Bolshoi Theater full name. About the Bolshoi Theater

The most famous theater in Russia and one of the famous theaters in the world is Grand Theatre. Where is the main theater in the country located? Well, of course, in the main city - Moscow. Its repertoire includes opera and ballet productions of Russian and foreign composers-classics. In addition to the classical repertoire, the theater constantly experiments with innovative modern productions. The history of the Bolshoi Theater is very rich and is associated with the names of people significant to our country. In March 2015, the theater turns 239 years old.

How it all began

Prince Pyotr Vasilyevich Urusov is considered the founder of the Bolshoi Theater; he was a provincial prosecutor and at the same time had his own theater troupe. He was the only one who was allowed to organize performances, masquerades, concerts and other entertainment. No one else was allowed to engage in such work, so that the prince would not have competitors. But this privilege also imposed on him an obligation - to build for the troupe beautiful building, in which all performances would take place. The prince had a companion named Medox, who was a foreigner, he taught mathematics to Grand Duke Paul - the future to the Russian Emperor. Having fallen in love with the theater business, he stayed in Russia and became closely involved in the development of the theater. failed to build a theater because he went bankrupt, the privilege of the theater holder, as well as the obligation to build the building, passed to Medox, as a result of which it was he who built the Bolshoi Theater. Every second resident of Russia knows where the theater created by Medox is located; it is located at the intersection of Teatralnaya Square and Petrovka.

Theater construction

For the construction of the theater, Medox chose a plot that belonged to Prince Rostotsky, who bought it from him. This was a street called Petrovskaya, its very beginning, and the Bolshoi Theater was built here. The address of the theater now is Teatralnaya Square, building 1. The theater was built in record time, in just 5 months, which even for our time with all its modern technologies And building materials is amazing and amazing. The project for the construction of the theater building was developed by Christian Rosberg. The theater was magnificent inside, the auditorium amazed with its beauty, but on the contrary, it was modest, unremarkable and practically undecorated. The theater received its first name - Petrovsky.

Theater opening

The Bolshoi Theater building was opened in 1780, on December 30. On this day, the very first performance of the theater troupe took place in its own building. All the newspapers only wrote about the opening, theater masters and famous architects as one showered compliments on the building, characterizing it as durable, huge, profitable, beautiful, safe and superior to the majority in all respects famous theaters Europe. The city governor was so pleased with the construction that the privilege that gave Madox the right to hold entertainment was extended for another 10 years.

Interior decoration

A round hall, the so-called rotunda, was built to hold performances. The hall was decorated with numerous mirrors and illuminated by forty-two crystal chandeliers. The hall was designed by Medox himself. Next to the stage, as expected, there was an orchestra pit. Closest to the stage were stools for honored guests of the theater and regular spectators, most of whom were owners of serf troupes. Their opinion was important to Madox, for this reason they were invited to dress rehearsals, after which they were involved in discussing the upcoming production.

The theater showed about 100 performances a year. It was impossible to buy tickets for one performance; to visit the theater, spectators purchased an annual subscription.

Over time, the theater's attendance deteriorated, profits became smaller, actors began to leave the theater, and the building fell into disrepair. As a result, the Bolshoi Opera House became state-owned and received a new name - the Imperial.

Temporary sunset

The history of the Bolshoi Theater was not always so beautiful; there were also tragic moments. In 1805, the theater burned down after 25 years of existence. Only load-bearing walls and even then partially. Reconstruction began only in 1821, when Moscow was being reconstructed after the invasion of Napoleonic troops. The main architect, who was tasked with restoring the central part of the city, including the theater, was Osip Bove. He was an innovator; according to his project, the streets began to be built differently; now mansions began to face the street, and not inside the courtyard. Bove supervised the restoration of the Alexander Garden, the square near the theater. The reconstruction of the Bolshoi Theater became his most successful project. The new building was erected in the Empire style. According to the architect's contemporaries, the Bolshoi Theater rose like a phoenix from the ashes.

The metro is located very close to the theater, so getting to the theater is very convenient from anywhere in Moscow.

