Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 is a work that takes on a tremendous task: adaptation of Leo Tolstoy’s staggering masterwork, War and Peace. The novel is a work of art like no other, interrogating Russian society, the psychology of war, and the philosophy of human emotion (and pretty much everything else under the sun). As such, one tends to wonder– how does the Broadway musical get on in adapting (and most importantly, condensing) the themes and deep character relationships of this opus into an understandable and average length musical?
About the Developers:
Ella Fosse(she/her) is a sophomore currently pursuing History and Museum Studies majors, along with some other ventures with a French minor and a Russian and Eastern European Studies certificate. Her favorite song from Great Comet is either "Dust and Ashes" or "Letters", but Great Comet is her all-time favorite musical, so she loves them all!
Madeline Leatherbarrow(she/her) is a senior at the University of Pittsburgh studying Psychology and Linguistics with a minor in Irish. Her favorite song from Great Comet is "Natasha & Bolkonskys" specifically for the musical aspect; the dissonance in the song is amazing and horrible all at once, which sets the tone for the song and its characters perfectly.
Mikey Montoni(she/her) is a junior at the University of Pittsburgh studying nonfiction writing with minors in film and English literature. Her favorite song from Great Comet is “Moscow,” not for any musical reason, but because its role in the story intrigues her.
About the Project:
Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 is a work that takes on a tremendous task: adaptation of Leo Tolstoy’s staggering masterwork, War and Peace. The novel is a work of art like no other, interrogating Russian society, the psychology of war, and the philosophy of human emotion (and pretty much everything else under the sun). As such, one tends to wonder– how does the Broadway musical get on in adapting (and most importantly, condensing) the themes and deep character relationships of this opus into an understandable and average length musical?
About the Developers:
Ella Fosse (she/her) is a sophomore currently pursuing History and Museum Studies majors, along with some other ventures with a French minor and a Russian and Eastern European Studies certificate. Her favorite song from Great Comet is either "Dust and Ashes" or "Letters", but Great Comet is her all-time favorite musical, so she loves them all!
Madeline Leatherbarrow (she/her) is a senior at the University of Pittsburgh studying Psychology and Linguistics with a minor in Irish. Her favorite song from Great Comet is "Natasha & Bolkonskys" specifically for the musical aspect; the dissonance in the song is amazing and horrible all at once, which sets the tone for the song and its characters perfectly.
Mikey Montoni (she/her) is a junior at the University of Pittsburgh studying nonfiction writing with minors in film and English literature. Her favorite song from Great Comet is “Moscow,” not for any musical reason, but because its role in the story intrigues her.