Newton actors performing in new theatrical experience

Arlekin Players Theatre will be performing the stage version of Mikhail Bulgakov’s unfinished novel Dead Man’s Diary: A Theatrical Novel, a memoir that focuses on the author’s inexplicable and comical love of the world of theatre. Due to success of the performances in May, June and September, the new show will run March 17-April 1 at the Emerson Paramount Center’s Jackie Liebergott Black Box. Performances are in Russian with audio-translation in English.

Dead Man’s Diary is based on Bulgakov's own experiences at the famous Moscow Art Theatre of the 1920s and 30s, an absurdist tale of the exhilaration and black desperation wrought on one man by his turbulent love affair with the theatre.

Directed by Igor Golyak, the original stage composition of Dead Man’s Diary: A Theatrical Novel is written by Golyak. The show features choreography by Victor Plotnikov, a stage design by Nikolay Simonov, an original score by Jakov Jakoulov, and a 15-member cast. Several of the cast members are from Newton: David Gamarnik, Julia Shikh, Vika Kovalenko, Olga Aronova, Irina Danolova, and Alla Gribov.

“Many of our cast members from across the Greater Boston Area have been with us for a number of years, travelling with us to Moscow for a collaborative exchange, and truly putting their time and craft into our shows,” said Golyak. “Thanks to their passion and dedication, we can share this unorthodox, immersive theatrical experience with the city of Boston. You won’t see anything else like it.”

Dead Man’s Diary: A Theatrical Novel runs March 17 – April 1 at the Emerson Paramount Center in the Jackie Liebergott Black Box theatre, 559 Washington Street, Boston. Performances in Russian with English audio-translation. Tickets ($45/$65) are available by calling (617) 824-8400, or online at tickets@artsemerson.org.