Characters / Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812

"Cause it's a complicated Russian novel
Everyone's got nine different names
So look it up in your program
We'd appreciate it, thanks a lot..."

— "Prologue"

A list of characters from Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812. For the character sheet for the novel the show is adapted from, see Characters.War And Peace.

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Natasha

Countess Natalya "Natasha/Natalie" Ilyinichna Rostova

Played by: Phillipa Soo (Off-Broadway), Denee Benton (OBC), Shoba Narayan (Broadway u/s), Lauren Zakrin (Broadway u/s), Bruna Guerin (São Paulo), Erika Ikuta (Tokyo), Jung Eun Ji & Haena (Seoul)

Natasha is young
She loves Andrey with all her heart

"Oh the moon
Oh the snow in the moonlight
And your childlike eyes
And your distant smile
I’ll never be this happy again..."

— "No One Else"

The show's heroine, and the romantic and spirited daughter of a Russian count. She is engaged to Andrey at the beginning of the story.

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• Absence Makes the Heart Go Yonder: Natasha waits for Andrey to return home from the war, but gradually forgets about him as she gets more and more involved with Anatole.
• Break the Cutie: What happens to Natasha, courtesy of Anatole's loose affections. She starts the musical as The Ingenue, ends it recuperating from a suicide attempt.
• Defiled Forever: Sonya and Marya D. are extremely concerned about what will happen to Natasha's reputation if her affair with Anatole is discovered. And they were right to be worried. Pierre has to do some damage control in the middle of his search for Anatole, reassuring gossipers that nothing happened, Andrey refuses to forgive her, and Natasha becomes convinced that her life is over — though Pierre comforts her by saying he'd marry her if he weren't already married.
• Driven to Suicide: Poor Natasha, after losing both of her lovers, swallows some arsenic. She survives, though, and by the end of the show she's regained a little hope for the future.
• Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Played straight in the Sao Paulo production due to Natasha being The Ingenue and her actress (Bruna Guerin) having naturally blonde hair.
• The Ingenue: Like in the novel. She's hopelessly in love with Andrey and easily believes Anatole and Helene have her best intentions in mind. She also has difficulty distinguishing between love and attraction, as she is convinced that she must have been wrong about loving Andrey after she kisses Anatole and likes it, and further, is convinced that being in love with Anatole must mean he's a good person.
• Innocent Soprano: Ingenue heroine Natasha (introduced as "Natasha is young; she loves Andrey with all her heart") is fittingly a soprano. Her more realistic cousin Sonya is a mezzo, while the villainous Helene and the strict, older Marya are altos. Of course, this is also Played With in that Natasha, while ultimately a good person, is not as pure hearted as she's first made out to be.
• Love at First Sight: Natasha falls hard for Anatole the moment she sees him. It doesn't end well.
• Love Makes You Dumb: Natasha catches a major case of this. Not once does she think that perhaps there's a shady reason for a young man in reasonably good social standing to want to elope with her, rather than courting her legitimately. Sonya and Marya D. both point out that something must be up, but she insists that Anatole has good reasons. She doesn't know what they are, but they're good! (Anatole, for his part, only escapes this by virtue of not actually being in love with her.)
• Regal Ringlets: In the Tokyo and Seoul productions, Natasha wears her hair in loose ringlets instead of the updo seen in the NYC and Sao Paulo productions. Subverted during the second act of the Tokyo production, where she ties up her hair into a more formal updo.
• Slut-Shaming: Natasha gets a lot of this in the second act, but eventually the other characters realize that Anatole lied to her and led her on, and shift the blame to him. Though Andrey can't bring himself to forgive a "fallen woman" — after all, he never claimed that he himself would be able to absolve such a lady.

Pierre

Count Pyotr "Pierre/Peter" Kirillovich Bezukhov

Played by: Dave Malloy (Off-Broadway), Josh Groban (OBC), André Frateschi (São Paulo), Thiago Perticarrari (São Paulo u/s), Yoshio Inoue (Tokyo), K. Will and Hong Kwang Ho (Seoul)

And what about Pierre?
Dear bewildered awkward Pierre...