Reconstruction of the theater building

The restoration of the theater began in 1821 and lasted several years. Initially, the plan for the renovated theater building was developed by the famous architect Andrei Mikhailov in St. Petersburg; the governor of Moscow approved this plan. Mikhailov designed the theater building in the shape of a rectangle, as well as a portico of eight columns and Apollo in a chariot at the top of the portico; the hall was designed to accommodate up to two thousand spectators. Osip Bove reworked Mikhailov's design, where the Bolshoi Theater became lower and the proportions of the building changed. Beauvais also decided to abandon the placement on the ground floor as he considered that it was unaesthetic. The hall became multi-tiered, the decoration of the hall became rich. The required building acoustics were met. Bove even had a very original idea - to make a mirror curtain, but bringing such an idea to life, of course, was unrealistic, since such a curtain would be incredibly heavy.

Second birth

The reconstruction of the theater was completed by the end of 1824, and in January 1825 the renovated theater building was inaugurated. The first performance took place, the program of which included the ballet “Cendrillon” and the prologue “The Triumph of the Muses” specially written for the opening of the theater by Alyabyev and Verstovsky. Beauvais was the center of attention, and the audience greeted him with thunderous applause as a sign of gratitude. The new theater was simply amazing in its beauty. Now the theater has received the name “Bolshoi Petrovsky Theater”. All the theater's productions were a constant success. Now the Bolshoi Theater has become even more brilliant.

The metro is the most convenient way to get to the Bolshoi Theater. The nearest stations to the theater are the stations “Teatralnaya”, “Ploshchad Revolyutsii”, “ Okhotny Ryad" and "Alexandrovsky Garden". Which station to choose depends on the starting point of the route.

And again the fire

In the spring of 1853, there was a fire in the theater again; it was very strong and lasted two days. The sky was so clouded with black smoke that it was visible in all corners of the city. All the snow has melted on Theater Square. The building burned down almost completely, leaving only the load-bearing walls and portico. The fire destroyed the scenery, costumes, music library, and musical instruments, including rare specimens. The Bolshoi Theater was once again damaged by fire.

Where the theater is located is not difficult to find, it is located on Theater Square and there are a lot of attractions next to it: Maly Drama Theater, Youth Theater, Shchepkin Theater School, Metropol Cabaret, House of Unions, Okhotny Ryad, Central Department Store, opposite the theater there is a monument to Karl Marx.

Restoration work

The architect who brought the theater back to life was Albert Kavos, and the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg was built according to his design. Unfortunately, little information about this architect has survived to this day. There was not enough money to restore the theater, but the work progressed quickly and took just over a year. The theater was opened on August 20, 1856, now it was called the “Bolshoi Imperial Theater”. Premiere performance The restored theater became the opera “The Puritans” by the Italian composer. The attitude towards the new theater was different. The townspeople considered it magnificent and were proud of it, as for engineers and architects, some of them believed that the reconstruction carried out by Cavos was too different from the way the theater was conceived by Mikhailov and Bove, especially with regard to the facades and some interiors. It is worth giving the architect his due; thanks to his redevelopment of the hall, the acoustics in the Bolshoi Theater became one of the best in the world.

The theater not only hosted performances, it also hosted balls and masquerades. This is what the Bolshoi Theater became. The theater address is City Square, building 1.

Our days

The theater entered the 20th century in a fairly dilapidated state, with a sagging foundation and cracks on the walls. But several reconstructions carried out in the theater in the 20th century, one of which was completed quite recently (lasted 6 years), did their job - and now the theater shines with all its facets. In addition to operas and ballets, the theater's repertoire also includes operettas. You can also take a tour of the theater - see the hall and several other very interesting rooms. A visitor who wants to visit the Bolshoi Theater, where it is located, may have difficulty finding it, although in fact it is located in the very center of the city and finding it will not be difficult; not far from it is located another landmark of the capital, which is known throughout the world - the Red square.

The full name is “State Academic Bolshoi Theater of Russia” (SABT).

