Russia's Catherine the Great returns, as a musical

By Conor Sweeney

YEKATERINBURG, Russia (Reuters) - Sex, power and fabulous wealth are images of modern Russia and also the theme for an ambitious new stage musical evoking one of Russia's most famous rulers.

Opening Thursday in the Urals city, Yekaterinburg, that bears her name, "Catherine the Great" combines rock, operatic arias and Russian Orthodox religious music to recall the German-born princess and her path to imperial power.

Catherine's personal story contains all the right ingredients for a musical. The story follows her arrival in Russia in 1745, aged 15, and her Russification as the wife of the future Tsar, before assuming power and ruling as an autocrat over a "golden age" of Russian empire until she was 67.

Best-known outside Russia as the place where the family of the last Tsar was murdered 90 years ago, Yekaterinburg now hopes to stir memories of one of the country's best-loved rulers.

"Catherine" features a 45-piece orchestra and bursts of electric guitar to complement the arias, choral interludes and ragtime routines that very closely resemble another musical, "Chicago."

"It must become a Russian global hit," classically trained composer Sergei Dreznin told Reuters in an interview.

He compares his work to another famous historical musical, set at the time of the French revolution, 'Les Miserables'.

Though he denies any parallel with Russia's dominant political figure, Vladimir Putin, Dreznin says that buried behind the arias and choreography is an underlying theme about how Russia gravitates towards strong leaders.  Continued...