"I'm different from you
I still want to do something!
Or do you struggle too?"

— "Pierre"

Natasha's old friend. Pierre is one of Russia's richest men and married to the beauteous Hélène, but is unhappy and seeks a higher purpose.

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• Author Avatar: Pierre is a weird example. Dave Malloy didn't create the original character, but for the first run of the show, he played the part himself, and it feels written for him in many ways.
• Badass Bookworm: Pierre prefers reading at home than going to social events. That said, he wounds Dolokhov in a duel and terrifies Anatole into leaving Moscow for good.
• Big "WHAT?!": Has four of these in a row during "A Call to Pierre", each one more outraged than the last, as Marya elaborates about Natasha eloping with Anatole.
• Bungled Suicide: During The Duel, Pierre attempts suicide by making himself an easy target. Dolokhov misses.
• Did Not Get the Girl: An unusual example. Toward the end of the show, Pierre awkwardly confesses that if he weren't married to Hélène — and if he felt that he were good enough — he would propose to Natasha himself. Natasha is intensely touched and grateful, but nothing further happens between them. However, if you've read the book, you know that they will eventually be Happily Married.
• Drowning My Sorrows: Pierre at the rave is drinking instead of socializing.
• Endearingly Dorky: The lyrics describe him as "dear, bewildered, and awkward".
• Heroic Self-Deprecation: Pierre, from time to time, will consider himself unworthy of his situation in life.
• "I Am" Song: "Pierre," which establishes how Pierre is at a crossroads in his life and feels lost in the shallow complacency of the Moscow elite.
  Pierre: I'm different from you! I still want to do something...!
• Love Epiphany: During "Pierre and Natasha", Pierre realises that he is in love with Natasha, and confesses that if he weren't already married and worthy of her, he'd gladly marry her. The whole thing is emphasised by the music ceasing and Pierre speaking, not singing, the words.
• Nice Guy: Pierre is a total sweetheart, especially when he shows desperately-needed compassion and kindness to Natasha in "Pierre and Natasha".
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Pierre to Anatole during "Pierre and Anatole". However, Anatole being Anatole, it doesn't stick, and Pierre forgoes pressing the point in favor of getting Anatole to comply with his damage control plan.
  Pierre: After all, you must understand/that besides your pleasure/there's such a thing as other people/and their happiness and peace/and that you are ruining a whole life/for the sake of amusing yourself!

Sonya

Sofya "Sonya" Alexandrovna Rostova

Played by: Brittain Ashford (Off-Broadway, OBC), Adriana Del Claro (São Paulo), Rinko Matsubara (Tokyo), Hyo Eu (Seoul)

Sonya is good
Natasha’s cousin and closest friend

"I will stand in the dark for you
I will hold you back by force
I will stand here right outside your door
I won’t see you disgraced"

— "Sonya Alone"

Natasha's orphaned cousin, who has been living with the Rostovs since childhood, and her best friend and confidant.

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• Declaration of Protection: "Sonya Alone", in which Sonya vows to do whatever she can to save Natasha from ruin and heartbreak.
• Quizzical Tilt: Sonya's reaction after the first act of "The Opera".
• Undying Loyalty: Sonya to Natasha, even when Natasha scorns her for not approving of her relationship with Anatole.

Anatole

Prince Anatole Vasilyevich Kuragin

Played by: Lucas Steele (Off-Broadway, OBC), Josh Canfield (Off-Broadway and OBS u/s), Gabriel Leone (São Paulo), Ryosei Konishi (Tokyo), Lee Choong Joo, Park Kang Hyun, and Go Eun Sung (Seoul)

Anatole is hot
He spends his money on women and wine

"And I never remove my smiling eyes
From your face, your neck, your bare arms"

— "Natasha and Anatole"

Pierre's brother-in-law, a hedonistic and charming soldier whose attraction to Natasha spurs the show's plot.