Opera history

One of the oldest Russian musical theaters, the leading Russian opera and ballet theater. The Bolshoi Theater played an outstanding role in establishing the national realistic traditions of opera and ballet and in the formation of the Russian musical and stage performing school. The Bolshoi Theater traces its history back to 1776, when the Moscow provincial prosecutor, Prince P. V. Urusov, received the government privilege “to be the owner of all theatrical performances in Moscow...”. Since 1776, performances were staged in the house of Count R.I. Vorontsov on Znamenka. Urusov, together with the entrepreneur M.E. Medox, built a special theater building (on the corner of Petrovka Street) - the “Petrovsky Theater”, or “Opera House”, where opera, drama and ballet performances were held in 1780-1805. It was the first permanent theater in Moscow (it burned down in 1805). In 1812, a fire destroyed another theater building - on Arbat (architect K. I. Rossi) and the troupe performed in temporary premises. On January 6 (18), 1825, the Bolshoi Theater (design by A. A. Mikhailov, architect O. I. Bove), built on the site of the former Petrovsky, opened with the prologue “The Triumph of the Muses” with music by A. N. Verstovsky and A. A. Alyabyev. The room - the second largest in Europe after Milan's La Scala theater - after the fire of 1853 it was significantly rebuilt (architect A.K. Kavos), acoustic and optical deficiencies were corrected, the auditorium was divided into 5 tiers. The opening took place on August 20, 1856.

The first Russian folk musical comedies were staged in the theater - “The Miller - the Sorcerer, the Deceiver and the Matchmaker” by Sokolovsky (1779), “The St. Petersburg Gostiny Dvor” by Pashkevich (1783) and others. The first pantomime ballet, The Magic Shop, was shown in 1780 on the opening day of the Petrovsky Theater. Among the ballet performances, conventional fantastic-mythological spectacular performances predominated, but performances were also staged that included Russian folk dances, which were a great success with the public (“Village Festival”, “Village Picture”, “The Taking of Ochakov”, etc.). The repertoire also included the most significant operas by foreign composers of the 18th century (G. Pergolesi, D. Cimarosa, A. Salieri, A. Grétry, N. Daleirac, etc.).

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, opera singers played dramatic performances, and dramatic actors performed in operas. The troupe of the Petrovsky Theater was often replenished by talented serf actors and actresses, and sometimes by entire groups of serf theaters, which the theater management bought from landowners.

The theater troupe included serf actors from Urusov, actors from the theater troupes of N. S. Titov and the Moscow University. Among the first actors were V. P. Pomerantsev, P. V. Zlov, G. V. Bazilevich, A. G. Ozhogin, M. S. Sinyavskaya, I. M. Sokolovskaya, later E. S. Sandunova and others. The first ballet artists - pupils of the Orphanage (where a ballet school was founded in 1773 under the direction of choreographer I. Walberch) and serf dancers of the troupes of Urusov and E. A. Golovkina (including: A. Sobakina, D. Tukmanova, G. Raikov, S. Lopukhin and others).

In 1806, many of the theater's serf actors received their freedom; the troupe was placed at the disposal of the Directorate of the Moscow Imperial Theaters and turned into a court theater, which was directly subordinate to the Ministry of the Court. This determined the difficulties in the development of advanced Russian musical art. The domestic repertoire was initially dominated by vaudevilles, which were very popular: “The Village Philosopher” by Alyabyev (1823), “Teacher and Student” (1824), “Humpster” and “Fun of the Caliph” (1825) by Alyabyev and Verstovsky, etc. From the end of the 20th century In the 1980s, the Bolshoi Theater staged operas by A. N. Verstovsky (inspector of music for Moscow theaters since 1825), marked by national-romantic tendencies: “Pan Tvardovsky” (1828), “Vadim, or the Twelve Sleeping Virgins” (1832), “Askold’s Grave” "(1835), which remained in the theater's repertoire for a long time, "Homesickness" (1839), "Churova Dolina" (1841), "Thunderbreaker" (1858). Verstovsky and the composer A. E. Varlamov, who worked in the theater in 1832-44, contributed to the education of Russian singers (N. V. Repina, A. O. Bantyshev, P. A. Bulakhov, N. V. Lavrov, etc.). The theater also staged operas by German, French and Italian composers, including Mozart's Don Giovanni and The Marriage of Figaro, Beethoven's Fidelio, Weber's The Magic Shooter, Fra Diavolo, Fenella and The Bronze Horse" by Auber, "Robert the Devil" by Meyerbeer, "The Barber of Seville" by Rossini, "Anne Boleyn" by Donizetti, etc. In 1842, the Moscow Theater Administration became subordinate to the St. Petersburg Directorate. Staged in 1842, Glinka’s opera “A Life for the Tsar” (“Ivan Susanin”) turned into a magnificent performance that was staged on solemn court holidays. Thanks to the efforts of the artists of the St. Petersburg Russian Opera Troupe (transferred to Moscow in 1845-50), this opera was performed on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater in an incomparably better production. In the same performance, Glinka's opera Ruslan and Lyudmila was staged in 1846, and Dargomyzhsky's Esmeralda in 1847. In 1859, the Bolshoi Theater staged "The Mermaid". The appearance of operas by Glinka and Dargomyzhsky on the stage of the theater marked new stage its development and was of great importance in the formation of realistic principles of vocal performing arts.

