant today with its eternal themes of revenge, forgiveness and resentment. In a word… thrilling. Judging by the full house at the second show, the concept of surprise was appreciated. This time we were about to discover a combination of three works by different authors. The lights went off and we plunged into the fascinating world of the theater show.

Darkness enveloped us, only disturbed by the flickering light of a candle. A mysterious man slowly emerged from the blackness and as he came closer, the trembling light fell on his face and his dark suit, and threw a menacing, over-sized shadow of his hand on the ceiling above. For a moment, he just watched us, and a feeling of unease started creeping upon everyone. Then he spoke, and his calm and slightly dismissive voice sent a shiver down everyone’s spine. Addressing someone we could not see, the dark man started explaining his truth, and his words, pitiless and unshakable, slithered and coiled around us, slowly closing their icy embrace. It was an Inquisitor, all his terrible dark nature perfectly displayed. His eyes madly glittered on his sharply outlined face as he talked about his obsessive idea with an increasing passion and cruelty that made the hair stand up on the back of our necks. His words were hugely affecting. They raised in everyone a storm of thoughts and questions that would not be easily gone. The sensation was so powerful that even a thunder of applause at the end could not completely pull out of it. No one was likely to forget that frightening, pitiless and imperious Inquisitor tremendously played by Nikolai Baranov. It was the chapter “The Great Inquisitor” from the novel “The Brothers Karamazov” by Fyodor Dostoyevsky.

After an interval, the mood and the style drastically changed. Charming and trendy, the hero was greeting the audience with a glittering smile as he made his way to the brightly lit stage. This man was devilishly handsome, witty and eloquent. It was the tempter.

A proven expert in his domain, he took genuine pleasure in mentoring an enlightening “the young generation” that hung on his every word. With joy and optimism he explained to us the best practices of his profession: thoughts, beliefs, behaviors and policies designed by his kin or by the Devil in order to lead the human souls into sin and to Hell. He recalled everything – from simple ignorance to the religious wars… Thus, the same deep, life-related questions were shown from a different point of view, which contributed to their in-depth perception. Once again, the audience sat transfixed and wide-eyed, and expressed their delight by the hearty applause. Then we discovered the name of the work that we had just seen: “Screwtape Proposes a Toast” by Clive S. Lewis.

After yet another interval, the actor was back on stage. Only this time he had become a fabulous storyteller. He instantly captivated us, bringing the story into life. And a civil servant from the Department of Commerce and Transport took shape in our imagination. We followed him to the expensive restaurant with exotic food, and then back to his office and so on as his day went on. And as his regular working day was unfolding in front of us, the character and the true nature of the personage were becoming more and more obvious. That man, false and greedy, hiding under a socially acceptable mask and hypocritical even in front of God was a clear illustration of the sins and vices previously described by first the Inquisitor and then Screwtape. The story was “The Cantaloups” by Alexander Kuprin, and once again the show brought down the house.

Despite being so different, these three works look great in one show. They match up and complement each other, forming one single picture, while their differences allow us to dive even deeper into the issue. Amazing job. Unmissable theater.

F. Colins

The shows were played in Saint-Petersburg, Russia, in The Cheshire Cat Art Café on September 17^th and September 24^th, 2014 respectively.