Review: SUNSET BOULEVARD at Stadttheater Kiel

After a long run production in Niedernhausen in 1995, Sunset Boulevard has returned frequently in many local theatre productions throughout Germany. The stage adaption of Billy Wilder's film tells the story of Norma Desmond, a glamorous diva and celebrated star during the silent movie era who lives seclusively and forgotten in a luxury villa on Sunset Boulevard. When she meets Joe Gillis by coincidence, an ambitious but unsuccessful screenwriter, she hires him on the spot to review her own script. Very soon, Joe Gillis finds himself trapped in a spiral of feeding his own ambition by founding false hopes.

The original English musical adaption premiered in London in 1993. Ever since, the musical has turned into a classic show due to the iconic setting, a timeless story, Andrew Lloyd Webber´s melancholic and tangent songs and Norma Desmond, the leading character which has been interpreted by - for example - no one less than Patti LuPone and Glenn Close.

Almost 30 years after its premiere in London, Sunset Boulevard has now opened in Kiel under the direction of Adriana Altaras.

Over the years, the numerous productions of "Sunset Boulevard" vary between huge stage settings and useful ones for smaller houses. Altaras places the orchestra on stage. She doesn't show the luxury villa or the enormous staircase. Instead, Norma appears on a gangway which leads through the orchestra.

Mrs. Yashi, who is responsible for the settings and costumes, decided to work with some typical movie-theatre seats which are used in some few scenes. For example, in the opening scene Joe Gillis sits in one of these chairs and sees himself being shot and falling into the pool, which is a great idea to start with. Unfortunately, this idea is not pursued consistently throughout the show. Other key-scenes, like the the car chase, the front gate at Paramount and the bar in which the young artists celebrate their dreams, were coherently staged.

Altaras' Norma Desmond is not the typical silent movie diva: She shows her grey hair at home and wears timely leisure clothes. But would this really be Norma's style ? And why is her first entry with the well-known words "You there, why are you so late?" being swapped to Max von Mayerling ? During the time, Norma Desmond changes from a woman filled with bitterness at the beginning to a childish person, who is imitating Charlie Caplin at the start of act two, then returning to the bitter person in the end.

Katja Reichert shows her Norma Desmond with all these facets. The songs are perfectly sung and she uses the exaggerated - typically Norma - gestures.

Michael Müller-Kasztelan has his roots in the classical music. Personally, I think he enhances his Joe Gillis throughout the show. One of my favourite scenes is the moment when Joe Gillis is reflecting his life from "meeting Norma for the first time" to "Betty Schaefer's arrival at the villa" while reprising "Sunset Boulevard".

Léonie Thoms Salfeld shows the naive but ambitious screenwriter Betty Schaefer, who longs for a "business" cooperation with Joe Gillis, but is falling for him somehow. I think that the production struggles in this point. It remains unclear when Betty starts to see their relationship beyond a "business" one. Unnecessarily, this song has been framed with different performances of dancers, which may make you lose the focus on Joe and Betty.

To sum it up: The combination of talented actors and singers, the use of approved elements as well as some fresh approaches make this production worth to visit albeit some ideas could be developed in the future.

Tickets can be booked through: https://www.theater-kiel.de/oper-kiel/repertoire/produktion/titel/sunset-boulevard

To post a comment, you must register and login.