In 1861, the Directorate of Imperial Theaters leased the Bolshoi Theater to an Italian opera troupe, which performed 4-5 days a week, actually leaving 1 day for Russian opera. The competition between the two groups brought a certain benefit to Russian singers, forcing them to persistently improve their skills and borrow some principles of the Italian vocal school, but the neglect of the Directorate of Imperial Theaters to approve the national repertoire and the privileged position of the Italians made it difficult for the Russian troupe to work and prevented Russian opera from gaining public recognition. The new Russian opera house could only be born in the fight against Italian mania and entertainment trends to establish the national identity of art. Already in the 60-70s, the theater was forced to listen to the voices of progressive figures in Russian musical culture, to the needs of the new democratic viewer. The operas “Rusalka” (1863) and “Ruslan and Lyudmila” (1868), which had become established in the theater’s repertoire, were resumed. In 1869, the Bolshoi Theater staged P. I. Tchaikovsky’s first opera, “The Voevoda,” and in 1875, “The Oprichnik.” In 1881, “Eugene Onegin” was staged (the second production, 1883, became established in the theater’s repertoire).

Since the mid-80s of the 19th century, there has been a turning point in the attitude of the theater management towards Russian opera; productions of outstanding works by Russian composers were carried out: “Mazepa” (1884), “Cherevichki” (1887), “The Queen of Spades” (1891) and “Iolanta” (1893) by Tchaikovsky, first appeared on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater of Opera Composers " Mighty bunch" - "Boris Godunov" by Mussorgsky (1888), "The Snow Maiden" by Rimsky-Korsakov (1893), "Prince Igor" by Borodin (1898).

But the main attention in the repertoire of the Bolshoi Theater in these years was still paid to French operas (J. Meyerbeer, F. Aubert, F. Halévy, A. Thomas, C. Gounod) and Italian (G. Rossini, V. Bellini, G. Donizetti, G. Verdi) composers. In 1898, Bizet’s “Carmen” was staged for the first time in Russian, and in 1899, Berlioz’s “The Trojans in Carthage” was staged. German opera is represented by the works of F. Flotow, Weber's The Magic Shooter, and single productions of Wagner's Tannhäuser and Lohengrin.

Among the Russian singers of the mid and 2nd half of the 19th century are E. A. Semyonova (the first Moscow performer of the roles of Antonida, Lyudmila and Natasha), A. D. Alexandrova-Kochetova, E. A. Lavrovskaya, P. A. Khokhlov (who created images of Onegin and the Demon), B. B. Korsov, M. M. Koryakin, L. D. Donskoy, M. A. Deisha-Sionitskaya, N. V. Salina, N. A. Preobrazhensky, etc. There is a shift not only in the repertoire, but also in the quality of productions and musical interpretations of operas. In 1882-1906 the chief conductor of the Bolshoi Theater was I.K. Altani, in 1882-1937 the chief choirmaster was U.I. Avranek. P. I. Tchaikovsky and A. G. Rubinstein conducted their operas. More serious attention is paid to the decorative design and staging culture of performances. (In 1861-1929, K. F. Waltz worked as a decorator and mechanic at the Bolshoi Theater).

By the end of the 19th century, a reform of the Russian theater was brewing, its decisive turn towards the depth of life and historical truth, towards the realism of images and feelings. The Bolshoi Theater is entering its heyday, gaining fame as one of the largest centers of musical and theatrical culture. The theater's repertoire includes best works world art, at the same time Russian opera occupies a central place on its stage. For the first time, the Bolshoi Theater staged productions of Rimsky-Korsakov’s operas “The Woman of Pskov” (1901), “Pan-voevoda” (1905), “Sadko” (1906), “The Tale of the Invisible City of Kitezh” (1908), “The Golden Cockerel” (1909) , as well as “The Stone Guest” by Dargomyzhsky (1906). At the same time, the theater stages such significant works by foreign composers as “Die Walküre”, “The Flying Dutchman”, “Tannhäuser” by Wagner, “The Trojans in Carthage” by Berlioz, “Pagliacci” by Leoncavallo, “Honor Rusticana” by Mascagni, “La Bohème” by Puccini, etc.

