Dance of the Vampires
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For the Roman Polański film, see The Fearless Vampire Killers.
| Tanz der Vampire | |
 |
|
| Music | Jim Steinman |
|---|---|
| Lyrics | Michael Kunze Jim Steinman (New York) Miklós Tibor (Budapest) |
| Book | Michael Kunze Jim Steinman (New York) David Ives (New York) Miklós Tibor (Budapest) |
| Based upon | 1967 Roman Polański film, The Fearless Vampire Killers |
| Productions | 1997 Vienna 2000 Stuttgart 2000 Estonia 2002 Broadway 2003 Hamburg 2005 Warsaw 2006 Tokyo 2006 Berlin 2007 Budapest 2008 Oberhausen |
Dance of the Vampires (or Tanz der Vampire as the original German language version is named) is a musical remake of a 1967 Roman Polanski film of the same name (called The Fearless Vampire Killers in the USA). Polanski also directed the original German production of this musical. Music was composed by Jim Steinman and orchestrated by Steve Margoshes, and original German book and lyrics were written by Michael Kunze.
While Steinman's fans acclaim it as his biggest musical success, it should be noted that about 70% of the musical score written by Steinman was recycled from his earlier projects, mainly from his less-known shows like The Dream Engine and The Confidence Man (co-written with Ray Errol Fox), although it also features music from his widely known records like "Total Eclipse of the Heart" (remade as "Totale Finsternis") and the melody, but not the lyric, from a Bat Out Of Hell II song called "Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer Than They Are" (remade as "Die Unstillbare Gier").
Contents |
[edit] Productions
[edit] Vienna
Tanz der Vampire premiered at the Raimund Theater in Vienna, Austria on October 4, 1997. It was produced by the Vereinigte Bühnen Wien. In 1998 it won the IMAGE AWARD for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book. The production closed on January 15, 2000.
A complete cast recording as well as a highlights cast recording were made of this production.
The Original Vienna Cast
- Graf Von Krolock - Steve Barton (Winner of 1998 IMAGE Award for Best Actor)
- Sarah - Cornelia Zenz
- Professor Abronsius - Gernot Kranner
- Alfred - Aris Sas
- Chagal - James Sbano
- Magda - Eva Maria Marold
- Rebecca - Anne Welte
- Herbert - Nik
- Koukol - Torsten Flach
[edit] Stuttgart
The show had its German premiere in Stuttgart, Germany on March 31, 2000 at the Apollo Theater. The production closed on August 31, 2003.
The Original Stuttgart Cast
- Graf Von Krolock - Kevin Tarte
- Sarah - Barbara Kohler
- Professor Abronsius - Werner Bauer
- Alfred - Aris Sas
- Chagal - James Sbano
- Magda - Maaike Schuurmans
- Rebecca - Anne Welte
- Herbert - Thomas Mulner
- Koukol - Torsten Flach
[edit] Estonia
Vampiiride Tants premiered in Tallinn on November 10, 2000 in the Tallinna Linnahall arena for a short run of 10 performances.
The Original Estonian Cast
- Graf Von Krolock - Jassi Zahharov
- Sarah - Nele-Liis Vaiksoo / Kristine Muldma
- Professor Abronsius - Rostislav Gurjev
- Alfred - Koit Toome
- Chagal - Marko Matvere
- Magda - Kaire Vilgats
- Rebecca - Katrin Karisma
- Herbert - Bert Pringi
- Koukol - Lauri Liiv / Bert Pringi
[edit] Broadway
The show was extensively rewritten for the New York/Broadway production, which starred Michael Crawford (who had played the lead in Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera in the 1980s) as von Krolock and was directed by Urinetown's John Rando (without Polanski). Music and lyrics for the English version were written by Jim Steinman, and the English book was officially credited to Jim Steinman, Michael Kunze and David Ives. The extended preview season (61 previews) started at the Minskoff Theatre on October 18, 2002, and closed on January 25, 2003, after a total of 56 official performances.
