The newest musical from Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, the BB in ABBA, had it's American premier at Carnegie Hall on September 23 & 24 2009. It is the English language version of the hit Swedish musical Kristina frän Duvemäla. Herbert Kretzmer wrote the English lyrics based on Ulvaeus' original Swedish lyrics. The score is epic and lush and very moving.
The title character was played by Helen Sjöholm who has played the role in Sweden, and regularly performs with the Benny Andersson Band. British tenor Rusell Watson played the role or Karl Oskar, Kristina's husband.
The story centers on Kristina and Karl's marriage and their life in Sweden, their emigration to America, and the hardships and trials they face in their new homeland.
The show has been a huge hit in Sweden and this is the first time an English language version has been performed in the U.S. I though that it was not as easily accessible as Chess, Andersson & Ulvaeus' first musical, but thought it was very good.
Whereas Chess was more of a pop musical, Kristina is more of a musical in the style of Les Miserable. There were a couple songs that had a pop feel, but the music style was more traditional show music and folk based songs. Although there wasn't a song with the power of "Anthem" or the radio friendly sound like "One Night in Bangkok" there were some songs which were staggeringly beautiful. Songs like Miracle of God, You Have to Be There, Where You Go I Go With You, Summer Rose and I'll Be Waiting There were ones which rank as some of the most beautiful songs I've heard in any show.
The title character was played by Helen Sjöholm who has played the role in Sweden, and regularly performs with the Benny Andersson Band. British tenor Rusell Watson played the role or Karl Oskar, Kristina's husband.
The story centers on Kristina and Karl's marriage and their life in Sweden, their emigration to America, and the hardships and trials they face in their new homeland.
The show has been a huge hit in Sweden and this is the first time an English language version has been performed in the U.S. I though that it was not as easily accessible as Chess, Andersson & Ulvaeus' first musical, but thought it was very good.
Whereas Chess was more of a pop musical, Kristina is more of a musical in the style of Les Miserable. There were a couple songs that had a pop feel, but the music style was more traditional show music and folk based songs. Although there wasn't a song with the power of "Anthem" or the radio friendly sound like "One Night in Bangkok" there were some songs which were staggeringly beautiful. Songs like Miracle of God, You Have to Be There, Where You Go I Go With You, Summer Rose and I'll Be Waiting There were ones which rank as some of the most beautiful songs I've heard in any show.
However, the song American Man reminded me of Master of the House from Les Miserables, not so much in subject, but in it's humor and being a song where the audience literally clapped along once the chorus kicked in.
It's probably wrong to compare the two shows. Chess came out of nowhere and had a cult following for the start. There had really been nothing quite like it at that time. There will not be another Chess and credit should be given to the creators for not trying to recreate the same format for their next musical.
There was very little dialogue in the Kristina concert, only a little narrative to set up several of the songs, and also a few projected passages on the stage wall. I think a fully staged version of the show may create a clearer narrative.
Having said that, the bottom line is that the performances were very strong, the music had some amazing moments, and the final moments with the were about as moving as a show gets. The final song, I'll Be Waiting There, left few dry eyes in the hall.
I hope this isn't the final time that Kristina plays in America, and I hope it's gets a full staging in the future. It would be nice to have another musical on Broadway with a strong story and such a beautiful score.
It's probably wrong to compare the two shows. Chess came out of nowhere and had a cult following for the start. There had really been nothing quite like it at that time. There will not be another Chess and credit should be given to the creators for not trying to recreate the same format for their next musical.
There was very little dialogue in the Kristina concert, only a little narrative to set up several of the songs, and also a few projected passages on the stage wall. I think a fully staged version of the show may create a clearer narrative.
Having said that, the bottom line is that the performances were very strong, the music had some amazing moments, and the final moments with the were about as moving as a show gets. The final song, I'll Be Waiting There, left few dry eyes in the hall.
I hope this isn't the final time that Kristina plays in America, and I hope it's gets a full staging in the future. It would be nice to have another musical on Broadway with a strong story and such a beautiful score.