The flourishing of the performing school of Russian art came after a long and intense struggle for Russian opera classics and is directly related to the deep mastery of the domestic repertoire. At the beginning of the 20th century, a constellation of great singers appeared on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater - F. I. Chaliapin, L. V. Sobinov, A. V. Nezhdanova. Outstanding singers performed with them: E. G. Azerskaya, L. N. Balanovskaya, M. G. Gukova, K. G. Derzhinskaya, E. N. Zbrueva, E. A. Stepanova, I. A. Alchevsky, A V. Bogdanovich, A. P. Bonachich, G. A. Baklanov, I. V. Gryzunov, V. R. Petrov, G. S. Pirogov, L. F. Savransky. In 1904-06, S. V. Rachmaninov conducted at the Bolshoi Theater, giving a new realistic interpretation of Russian opera classics. Since 1906, V. I. Suk became the conductor. The choir under the direction of U. I. Avranek achieves honed skills. Prominent artists are involved in the design of performances - A. M. Vasnetsov, A. Ya. Golovin, K. A. Korovin.

The Great October Socialist Revolution opened a new era in the development of the Bolshoi Theater. In difficult years Civil War the theater troupe was completely preserved. The first season began on November 21 (December 4), 1917 with the opera “Aida”. A special program was prepared for the first anniversary of the October Revolution, which included the ballet “Stepan Razin” to the music of Glazunov’s symphonic poem, the “Veche” scene from the opera “Pskovite” by Rimsky-Korsakov and the choreographic picture “Prometheus” to the music of A. N. Scriabin. During the 1917/1918 season, the theater gave 170 opera and ballet performances. Since 1918, the Bolshoi Theater Orchestra has given cycles symphony concerts with the participation of soloists-singers. At the same time, chamber instrumental concerts and concerts of singers were held. In 1919, the Bolshoi Theater was awarded the title of academic. In 1924, a branch of the Bolshoi Theater opened in the premises of Zimin's former private opera house. Performances were performed on this stage until 1959.

In the 20s, operas by Soviet composers appeared on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater - “Trilby” by Yurasovsky (1924, 2nd production 1929), “Decembrists” by Zolotarev and “Stepan Razin” by Triodin (both in 1925), “The Love for Three Oranges” Prokofiev (1927), “Ivan the Soldier” by Korchmarev (1927), “Son of the Sun” by Vasilenko (1928), “Zagmuk” by Crane and “Breakthrough” by Pototsky (both in 1930), etc. At the same time, big job over opera classics. New productions of R. Wagner's operas took place: “Das Rheingold” (1918), “Lohengrin” (1923), “Die Meistersinger of Nuremberg” (1929). In 1921, G. Berlioz’s oratorio “The Damnation of Faust” was performed. The production of M. P. Mussorgsky’s opera “Boris Godunov” (1927), performed for the first time in its entirety with scenes, became fundamentally important. Under Kromy And At St. Basil's(the latter, orchestrated by M. M. Ippolitov-Ivanov, has since been included in all productions of this opera). In 1925, the premiere of Mussorgsky's opera “Sorochinskaya Fair” took place. Among the significant works of the Bolshoi Theater of this period: “The Tale of the Invisible City of Kitezh” (1926); “The Marriage of Figaro” by Mozart (1926), as well as the operas “Salome” by R. Strauss (1925), “Cio-Cio-san” by Puccini (1925), etc., staged for the first time in Moscow.