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• Affably Evil: While he does have several moments of dickishness, Anatole's cruelty comes from ignorance than actual malevolent intent. Besides that, he's actually pretty friendly and polite.
• Big Bad:While he isn't an actively malicious man, his seducing of Natasha despite the fact that she is engaged to another man and he is married (a fact she is unaware of) drives the main plot of the show.
• The Casanova: Anatole, who seduces another man's fiancee despite being married himself. He's even introduced as spending his money on "women and wine."
• Composite Character: In the novel, Pierre's second during his duel with Dolokhov is Nikolai, Natasha's brother. This role is given to Anatole in the musical.
• Dirty Coward: He clearly rankles under Pierre's accusations about his character, but when he notes that a "man of honor" could not let such accusations lie and Pierre asks if he really wants satisfaction, he quickly backtracks and says that if Pierre just took back his words, Anatole would do what he wants. To make things simple, Pierre retracts his comments and Anatole leaves Moscow the next morning.
• It's All About Me: When Pierre lays down his "The Reason You Suck" Speech, pointing out how badly he hurt Natasha for the sake of a fling, Anatole's only reaction is to say that it wasn't his fault and demand Pierre apologize for calling him a scoundrel.
• Mr. Fanservice: Quite a few lines are devoted to talking about how good looking he is, which his actor is expected to shamelessly play up.
• Never My Fault: Refuses to accept the blame for his actions, and is deeply offended when someone says otherwise.
• Obliviously Evil: Anatole doesn't actually mean to hurt any of the people that he injures — he's just so completely thoughtless he doesn't consider how his actions impact other people. However, played with in that he is deliberately thoughtless. "Don't speak to me of that!" is practically his catchphrase whenever someone tries to tell him about the consequences of his actions.
• Odd Friendship: He and Pierre have one, with Anatole being one of the few friends Pierre has, even inviting him out to the club when Pierre would otherwise stay locked up at home. They are close enough that Pierre is one of the few that knows Anatole is married. Though this friendship quickly ends when Pierre realizes that Anatole seduced Natasha and helped destroy her engagement to Andrey, nearly ruining her public reputation in the process. He very quickly forces Anatole to leave Moscow for good.
• Shotgun Wedding: Anatole wouldn't even have a wife if not for a certain Polish heiress's father finding out about their dalliance.
• Tenor Boy: Inverted. As originally staged, Anatole's part is the only one that needs a tenor (he sings some very long and high notes) but he's the least honorable of the male characters, as a rakish hedonist and adulterer.
• Villain: Exit, Stage Left: Upon being threatened by Pierre, Anatole exits the stage and the story, his narration noting he leaves for St. Petersburg.

Hélène

Countess Hélène Vasilyevna Bezukhova (nee Kuragina)

Played by: Amber Gray (Off-Broadway, OBC), Carol Bezerra (São Paulo), Hiromu Kiriya (Tokyo), Bang Jin Ui and Hong Ryun Hee (Seoul)

Hélène is a slut
Anatole's sister, married to Pierre

"You are such a lovely thing
Oh where have you been?
It’s such a shame to bury pearls in the country,
Charmante, charmante, charming!"

— "Charming"

Pierre's wife — they don't get on. In addition to sleeping around behind Pierre's back, Hélène encourages Anatole's pursuit of Natasha for her own amusement.

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• Alto Villainess: Unlike soprano heroine Natasha, Hélène sings in the lower register and encourages her infidelity.
• Card-Carrying Villain: Compared to her brother who is very much Obliviously Evil, Hélène clearly very much enjoys the chaos she causes, whether openly cheating on her husband Pierre and taunting him or helping her brother seduce a woman that she knows full well is very naive, engaged to another man, and unable to actually marry Anatole since he is married.
• The Corrupter: Unlike her brother who is just self centered and thoughtless, Helene is more aware of what her actions might cause. That doesn't stop her from going to convince Natasha, who is fretting about her growing attraction to Anatole, to go with him to a ball, knowing full well that she is pushing Natasha into cheating on her fiance.
• Dramatic Necklace Removal: Hélène removes Natasha's necklace (a parting gift from Andrey) during "Charming".
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: She does care for her brother Anatole, helping him seduce Natasha.
• Evil Redhead: In the Japanese adaptation of Comet, Helene is depicted to have red hair.
• It Amused Me: Helene enables Anatole's seduction of Natasha despite knowing that he's married and she's engaged, because it's fun.
• Villain Song: "Charming", for Hélène.

