French invasion of Russia subject of much discussion among historians. The campaign's sustained role in Russian culture may be seen in Tolstoy's "War and Peace", Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture", and the identification of it with the German invasion of 1941–45, which became known as the "Great Patriotic War" in the Soviet Union. French invasion of Russia The French invasion of Russia, known in Russia as the Patriotic War of 1812 () and in France as the Russian Campaign (), began on 24 June 1812 when Napoleon's crossed the Neman River in an attempt to engage and defeat the Russian army. Napoleon hoped to compel Tsar
Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 is a sung-through musical adaptation of a 70-page segment from Leo Tolstoy's "War and Peace" written by composer/lyricist Dave Malloy and directed by Rachel Chavkin. It is based on Volume 2, Part 5 of Tolstoy's novel, War and Peace, focusing on Natasha's affair with Anatole and Pierre's search for meaning in his life. After its original run at the Ars Nova in 2012, a staging in both the Meatpacking District and the Theater District of Manhattan in 2013, a 2014 Spanish-language staging in Quito,