Significant events in creative history The Bolshoi Theater of the 30s are associated with the development of Soviet opera. In 1935, D. D. Shostakovich’s opera “Katerina Izmailova” (based on the story “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” by N. S. Leskov) was staged, then “ Quiet Don"(1936) and "Virgin Soil Upturned" by Dzerzhinsky (1937), "Battleship Potemkin" by Chishko (1939), "Mother" by Zhelobinsky (after M. Gorky, 1939), etc. Works by composers are staged Soviet republics- “Almast” by Spendiarov (1930), “Abesalom and Eteri” by Z. Paliashvili (1939). In 1939, the Bolshoi Theater revived the opera Ivan Susanin. New production(libretto by S. M. Gorodetsky) revealed the folk-heroic essence of this work; Mass choir scenes acquired special significance.

In 1937, the Bolshoi Theater was awarded the Order of Lenin, and its greatest masters were awarded the title of People's Artist of the USSR.

In the 20-30s, outstanding singers performed on the stage of the theater - V. R. Petrov, L. V. Sobinov, A. V. Nezhdanova, N. A. Obukhova, K. G. Derzhinskaya, E. A. Stepanova, E. K. Katulskaya, V. V. Barsova, I. S. Kozlovsky, S. Ya. Lemeshev, A. S. Pirogov, M. D. Mikhailov, M. O. Reizen, N. S. Khanaev, E. D. Kruglikova, N. D. Shpiller, M. P. Maksakova, V. A. Davydova, A. I. Baturin, S. I. Migai, L. F. Savransky, N. N. Ozerov, V. R. Slivinsky and others. Among the conductors of the theater are V. I. Suk, M. M. Ippolitov-Ivanov, N. S. Golovanov, A. M. Pazovsky, S. A. Samosud, Yu. F. Fayer, L. P. Steinberg, V.V. Nebolsin. Bolshoi Theater opera and ballet performances were staged by directors V. A. Lossky, N. V. Smolich; choreographer R.V. Zakharov; choirmasters U. O. Avranek, M. G. Shorin; artist P. W. Williams.

During the Great Patriotic War (1941-45), part of the Bolshoi Theater troupe was evacuated to Kuibyshev, where in 1942 the premiere of Rossini's opera William Tell took place. On the stage of the branch (the main building of the theater was damaged by a bomb) in 1943 the opera “On Fire” by Kabalevsky was staged. In the post-war years, the opera troupe turned to the classical heritage of the peoples of socialist countries; the operas “The Bartered Bride” by Smetana (1948) and “Pebble” by Moniuszko (1949) were staged. The performances “Boris Godunov” (1948), “Sadko” (1949), “Khovanshchina” (1950) are noted for the depth and integrity of the musical and stage ensemble. Vivid examples of Soviet ballet classics were the ballets “Cinderella” (1945) and “Romeo and Juliet” (1946) by Prokofiev.

Since the mid-40s, the role of directing in revealing ideological content and the embodiment of the author’s intention of the work, in the education of an actor (singer and ballet dancer) capable of creating deeply meaningful, psychologically truthful images. The role of the ensemble in solving the ideological and artistic problems of the performance becomes more significant, which is achieved thanks to the high skill of the orchestra, choir and other theater groups. All this determined the performing style of the modern Bolshoi Theater and brought it worldwide fame.

In the 50-60s, the theater's work on operas by Soviet composers intensified. In 1953, the monumental epic opera “Decembrists” by Shaporin was staged. Prokofiev's opera War and Peace (1959) was included in the golden fund of the Soviet musical theater. The productions were “Nikita Vershinin” by Kabalevsky (1955), “The Taming of the Shrew” by Shebalin (1957), “Mother” by Khrennikov (1957), “Jalil” by Zhiganov (1959), “The Tale of a Real Man” by Prokofiev (1960), “Fate” person" by Dzerzhinsky (1961), "Not Only Love" by Shchedrin (1962), "October" by Muradeli (1964), "The Unknown Soldier" by Molchanov (1967), "Optimistic Tragedy" by Kholminov (1967), "Semyon Kotko" by Prokofiev (1970 ).