Marya D.

Marya Dmitrievna Akhrosimova

Played by: Grace McLean (Off-Broadway, OBC), Lulu Fall (Broadway u/s), Kennedy Caughell (Broadway u/s), Nàbia Villela (São Paulo), Kaoru Harada (Tokyo), Joo Ah (Seoul)

Marya is old-school, a grande dame of Moscow
Natasha’s godmother, strict yet kind

"I’ll take you where you must go
Pet you a bit
And I’ll scold you a bit
My goddaughter, my favorite, Natasha
I will touch you on the cheek!"

— "Moscow"

An older relative of the Rostovs who is protective of her beloved goddaughter Natasha. She hosts Sonya and Natasha while they are in Moscow.

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• Affectionate Gesture to the Head: From "Moscow":
  Marya: My goddaughter, my favorite Natasha...I will touch you on the cheek!
• Anger Born of Worry: "In My House" is Marya D. shouting at Natasha and calling her a hussy — because she's justifiably concerned about her and what would have happened if they'd managed to elope.
• Dissonant Serenity: Marya D. (as played by Grace McLean) begins her scolding of Natasha during "In My House" with a smile on her face, albeit one that looks like she's speaking through clenched teeth.
• Suddenly Shouting: For the first few lines of In My House, Marya speaks with a calm but very clear fury, but when Natasha turns her back on her, she starts screaming at her.

  Marya: It's lucky for him that he escaped, but I'll find him. Now you listen to me when I speak to you. NOW YOU LISTEN TO ME WHEN I SPEAK TO YOU! In MY house! In MY house! Do you hear what I'm saying or not!?

Dolokhov

Fyodor "Fedya" Ivanovich Dolokhov

Played by: Nick Choksi (Off-Broadway, OBC), André Torquato (São Paulo), Kouki Mizuta (Tokyo), Choi Ho Jung (Seoul)

Dolokhov is fierce, but not too important
Anatole's friend, a crazy good shot

"Here's to the health of married women
And a smile lurks at the corner of my mouth
Here's to the health of married women
And their lovers!"

— "The Duel"

Anatole's friend and Hélène's lover, who is a cruel soldier.

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• The Cassandra: Dolokhov tries to tell Anatole that the elopement is a stupid idea.
• Everyone Has Standards: While there's also some Pragmatic Villainy going on, Dolokhov also seems uncomfortable with Anatole's abduction of "a little girl".
• Irony: Dolokhov's intro in Prologue notes 4 things about him, one of which is that he's a "crazy good shot". When Pierre challenges him to a duel, he ends up completely missing his shot. Partially justified in that Pierre had just shot him in his shooting arm, but it's still the only shot he ever actually takes during the show.
• Memetic Badass: In-Universe. At the opera, he's called "The Assassin", as his reputation as a soldier precedes him.
• Only Sane Man: At least compared to Anatole. In Preparations, he tries to convince Anatole that his plan to steal Natasha away and marry her is just a bad idea and not thought out well at all. He even notes that Anatole should listen to him as he's the one who did all the preparation for it. Though when Anatole rejects his arguments, he still assists Anatole with the attempt.
• Playing Cyrano: Played with. Anatole is no shrinking violet, but he does have Dolokhov write his love-letters for him.

Andrey

Prince Andrey Nikolayevich Bolkonsky

Played by: Blake DeLong (Off-Broadway), Nicholas Belton (OBC), Ken Clark (Off-Broadway and Broadway u/s), Blaine Alden Krauss (Broadway u/s), Patrick Amstalden (São Paulo), Shinji Takeda (Tokyo), Kang Jeong Woo (Seoul)

And Andrey isn't here...

