Past Productions -
Chess
Book by
Richard Nelson. Music by Benny Andersson & Bjorn Ulvaeus.
Lyrics by Tim Rice
28th Sept to 3rd October 1998
At Gordon Craig Theatre,
Lytton Road,
Stevenage
Production Director - Jim Snell, Musical Director - Justin
Thomas.
Programme
cover:
Chess is a
story of Cold War politics, sport and passion, set to
end-to-end music. The principal characters are the two
contestants, an American and a Russian who are used as
political pawns for the nations as propaganda and power
tools. Caught in the middle is Florence Vassy, a Hungarian
refugee who at the onset is lover and second to the American
but who transfers her affections and allegiance to the
Russian. The score had a profound effect on stage music of
the time and lifted, once again, its profile as the famous
female duet “I know him so well” reached the number one spot
in the national charts. Chess played for three years in
London and its songs went around the world
Synopsis
ACT 1 - The
World Chess Championship is about to commence in Merano,
Northern Italy. Defending his title is an American, the
challenger a Russian. The colourful opening is a tribute to
the expectation of the people of the small Tyrolean town.
All is not set to continue smoothly; the American walks out
leaving an insulted second, Florence Vassy to explain.
Florence, a naturalised British citizen, was born in Hungary
but has questions about her fathers disappearance when the
Hungarian uprising was crushed. When the first game begins,
tensions mount as the players resort to underhand tactics to
make their gain: the subtle drama crescendos when the
players fling the board into the air. Florence and Molokov,
the Russians second, arrange for the four to meet. The
Russian is late so the American leaves in disgust; when the
Russian does arrive, he and Florence are attracted to one
another, interrupted only by the American’s return. Despite
a fiery union, both agree to a press conference sharing the
blame and agreeing to resume the championship. Some days
later, the American’s performance is lacking and he blames
Florence for his loss of form. The ensuing argument leaves
the American devastated as Florence tells him she will leave
him. Shortly after winning the championship, the Russian
presents himself at the Western Embassy seeking political
asylum. This he is afford.
ACT 2 - A year
later, the scene is Bangkok, Thailand where the Russian is
preparing to defend his title. He and Florence have been
lovers since his defection. Meanwhile, Molokov is
considering his new player whom he hopes will both win and
stay in Russia. To his surprise, the Russian is interviewed
by the American, who proceeds to upset him by discussing his
personal life and not chess. Prompted by this and the fact
that the Russian authorities have now decided to let his
wife out of the USSR; the Russian tells Florence he must
leave her for the duration of the championship. To add to
his angst, the American tells the Russian that if he should
let his initial winning streak come to an end, he will
ensure that Florence does not get to know the unpleasant
information he has concerning her father. The American
approaches Florence telling her that she should return to
him - he could provide her with news of her father - but she
refuses. Molkov and the Russian have indeed been in league
against the Russian, however, with even with the added
personal pressures, the Russian still wins the competition.
His excitement at winning against his various opponents
gives way to a recognition of the selfishness which has
driven him; reconciliation with his wife, Svetlana is
impossible. The final scene leaves a profound statement:
like the game of chess, that of love can be played in many
ways - perhaps the one between the Russian and Florence was
just one of many that end in stalemate!. Finally, the
American is seen approaching Florence to tell her some news
....
Cast
(In order of
appearance)
The Arbiter – Ian Hamilton
Frederick Trumper – Guy Robinson
Florence Vassey – Lesley Houldcroft
Walter de Courcey – David Springate
Alexander Molokov – Michael Niles
Anatoly Sergievsky – Stephen Chalkley
Svetlana Sergievskaya – Veronica Crowley
Ensemble
Philip Arend, Michael Barker, Alison Bass, Roy Benney,
Eileen Bone, Katy Bonja, Nicola Bonja, Maureen Briddon,
Christine Brown, Slava Budin-Jones, Mick Bullen, Elaine
Cousins, Alex Evans, Tom Evans, Paul Harris, Louise
Hollingsworth, Adrian Johnson, Jack Lardent, Nick Morgan,
Martin Murphy, Sandra Page, Ann Peacock, Carolyn Roberts,
Michael Roberts, Alexandra Robinson, David Ross, Mark
Savage, Michael Steele, Vivienne Tadman, Peter Wall, Arthur
Warne, Elizabeth Warne, Jan Williams, Annette Wilson, David
Young, Mary Young
Dancers
Samantha Balch, Lucy Day, Ranae Gray, Michelle Johnstone,
Marie Knight, Donna Potter
PICTURES
OF THE DRESS REHEARSAL, 29th September (Taken with a
digital camera)
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Opening scene The show
opens with the story of Chess, and how it was
invented. |
Dancing in the town of
Merano The Chess tournament opens in Merano, Italy.
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The Arbiter struts his
stuff. The Arbiter states his intention to see fair
play. |
The Merchandisers. The
Merchandisers seize the moment to advertise their
wares. |
The End Game. The show
moves to the Finale where the Chess is played both
on and off the board. |
A fuller
selection of pictures from the show. Click on images to
see larger version.
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The Prologue, where
the origins of Chess are revealed and demonstrated. |
The Arbiter ensures we
all know he is here to see fair play. |
The dancers join in to
make sure you are paying attention to the Arbiter! |
The American Champion
arrives at Merano, Italy, for the first game of the
tournament. |
Molokov preaches the
Party line to the Russian player, Anatoly. |
Frederick Trumper, the
American player, studies his moves. |
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The American envoy
suggests Florence persuades Anatoly to lose the
game. |
Finale Act 1, where
Anatoly proclaims that he will not leave his native
Russia. |
The tournament moves
to Bangkok, Oriental City... |
Anatoly and Florence
embrace. Anatoly returns to his homeland, and
Florence loses her man, and nothing in return... |
The Company pose
onstage at the end of a wonderful show week. |
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