Since the mid-50s, the Bolshoi Theater's repertoire has been replenished with modern foreign operas. For the first time, works by composers L. Janacek (Her Stepdaughter, 1958), F. Erkel (Bank-Ban, 1959), F. Poulenc (The Human Voice, 1965), B. Britten (A Midsummer's Dream) were staged night", 1965). The classical Russian and European repertoire has expanded. Among the outstanding works of the opera group is Beethoven's Fidelio (1954). Operas were also staged: “Falstaff” (1962), “Don Carlos” (1963) by Verdi, “The Flying Dutchman” by Wagner (1963), “The Tale of the Invisible City of Kitezh” (1966), “Tosca” (1971), “Ruslan” and Lyudmila" (1972), "Troubadour" (1972); ballets - “The Nutcracker” (1966), “Swan Lake” (1970). The opera troupe of this time included singers I. I. and L. I. Maslennikov, E. V. Shumskaya, Z. I. Andzhaparidze, G. P. Bolshakov, A. P. Ivanov, A. F. Krivchenya, P. G. Lisitsian, G. M. Nelepp, I. I. Petrov and others. Conductors worked on the musical and stage embodiment of the performances - A. Sh. Melik-Pashaev, M. N. Zhukov, G. N. Rozhdestvensky, E. F. Svetlanov; directors - L. B. Baratov, B. A. Pokrovsky; choreographer L. M. Lavrovsky; artists - P. P. Fedorovsky, V. F. Ryndin, S. B. Virsaladze.

Leading masters of the Bolshoi Theater opera and ballet troupes have performed in many countries around the world. The opera troupe toured in Italy (1964), Canada, Poland (1967), East Germany (1969), France (1970), Japan (1970), Austria, Hungary (1971).

In 1924-59, the Bolshoi Theater had two stages - the main stage and a branch stage. The main stage of the theater is a five-tier auditorium with 2,155 seats. The length of the hall, including the orchestra shell, is 29.8 m, width - 31 m, height - 19.6 m. Depth of the stage - 22.8 m, width - 39.3 m, size of the stage portal - 21.5 × 17.2 m. In 1961, the Bolshoi Theater received a new stage - Kremlin Palace conventions (auditorium for 6,000 seats; stage size in plan - 40x23 m and height to the grate - 28.8 m, stage portal - 32x14 m; stage plank is equipped with sixteen lifting and lowering platforms). The Bolshoi Theater and the Palace of Congresses host ceremonial meetings, congresses, decades of art, etc.

Literature: The Bolshoi Moscow Theater and a review of the events that preceded the founding of the proper Russian theater, M., 1857; Kashkin N.D., Opera stage of the Moscow Imperial Theater, M., 1897 (in the region: Dmitriev N., Imperial Opera stage in Moscow, M., 1898); Chayanova O., “Triumph of the Muses”, Memo of historical memories for the centennial anniversary of the Moscow Bolshoi Theater (1825-1925), M., 1925; hers, Medox Theater in Moscow 1776-1805, M., 1927; Moscow Bolshoi Theater. 1825-1925, M., 1925 (collection of articles and materials); Borisoglebsky M., Materials on the history of Russian ballet, vol. 1, L., 1938; Glushkovsky A.P., Memoirs of a choreographer, M. - L., 1940; State Academic Bolshoi Theater of the USSR, M., 1947 (collection of articles); S. V. Rachmaninov and Russian opera, collection. articles edited by I. F. Belzy, M., 1947; “Theater”, 1951, No. 5 (dedicated to the 175th anniversary of the Bolshoi Theater); Shaverdyan A.I., Bolshoi Theater of the USSR, M., 1952; Polyakova L.V., Youth of the Bolshoi Theater Opera Stage, M., 1952; Khripunov Yu. D., Architecture of the Bolshoi Theater, M., 1955; Bolshoi Theater of the USSR (collection of articles), M., 1958; Grosheva E. A., Bolshoi Theater of the USSR in the past and present, M., 1962; Gozenpud A. A., Musical theater in Russia. From the origins to Glinka, L., 1959; his, Russian Soviet Opera Theater (1917-1941), L., 1963; his, Russian Opera theater XIX century, vol. 1-2, L., 1969-71.

L. V. Polyakova
Musical Encyclopedia, ed. Yu.V.Keldysh, 1973-1982

History of ballet

Leading Russian Musical Theatre, who played an outstanding role in the formation and development national traditions ballet art. Its emergence is associated with the flourishing of Russian culture in the 2nd half of the 18th century, with the emergence and development of professional theater.