Pierre's good friend and Natasha's fiance, who is away at war for most of the story.

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• Adaptational Jerkass: Due to being only a excerpt of the book, an excerpt that Andrey barely is in, the audience only gets to see him at his most bitter and cruel when he rejects Pierre's attempts to get him to forgive Natasha and even coldly smiles at the idea that she is deathly ill. And once again due to the nature of the show being only a small segment of the book, we do not see that Andrey does eventually forgive Natasha (and even Anatole) a while later.
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Maybe. Although not being able to forgive Natasha for her infidelity isn't necessarily wrong, he admits that a good man would do it. Pierre notices that "he smiled like his father, coldly, maliciously".
• The Ghost: He makes a very brief appearance at the start of the show, literally leaving during the first line of the opening number to go to war and is never seen again for the rest of the story, despite being referenced frequently. That is until he returns for one scene at the end of the show to formalize the end of his engagement to Natasha.
• Hero of Another Story: He is one of the major protagonists in War and Peace, yet is quite Out of Focus here, given the setting of the story.
• Out of Focus: In War and Peace, he is one of the protagonists, but due to the show being an excerpt of the book that doesn't show the war, he is largely The Ghost.

The Bolkonskys

Prince Nikolay Andreevitch Bolkonsky and Princess Mary Bolkonskaya

Old Prince Bolkonsky played by: Blake DeLong (Off-Broadway), Ken Clark (Off-Broadway and Broadway u/s), Blaine Alden Krauss (Broadway u/s), Nicholas Belton (OBC), Patrick Amstalden (São Paulo), Shinji Takeda (Tokyo)

Mary played by: Gelsey Bell (Off-Broadway, OBC), Lola Fanucchi (São Paulo), Shoko Haida (Tokyo), Yeon Ji Ri (Seoul)

Old Prince Bolkonsky is crazy
And Mary is plain

Andrey's dysfunctional family, comprised of his father Prince Nikolay Bolkonsky, a senile veteran, and his sister Princess Mary, their father's long-suffering spinster caretaker.

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• Abusive Parents: Old Prince Bolkonsky towards Princess Mary, of the emotional/psychological and possibly physical variety.
• Dysfunctional Family: The Bolkonskys, comprising a senile father, a put-upon sister, and Andrey himself. Lampshaded at the start of the musical by the character introductions.
  Andrey's family, totally messed up.
• Evil Old Folks: Old Prince Bolkonsky may not be strictly speaking evil, but he is nasty, unpleasant, and abusive towards his daughter.
• Meet the In-Laws: "Natasha & Bolkonskys" is all about this, and the meeting doesn't go very well. Natasha and Mary dislike each other on sight, and Old Prince Bolkonsky is incredibly rude and nasty to his future daughter-in-law.
• Minor Character, Major Song: They only really play a large part in the beginning but an entire song is devoted to the family dynamic and Natasha meeting them.
• Obnoxious In-Laws: They're not technically in-laws yet, but Natasha's first meeting with her fiance's family goes very poorly. Their nasty treatment of her is one of the reasons she grows more attracted to Anatole. However, to Mary's credit, she does try to patch things up. By the end of the show, Natasha's engagement to Andrey is broken, meaning they won't be her in-laws anyway.^note In the book, Mary and Natasha do make the jump to Best Friends-in-Law, but far past the events covered in the musical.

Balaga

Balaga

Played by: Paul Pinto (Off-Broadway, OBC), Nick Gaswirth (Broadway u/s), Heath Saunders (Broadway u/s), Vitor Moresco (São Paulo), Arthur Berges (São Paulo), Meili-Mu (Tokyo)

And Balaga's just for fun!

A famous troika driver who Anatole and Dolokhov know well.

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• Drives Like Crazy: He drives his passengers while drunk, has his horses run at full gallop through crowded streets, and boasts that he'll run down anyone who doesn't get out of the way when they see him coming.
• Minor Character, Major Song: Indeed, Balaga's just for fun, and gets a whole song to himself.