By Brian Robin
What Makes Hershey Special?
Whether it’s reading scripts, directing productions or guiding the artistic direction of a major regional theatre, SCR Artistic Director David Ivers immerses himself in the art of storytelling every day.
This artistic, experienced eye makes him the perfect source to describe the singular, storytelling talent of Hershey Felder, who brings his newest musical play, Rachmaninoff and the Tsar, to the Segerstrom Stage Feb. 19-March 2.
When asked to describe Felder’s incandescent talents, Ivers had to break them up into parts. Because Felder’s ability to entertain audiences takes him into another storytelling galaxy—one that goes beyond the piano and into the persona of many of the world’s greatest composers.
“He is a masterful pianist, having studied at a very early age pursuing his passion at McGill (University in Montreal) and other institutions with rigor and ambition,” Ivers said. “His fascination with historical figures, musicians and composers intersect with a high intelligence and furious curiosity that prompts him to discover universal truths about the well-known characters he plays.”
The way Felder approaches his characters, using that curiosity to fuel an intellectual deep-dive into the psyche and personality of the composers he portrays—while captivating audiences with the music that made them special—is a storytelling element that Ivers said is unique.
“I am always delighted to meet those voices from our past in three dimensions and personified by Hershey,” Ivers said. “I am inspired by Hershey’s singular devotion to his kind of storytelling.”
Experience for yourself that unique storytelling ability as you join Felder on the mystical musical journey of Rachmaninoff and the Tsar. Felder takes the role of composer and pianist Sergei Rachmaninoff, joined by British-Italian actor Jonathan Silvestri in the role of Tsar Nicholas II, the last Tsar of Russia. Having safely left Russia during the 1917 revolution, Rachmaninoff eventually made his home in Beverly Hills, but always longed for the Tsarist Russia that he knew and loved as a young man.