In Madrid, on Gran Vía, often referred to as "Spanish Broadway", the premiere of Iván Macías' new musical The Pillars of the Earth took place at the Teatro EDP Gran Vía in November 2024. The name of this composer, who works together with the librettist Felix Amador, is well known not only in Spain but also in other countries of the world.

His musicals El Medico/The Physician (2018), El Tiempo Entre Costuras/The Time in Between (2021), and La Historia Interminable/ The Never-ending Story (2022) have earned him fame as a symphonic composer who creates his works for musical theatre based on modern literary bestsellers. The new musical based on the historical novel by the famous British writer Ken Follett, published in 1989, The Pillars of the Earth, is no exception. One must have great courage to adapt a literary work with a volume of almost a thousand pages, with numerous storylines, historical and fictional characters. The action revolves around the construction of a cathedral in the fictional English city of Kingsbridge against the background of the Civil War of the 12th century. The novel covers a period of four decades (1135-1174). The thriller had a huge sales market all over the world, a TV series based on it was shot (2010), and a computer game of the same name was developed.

The musical journey of the audience into this medieval story full of confrontation, love and hate, success and the collapse of hope, as well as life and death in every sense of the word begins with immersion into the world of medieval architecture. The stage stylized as the interior vaults of the cathedral under construction, is continued into the depths of the auditorium, and sculptures of saints can be seen in the niches of the walls. There are also numerous stairs and scaffoldings descending into the audience, which are used as part of the stage space. Director and choreographer (Federico Barrios Fierro), set designer (Ricardo S. Cuerda), video designer (Felipe Ramos) consciously worked out the immersion component, periodically achieving the 4D effect. The video installations and surround sound accompanying the show are amazing. The most unexpected effect on the audience's senses, however, was the effect of the floor shaking during a fire, when the rafters and walls of the cathedral collapsed, with a distinct smell of smoke and burning.

Lighting design is also important in this production, working not only for the overall picture but also the emotional component. It is impossible not to note the appearance of a huge Gothic stained-glass rosette in the finale, through which light pours onto the participants of the show, symbolizing the beginning of a new life and the continuity of times.

The costumes (Marietta Calderón), created in medieval style, add authenticity to what is happening on stage and help to determine the character's class. Despite their complexity, they do not limit the physical capabilities of performers who freely sing, dance, and move in space.

The music, sometimes stylized as medieval, pleases with its variety: instrumental compositions characterize powerful clergymen, royalty and other hierarchs, feudal lords, as well as simple – educated and uneducated – residents of the city and its environs. Given the fact that there are almost three dozen actors in the musical, it was a great challenge to "grant" even the main characters with their own themes, the music was meant to reveal the nature and emotional state of the characters.

Two musical numbers can be called truly memorable: Jack and Aliena's duet Una Ilusión /An Illusion and the aria Silencio/Silence performed by Elizabeth, Aliena, Ellen, and Matilde. This song makes the audience cry every time: such a high level of emotional impact is ensured by the relevance of the topic. After all, resisting abuse for a woman, just like it was eight centuries ago, is not easy nowadays either. As well as the topic of female loneliness which remains unresolved.

Historical authenticity, character recognition, and special attention to the interaction of different cultures were, according to Iván Macías, one of the priorities he set himself while working on this musical. The use of various musical styles does not look like an unjustified jumble but serves the main purpose: to tell a captivating story. Songs are part of the narrative, while dancing and stage movement contribute to developing the plot, ensuring the effect of "atmosphere".

Iván Macías continues "polishing" the production, being present in the audience every show. He, like the whole team, appreciates the result and enjoys the positive feedback from the audience. The opinion of Ken Follett, who attended the premiere and spoke positively about the new media form of his novel, became a matter of special pride for the composer.

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