The producers of the show wanted a rewrite with a more comic angle, instead of adapting the successful Austrian version, and as such, the producers hired comic playwright David Ives to write what amounted to a new book, which was then revised and rearranged by Crawford, who had creative control, and also agreed that the piece should be a comedy on the lines of Mel Brooks. The result was an altered version with a great deal of campy humor that differed considerably from the original show.
The humor received some laughter, and also much criticism. After Steinman was fired from the show by his own manager (acting as lead producer) for protesting the direction the show had taken, the English version (of necessity) borrowed a lot of new material from Steinman's lyrics for the previous English versions of his songs. It was critically lambasted, the work of lead performer Michael Crawford being reviewed particularly harshly.[1]
It is one of the biggest financial flops in Broadway history, losing roughly $12 million, easily eclipsing the infamous musical Carrie. Steinman did not attend opening night as a show of disapproval for the project.[2] On his blog Steinman writes "DOTV as we know was UTTER SHIT!" in one post, and describes the production as a "shit pile" in another, also stating in separate blog entries that his music was "wasted" on the show, being careful at several points to make clear distinctions between the American version (referred to as DOTV) and the successful European version (known as Tanz).
The Original Broadway Cast
- Graf Von Krolock - Michael Crawford
- Sarah - Mandy Gonzales
- Professor Abronsius - Rene Auberjonois
- Alfred - Max Von Essen
- Chagal - Ron Orbach
- Magda - Leah Hocking
- Rebecca - Liz McCartney
- Herbert - Asa Somers
- Boris - Mark Price
[edit] Hamburg
A new production of the show opened on December 16, 2003, at the Neue Flora Theater in Hamburg. The production closed on January 22, 2006.
The Original Hamburg Cast
- Graf Von Krolock - Thomas Borchert
- Sarah - Jessica Kessler
- Professor Abronsius - Werner Bauer
- Alfred - Fredrik Wickerts
- Chagal - Jerzy Jeszke
- Magda - Anna Thoren
- Rebecca - Jan Merchant
- Herbert - Norbert Kohler
- Koukol - Stefan Budenbender
[edit] Warsaw
Taniec Wampirów opened in Warsaw at the Roma Teatr Muzyczny on October 8, 2005. The production closed on October 22, 2006.
A cast recording was released of this production.
The Original Warsaw Cast
- Graf Von Krolock - Łukasz Dziedzic / Paweł Podgórsk
- Sarah - Malwina Kusior / Aleksandra Bieńkowska / Agata Załuska
- Professor Abronsius - Robert Rozmus / Grzegorz Pierczyński
- Alfred - Jakub Molęda / Marcin Wortmann
- Chagal - Wojciech Paszkowski / Janusz Kruciński
- Magda - Dominika Szymańska / Katarzyna Walczak / Anna Gigiel
- Rebecca - Grażyna Strachota / Izabela Bujniewicz
- Herbert - Jakub Wocial / Modest Ruciński
- Koukol - Jakub Szydłowski
[edit] Tokyo
The Japanese production premiered on July 7, 2006 in Tokyo.
A live cast recording was released.
The Original Japanese Cast
- Graf Von Krolock - Yuichiro Yamaguchi
- Sarah - Chihiro Otsuka / Tamaki Kenmochi
- Professor Abronsius - Masachika Ichimura
- Alfred - Yohei Izumi / Kenji Urai
- Chagal - Masahiro Sato
- Magda - Yuko Miyamoto
- Rebecca - Satomi Achiwa
- Herbert - Keigo Yoshino
- Koukol - Hajime Komada
[edit] Berlin
The Berlin production opened at the Theater Des Westens on December 10, 2006. The production closed on March 30, 2008.
The Original Berlin Cast
- Graf Von Krolock - Thomas Borchert
- Sarah - Lucy Scherer
- Professor Abronsius - Veit Schafermeier
- Alfred - Alexander Klaws
- Chagal - Ulrich Wiggers
- Magda - Katja Berg
- Rebecca - Maike Katrin Schmidt
- Herbert - Haldor Laegreid
- Koukol - Stefan Budenbender
[edit] Vienna Tenth Anniversary Concert
Tanz der Vampire returned to Vienna in February 2007. A scaled down concert version was staged at the Raimund Theater.
