How do the golden youth of Paris entertain themselves, who will the world-famous actress give her heart to and who the engaged but mischievous Swedish baron coming to France to taste Paris hidden charms? And what is the role of a rich and passionate Brazilian?
When you say Paris, you immediately think of love, fashion, fun and La Vie Parisiénne, or the much-desired Parisian life, the atmosphere all of us are eager to feel at least for a while. The Parisian Life – a new musical jewel, the operetta of Jacques Offenbach, came to Belgrade, prepared by already proved team of authors when it comes to this musical genre: Robert Boskovic is responsible for directing and adaptation, Vesna Souc is a conductor, Milica Cerovic a choreographer.
The story is about two Parisian bon vivants fighting for the affection a the world famous actress, when an engaged, but mischievous Swedish baron, coming to France to taste hidden charms of Paris, interferes in all, with also a wealthy and passionate Brazilian man, an unavoidable one in this love tangle.
Musical, operetta, good and sincere humour fans will have a chance to enjoy in The Parisian Life, the operetta of a composer Jacques Offenbach, premiered for the first time in 1866 in Paris, achieving the world wide success. That time libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. Due to the demanding contemporary audience, the director and the playwright reduced the operetta to three acts and two hours and 10 minutes running time, but also included the widely famous Offenbach’s Can-Can from his opera Orpheus in the Underworld, which made a number of French clubs famous.
The young artists Vesna Djurkovic (Gabrielle) and Branislava Podrumac (Metella) reached the highest artistic standards with ease: their vocal and acting skills are genuine treasure of this dramatization.
Mariji Ćirić (NIN Magazine)
A touch of Paris in this cheerful and playful piece of music is brought by a large performing ensemble led by: Vasa Stajkic, Dimitrije Cincar-Kostic, Arsenije Tubic, Djordje Viktor Vlajic, Branislava Podrumac, Jana Pogrmilovic, Anja Orelj, Milos Djordjevic, Srdjan Timarov, Vladimir Andric, Ana Cvetkovic, Dragana Popovic, Ivana Medic, Djordje Stojkovic and Zarko Stepanov. In this love merry-go-round they are wholeheartedly helped by: Vesna Djurkovic, Mina Gligoric, Nevena Djokovic, Ana Bartoli, Vanja Milacic, Sara Bojic, Petar Djurdjevic, Milan Milosavljevic, Djordje Kreca, Nemanja Bajic, Milena Moravcevic and Marija Pantin. Besides Vesna Souc, the accompanists Dragana Andjelic Bunjac and Barbara Kajin are engaged in musical preparations. The Opera & Theatre Madlenianum Orchestra is led by a concertmaster Vesna Janssens. The numerous choir and dance ensemble of this complex piece of music, as well as the soloists, had to go through several rounds of auditions in order to compete for participation in this project.