Music connected us: how musicals become the main stage genre in Russia

Musical performances over the past year topped the popularity rating among theatrical genres in Moscow. A record number of spectators visited the capital's theaters, and musicals made a significant contribution to the growth in attendance. According to experts, the number of such productions has increased several times in recent years, and domestic productions are steadily displacing foreign shows. What is the reason for the popularity of musicals, who is behind the iconic productions and why this genre can become a leader in the entertainment industry in the near future — in the material of Izvestia.

Franchise theater

The musical is a relatively new type of entertainment for Russia. The country's first original musical performance was staged in Leningrad in 1973, and the genre immediately became popular with audiences.

The era of franchise productions began in the 1990s with the Polish musical Metro. After the success of the first project, its producer Katerina Gechmen-Waldeck actively worked on adapting the production of Notre Dame de Paris for the Russian stage. There were no authentic Russian shows at that time немного. The most famous musical was "Nord-Ost" based on the novel "The Two Captains" by Veniamin Kaverin, but tragic events permanently consolidated negative associations and stopped the development of the genre in Russia for several years.

In the 2010s, new notable Russian projects began to appear: "Count Orlov" (2012), the rock musical TODD by Mikhail Gorshenev, productions of repertory theaters. However, in general, such projects still lost out to adaptations of foreign musicals. Another landmark venue for the industry was the Moscow Musical Theater, headed by Mikhail Shvydkiy. He has an interesting story — since 2012, performances have been going on at the Gorbunova Recreation Center, in 2017 they moved to Pushkin Square, to the former Pushkinsky cinema. All these years there has been talk of building a new building. The cult rock opera "Crime and Punishment" directed by Andrei Konchalovsky, "Life is Beautiful!" and "The Love Test" by Marina Shvydkoi appeared on its stage.

A new approach

Today, musicals in Russia are experiencing a period of active growth, but it is too early to talk about the formation of a full-fledged industry. According to director Alexei Frandetti, this requires at least 20 major productions to be staged simultaneously in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Nevertheless, today almost every theater in these cities offers performances that are positioned as musicals or musical productions.

— Both the Lenkom Theater and the Taganka Theater have always been traditionally musical. The latter has been particularly actively developing in this direction lately. Evgeny Alexandrovich Pisarev is very active in this genre. And it is impossible not to mention the director Mikhail Mironov, who directed "Don't be afraid of Anything, I'm with you." The approach to musicals has become more professional. People who undertake this genre understand that it requires significant resources. Although, of course, there are still those who believe that a musical can cost as much as a dramatic performance," Frandetti said in an interview with Izvestia.

Traditionally, musicals are based on classical works, and their ideas are "in the air," which makes them universal and timeless. For example, two musicals dedicated to Vladimir Mayakovsky are being staged in Moscow today: one at Mark Zakharov's Lenkom, the other at the Malaya Ordynka Theater.

— Even when the same material is taken, it all depends on the talent of the directors. Take, for example, the musicals based on Gaston Leroux's novel The Phantom of the Opera. There were many of them, but the world knows only one — Andrew Lloyd Webber, Frandetti.

The trend towards authenticity

The current situation with international licenses encourages Russian producers and directors to create original content. For example, theater producer Dmitry Bogachev told Izvestia that until 2022, most of his company's activities were related to working on Russian productions of Broadway and West End musicals, as well as adapting their lines.

There is another important vector that distinguishes modern productions. Five to ten years ago, musicals seemed to fill classical works with music, today the opposite is happening — music has become the basis. And not a specific song, but the repertoire of cult groups. For example, the songs of the musicians "Secret" became the basis for the musical "Don't be afraid of anything, I'm with you." This trend will continue, Alexey Frandetti believes. For example, a musical based on Alexander Rosenbaum's songs is scheduled to premiere at the Moscow Variety Theater in autumn 2025. The play, directed by Mikhail Mironov, will become a multiverse exploring how Rosenbaum's work unites generations of Russians.

— There will be performances based not only on groups, but also on one performer or, conversely, several, as it was in the musical "Dudes", which I staged at the Theater of Nations. Or, again, in "Don't be afraid of anything, I'm with you." As far as I know, there are several other similar projects in production right now. And, of course, using the repertoire of iconic musicians can be considered the key to success, but only partially. It all depends on the talent of the production team. For example, the same Mamma Mia! It's been going on successfully for decades, and the musical based on Britney Spears' songs failed in three months," the director believes.

Dmitry Bogachev confirms the importance of teamwork of the team.

