The Art of Training a Goldfish at Teatro Latea

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2. The Art of Training a Goldfish

What price must an artist pay for their integrity? "The Art of Training A Goldfish" written by Nicole Colbert and co-directed by Nicole Colbert and Tatyana Kot, explores the complicated relationship of Mikhail Bulgakov, a Ukrainian born writer, satirist and former medical doctor, with the rise of Soviet power, the purges of Stalin, and the space an artist lives between imagination and reality.

Playwright Nicole Colbert's interest in Bulgakov began years ago when she first read "Master and Margarita" and "Heart of a Dog" in the English translation and fell in love with Bulgakov's rich and intelligent humor. The more she read, the more her curiosity was piqued about his life. When she learned that Bulgakov lived the last 15 years of his life without being published but exempt from punishment (being sent to the Gulag, or killed like so many other artists around him), she recognized something phenomonal about his life and situation. It is alleged that Stalin loved Bulgakov's plays. Perhaps this is the reason he allowed Bulgakov to live even though his satire was often a thinly veiled criticism of Soviet society. Nicole Colbert says "We'll never know what the actual relationship between Stalin and Bulgakov was but I believe that Stalin's interest in his work was a beacon of hope that drove Bulgakov forward. He must have felt protected, even if that concept of protection was a fantasy. It is hope that keeps us going." It is claimed that Bulgakov wrote Stalin six times over the course of his later life, and this serves as an anchor to Nicole's play. When Bulgakov's home was raided in 1925, all his manuscripts and diaries were confiscated, and he was never published again. He died in 1940 at the age 48 from kidney failure. Much of his work was preserved by Elena Bulgakova, his last wife, who was able to get "Master and Margarita" published posthumously. Nicole spent five years researching the life and world in which Bulgakov lived, consulting many along the way, workshopping the play at Primary Stages, and holding table reads. She has written 2 one-acts. This is her first evening length play.

The cast features a mix of international and American actors: Brandon deSpain (b. Siberia), Lane M. Jackson (NJ), Tatyana Kot (b. Kazakhstan), Vadim Kroll (b. Russia), Iryna Malygina (b. Ukraine) and Evelina Pristovšek (b. Slovenia). Although specific places are cited, those in the cast who were born in Siberia, Russia, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine were, technically, born in the Soviet Union and have served as primary sources for helping to create the world of the play in production.

Performances take place at Teatro Latea, 107 Suffolk St, NYC 10002. Running time: 85 minutes with no intermission. This show is being performed as part of the New York Theatre Festival.

Tickets are $25 and are available at https://newyorktheaterfestival.com/the-art-of-training-a-goldfish/ and https://www.nicolecolbertdance.com/the-art-of-training-a-goldfish

Performance schedule:

Thursday, May 11 @ 6:15 pm

Saturday, May 13 @ 2:15 pm

Sunday, May 14 @ 6 pm

Nicole Colbert (Playwright/Producer/Director) is a writer, educator, and theatre critic for offoffonline.com, as well as a choreographer. Her dance/theatre work range from experimental dance to re-imagined works of classical drama, utilizing a physical vocabulary. She has developed an approach to teaching movement for actors that fuses dance principles fused with elements of Gaga, LeCoq and Viewpoints. Her dance/theatre adaptation of “A Streetcar Named Desire” by Tennessee Williams received a grant from the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation and was premiered as part of the Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary festival in 2017 and 2019. It was the first dance/theatre production of its kind for the festival. This is her first evening length play. She is thrilled to be working with such a talented cast who bring with them a worldview that have contributed to the life of the play. https://www.nicolecolbertdance.com/

Tatyana Kot (Director/Actor) was born in the Soviet Union (Kazakhstan), trained to be a ballerina, studied History and Archaeology in university and worked with people with disabilities for 14 years. Breast cancer survivor and advocate. Best actress winner at Planet Connections theater festivity, Midtown international theater festival and First prize at Secondo Theater festival (Zurich, Switzerland) multiple nominee and winner of New York Innovative Theater Awards. She has been a company member of Blessed Unrest and will be going on tour with the critically acclaimed show “The Singing Windmills” by Roman Freud. A VR immersive documentary about her life with cancer NORMAL DAY was internationally released in 2018. She is also a well sought out teaching artist. Tatyana discovered an illegal copy of “Master and Margarita” in the back of her parents’ bookcase when she was 12, read it and it has been her favorite book since.  https://actresstatyanakot.com/