The Vienna Concert Cast
- Graf Von Krolock - Thomas Borchert
- Sarah - Marjan Shaki
- Professor Abronsius - Gernot Kranner
- Alfred - Lukas Perman
- Chagal - Thomas Bayer
- Magda - Suzanne Carey
- Rebecca - Tina Schöltzke
- Herbert - Tim Reichwein
[edit] Budapest
Vámpírok Bálja opened on June 30, 2007 at the Magyar Színház in Budapest. The show ran for 58 shows, and will return for at least 25 more shows in early June 2008. Further performances are planned for December 2008/January 2009.
The Original Budapest Cast
- Graf Von Krolock - Géza Egyházi / Sándor Nagy / Pál Feke
- Sarah - Zsanett Andrádi / Krisztina Nádorfi / Nikoletta Kovács
- Professor Abronsius - Csaba Jegercsik / Dávid Sándor
- Alfred - László Sánta / Tibor Héger / János Szemenyei
- Chagal - Béla Pavletits / Gábor Bot
- Magda - Tímea Kecskés / Anna Balogh / Dóra Stróbel
- Rebecca - Judit Dobos / Kristina Urbanovits / Dóra Köves
- Herbert - Dávid Pirgel / Victor Posta
- Koukol - Gábor Attila Farkas / János Balog
[edit] Oberhausen
A new production of Tanz der Vampire will open at the Metronom Theater am Centro in Oberhausen in November 2008.[3]
[edit] Characters
(Note: Many changes in characterization were made for the Broadway version. This refers to the original European version.)
Count von Krolock, to play anywhere from 35 to 50 to 425 years old, a powerful and melancholy vampire lord, the seductive, diabolic, dramatic center of the show, with a massive, galvanizing baritone.
Professor Abronsius, plays 60-65, Alfred's mentor and a classic absent-minded professor, a quirky "man of science" devoted to eliminating all vampires, the comic centerpiece of the show, with a high baritone with extensive range (at one point hits a note some sopranos might have trouble with).
Alfred, plays 18-19, hero, earnest young student, heroine has to fall for him at first sight, Abronsius' handsome and well-meaning but somewhat cowardly assistant, with a gorgeous, strong, lyric tenor.
Sarah, plays 15-18 (the script designates her as "almost eighteen" during "Du bist wirklich sehr nett"), heroine, a beautiful and spunky young woman, breathtaking village girl, radiant but wanting to be corrupted, with a Celine Dion-type voice, but a tougher more R&B or rock-influenced sound.
Chagal, plays 40-55, Sarah's over-protective father, a disreputable Jewish innkeeper, should be almost a parody of Tevye from "Fiddler on the Roof," with a commanding baritone.
Rebecca, plays 40-55, Sarah's long-suffering mother and Chagal's wife, large, buffo, unsatisfied, griping village spouse and co-innkeeper, with a huge, rich contralto/mezzo.
Magda, plays early twenties (25 at latest), the sexy maid of all trades at Chagal's village inn, longed for by all the male villagers but doesn't succumb until she is bitten, with a glorious theatrical belt with extensive range.
Herbert von Krolock, plays approximately 20, the Count's gay son, also a vampire, needy, lonely, horny, demonically determined young rich kid, with a high baritone or dark tenor of size and passion.
Koukol, of an indeterminate age and description, the Count's hunchbacked servant.
Dancers ages 20-35, strong, sexy, exotic, eccentric, unique dancers with a wide range of physical ability and strong modern/ballet/jazz technique, specialties in acrobatics and flying.
[edit] Songs
From the original German version
|
|
From the original Broadway version
|
|
[edit] See also
- Vereinigte Bühnen Wien (Vienna Production Company)
- Stage Entertainment (German Production Company)
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Website of the Upcoming Oberhausen Production (in German)
- Dance of the Vampires (Vámpírok Bálja) in Hungary (in English, German)
- Dance of the Vampires in Germany (in German)
- Stage Entertainment (in German) (previously called Stage Holding - The Theatre Company)
- Internet Broadway Database listing
