“Forever Young” is a Norwegian musical that has conquered the public with its humor and tenderness, suitable for all ages. In its 12th season, this show returns with the fun story of five charming elderly rockers, whose lives unfold in the nursing home for actors, known as The Picadero.
The premiere is scheduled for Monday, May 6 and will run until July 2024, at 8:00 p.m., at the iconic Picadero TheaterLocated in the Santos Discépolo Passage 1857just half a block from Corrientes Avenue and Shut up. Tickets are available at www.plateanet.com and at the theater box office.
The cast is made up of Walter Canella, Christian Gimenez, Melania Lenoir, Andrea Lovera, Ivanna Rossi, German Tripel and, on the piano, the teacher Hernan Matorra.
This Argentine version of the musical comedy was adapted by the Catalans Tricicle, authored by Eric Gideon. Under the direction of Daniel Casablancamusical direction of Gaby Goldmanchoreographies Elizabeth of Chapeaurouge and general production of Pablo Kompel and Sebastian Blutrach.
The renowned talents will perform musical hits from the 70s, 80s and 90s, both in English and Spanish, including hits from What in, Eurythmics, Alphaville, The Rolling Stones, Bob Marley, the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Nirvana and a special block of national rock. Among the most notable songs on “Forever Young” are: I Love Rock & Roll, Roxanne, Sweet Dreams, Get Up Stand Up, Smells Like Teen Spirit, barbie girl, I Will Survive, Forever Young and many more.
The elderly start dancing and singing
The plot of “Forever Young” takes us to the year 2050, where six elderly men who were once big stars of the pop and rock They enjoy their days in a nursing home. Between rehabilitation exercises, medication, anecdotes and pleasant memories, they have the company of a peculiar nurse who, in addition to caring for them, is a lyrical singer and uses various strategies to entertain them and deal with the antics and rebellions of the elderly. Together, they try to live life their way, defying the passage of time with an unbeatable secret weapon: music and humor.
A talk with Andrea Lovera
The Argentine actress Andrea Lovera plays the role of the nurse in the nursing home. With an extensive acting career, her work on television and theater has led her to develop in both adult and children’s audiences. Footnote had an entertaining interview with Andrea before her performance at the premiere.
–What is it like to go through 12 years with “Forever Young?”, and now that you are about to present the new season again. How do you live it?
With great happiness, because it is a work that I have loved doing since we started. Because of the message it gives, and because of how people are moved. This generates absolute pleasure and in addition to this, with the team, we end up being like a family. We know each other a lot, we have toured, we have shared all this time and it is working with friends.
–Your time in the play is very relevant because prior to your character as a nurse, you played alternative roles.
Yes, we entered with Walter Canella as alternates. That meant that once a week we had a guaranteed performance in which we played one of the three characters in the play. In my case, the female characters; in theirs, the masculine ones. In fact, in one weekend I had to play two characters on different dates, for example, in two shows on a Saturday: in the first I was the rocker and in the second, the nurse. We sang choruses from the side of the stage; we were part of the show either way.
–It’s fascinating, because you had to change into several characters and that gave you an extra boost to act.
Having experienced that was very interesting for everyone. In principle, when they offer you the role of an alternate, the first sensation is as if the brain is going to dissociate for when it has to play one or the other character. I still have written down in my notebook from 12 years ago how the movements, the texts, the voices, choral arrangements, everything were done. It’s incredible, and I experienced it with other works as well.
–In the series “Soy Luna” (2016) and in the movie, “Animal” (2018), you also played the role of a nurse. Which shows that your acting DNA drags you to play this role.
Yes and also in the musical documentary of “Evita” (Eva Peron) I was one of the nurses. It may be a profession that haunts me. Personally, I am very protective of my affections.
–In “Forever Young”, she gives the first impression that she is very tyrannical, but in the course of the plot, it is discovered that she is the one who makes the elderly live in a very creative way.
I find it funny about the character, that people create that first impression and in the end they realize that it was nothing like that. As a personal experience, before my grandmother passed away, she spent six months in a nursing home. She saw the old people sitting around bored, like passing the time that way and I thought: “If my grandmother had shared with characters from “Forever Young”, it would have been very entertaining.
What do you enjoy most about your character?
I like that it makes them play, without them knowing they are doing it. Leave elements or a phrase that ends up being a proposal to make your day more entertaining and fun. The nurse is the only one who enters and leaves the scene. Leave a little seed of humor, I talk to them about their past as artists, I make songs or games before closing the door to go to sleep. I like that in the end it is understood that he always did everything with good intentions.
–As for Daniel Casablanca’s direction, you can see that he lets each one develop and adds to the acting.
I worked with him in the theater band, “The Macocos”. In a work where there were also women. I learned the timing of humor to begin with, and what it’s like to play on stage in a comedy. Also working with the audience, because comedy is action and reaction between actors and the audience. You can’t pretend the audience isn’t there.
Daniel, being the great comedian that he is, let us create a lot. This didn’t happen overnight. There were many months of rehearsals to create how an old man walks, his gestures and with Gaby Goldman musically, are spectacular.
–In 12 years of acting, has it ever happened to you to feel a desert of getting tired of acting?
No, because I love doing it and every day is different. It is not a work that can become monotonous. So there is a fun from inside the stage that also makes people see something that flows. Also doing it once a week helps a lot to avoid falling into a routine. The first season was from Wednesday to Sunday and also double Saturdays. Now that it is from Monday to Monday, it feels like a desire during the week, to want to be back on the scene.
–Would you like to grow old like the elderly at the El Picadero nursing home?
With Melania Lenoir (she plays the rocker), we have a plan. We always say, let’s talk about it with other of my classmates too, but with her specifically, we talk about our friendship and how we want to live our advanced age. The ideal would be to go live in a nice place. sometimes we say Cordova, with a nice view, having someone who takes care of our health. It would be something wonderful.