— As for one model or another, jukebox musicals based on existing music catalogs are not a recipe for success. From what comes to mind, Mamma Mia was and still is successful! with songs by ABBA, Jersey Boys with songs by the Four Seasons, MJ with songs by Michael Jackson, Moulin Rouge based on the film of the same name. But history knows much more failures of this model than successes, even if we are talking about the hits of legendary performers. It is enough to recall the disappointing results of musicals based on songs by The Beatles, Frank Sinatra, Boney M, Elvis Presley. So it's not about the hits, or rather not just the hits," says the producer.

The trend towards experimentation is also relevant. Directors often combine elements of different genres. For example, the script for "Don't be afraid of Anything, I'm with you" was co-written by screenwriter Sergey Kaluzhanov, known for his work on the films "Hands Up!", "Time of the First", the TV series "Major", "Sklifosovsky" and many others. There are more unusual examples of the interpenetration of genres: the production company Nasha Shaw and Yellow, Black and White and Yandex Afisha released the family musical circus show Cheburashka. Your ticket to childhood." The show is based on the film Cheburashka, the highest-grossing film in the history of the Russian box office. At its core, the show is a symbiosis of pop, circus and musical.

Record time

The success of musicals in recent years has been a qualitative leap for the industry. For example, according to Yandex Afisha, more than 1.2 million people have watched the musical "Fear Nothing, I'm with You" since the premiere.

— The number of original projects has increased, and this is good for the market. We see that domestic musicals can be no less interesting and in demand than foreign ones," Frandetti says.

This is also confirmed by the attendance — the total number of viewers is growing starting in 2022.

— At the end of 2023, our company scaled up its activities by 30%, launching the rental of the musical "Mamma By!" at the Maska Theater in MDM. In October 2024, the growth was another 20% due to the premiere of the musical comedy "Elementary, Hudson! The case of Dog B." It turns out that 2024 has become even more productive for our company in terms of the number of viewers, tickets sold and fees. So now the audience can watch five of our musicals at once. There are plans to create one or two more theaters in the next couple of years. It is important that this activity does not require any government financing or subsidies, nor loans or credits, nor sponsors or donors. This is a normal, full-fledged, healthy independent business that is needed by the audience, artists, producers, and investors. The real Moscow Broadway, which was eventually built," says Dmitry Bogachev.

Experts talked about the prospects and profitability of musicals for theaters last year. Viewers, against the background of economic and geopolitical crises, are inclined to light entertainment formats, moreover, they have become more open to new productions. Theaters, in turn, benefit from investing in musicals and keeping them in the repertoire for a long time. For example, the musical "Mamma by!" paid off in just two months of showing.

The driver of the Russian theater scene

The dynamic development of musicals benefits the entire theater industry. Due to its entertainment, accessibility and a wide range of artistic means, the musical has become the most popular theatrical genre. It helps to attract not only the traditional audience, but also the mass audience, including young people and families with children.

— Musicals make theater more popular and accessible. They attract a new audience that might not have been interested in theater before," says Bogachev.

In addition, musicals increase the demands on actors. Today, it is not enough to master only acting skills — vocals, dancing and the ability to move have become the standard not only in music, but also in drama theater, as well as in cinema.

— Professions that have been underestimated in recent decades are being revived. For example, sound engineers who are able to work with live orchestras and vocalists are in demand again," the producer notes.

Ticket sales mechanisms and marketing strategies are also being improved. Theaters actively use digital tools to promote their productions, which makes them more visible to a wide audience.

Producer Dmitry Bogachev calls film adaptations of musicals a promising direction for the development of the industry.

— Russian film producers are increasingly paying attention to musicals, thinking about the revival of the musical film genre, which was popular in the USSR. Hollywood has never interrupted this tradition — strong film musicals are released every year, as confirmed by the latest Oscar ceremony. So if a musical collects billions of rubles at the theatrical box office in one single hall, which the Russian cinema can envy, then why shouldn't a film based on this musical collect the same amount or more across the country? — Bogachev emphasizes.

Musicals remain one of the most entertaining and emotional genres, combining music, drama and visual effects. Even chamber productions are designed to surprise and entertain the viewer, offering him a temporary escape from reality.

— This genre is in demand precisely because it allows the viewer to immerse themselves in another world for 2.5–3 hours. Even if the ending of the musical is sad, it still remains a vivid and memorable show. Musical theater has a chemical effect on the viewer much more than just a word or just a dance," concludes Frandetti.

According to Bogachev, if there are no artificially created obstacles in Russia, then musicals will become a leading theatrical genre in the future, as happened in the USA, Great Britain, Germany, Japan and other countries.