The troupe began to form in 1776, when Moscow philanthropist Prince P. V. Urusov and entrepreneur M. Medox received government privileges for the development of theatrical business. The performances were given in the house of R.I. Vorontsov on Znamenka. In 1780 Medox built in Moscow on the corner of the street. Petrovka theater building, which became known as the Petrovsky Theater. Drama, opera and ballet performances took place here. It was the first permanent professional theater in Moscow. His ballet troupe was soon replenished with students ballet school Moscow Orphanage (existed from 1773), and then by serf actors of the troupe of E. A. Golovkina. The first ballet performance was “The Magic Shop” (1780, choreographer L. Paradise). It was followed by: “The Triumph of the Pleasures of the Female Sex,” “The Feigned Death of Harlequin, or the Deceived Pantalon,” “The Deaf Mistress” and “The Feigned Anger of Love” - all productions by choreographer F. Morelli (1782); “Village morning entertainment when the sun awakens” (1796) and “The Miller” (1797) - choreographer P. Pinucci; “Medea and Jason” (1800, after J. Nover), “The Toilet of Venus” (1802) and “Revenge for the Death of Agamemnon” (1805) - choreographer D. Solomoni, etc. These performances were based on the principles of classicism, in comic ballets (“The Deceived Miller,” 1793; “Cupid’s Deceptions,” 1795) features of sentimentalism began to appear. Among the dancers of the troupe, G. I. Raikov, A. M. Sobakina and others stood out.

In 1805, the building of the Petrovsky Theater burned down. In 1806 the troupe came under the jurisdiction of the Directorate of Imperial Theaters and played in various venues. Its composition was replenished, new ballets were staged: “Gishpan Evenings” (1809), “Pierrot’s School”, “Algerians, or the Defeated Sea Robbers”, “Zephyr, or the Anemone, who became permanent” (all - 1812), “Semik, or Festivities in Maryina Roshcha" (to music by S. I. Davydov, 1815) - all staged by I. M. Abletz; “The New Heroine, or the Cossack Woman” (1811), “Celebration in the Camp of the Allied Armies in Montmartre” (1814) - both to the music of Kavos, choreographer I. I. Valberkh; "Party on Sparrow Hills"(1815), "The Triumph of the Russians, or Bivouac near Krasny" (1816) - both to music by Davydov, choreographer A. P. Glushkovsky; “Cossacks on the Rhine” (1817), “Neva Walk” (1818), “Ancient Games, or Yule Evening” (1823) - all to the music of Scholz, the choreographer is the same; “Russian Swing on the Banks of the Rhine” (1818), “Gypsy Camp” (1819), “Festival in Petrovsky” (1824) - all choreographed by I. K. Lobanov, etc. Most of these performances were divertissements with extensive use folk rituals and characteristic dance. Performances dedicated to the events of the Patriotic War of 1812 were especially important - the first ballets on a modern theme in the history of the Moscow stage. In 1821, Glushkovsky created the first ballet based on the work of A. S. Pushkin (“Ruslan and Lyudmila” to the music of Scholz).

In 1825, with the prologue “The Triumph of the Muses,” staged by F. Gyullen-Sor, performances began in the new building of the Bolshoi Theater (architect O. I. Bove). She also staged the ballets “Fenella” to the music of Ober’s opera of the same name (1836), “Tom Thumb” (“The Cunning Boy and the Cannibal”) by Varlamov and Guryanov (1837), etc. T. N. stood out in the ballet troupe of this time Glushkovskaya, D. S. Lopukhina, A. I. Voronina-Ivanova, T. S. Karpakova, K. F. Bogdanov and others. In the 1840s. The Bolshoi Theater ballet was decisively influenced by the principles of romanticism (the activities of F. Taglioni and J. Perrot in St. Petersburg, the tours of M. Taglioni, F. Elsler, etc.). Outstanding dancers of this direction are E. A. Sankovskaya, I. N. Nikitin.

Of great importance for the formation of realistic principles of stage art were the productions at the Bolshoi Theater of the operas “Ivan Susanin” (1842) and “Ruslan and Lyudmila” (1846) by Glinka, which contained detailed choreographic scenes that played an important dramatic role. These ideological and artistic principles were continued in Dargomyzhsky’s “Rusalka” (1859, 1865), Serov’s “Judith” (1865), and then in productions of operas by P. I. Tchaikovsky and the composers of “The Mighty Handful.” In most cases, dances in operas were choreographed by F. N. Manokhin.

In 1853, a fire destroyed all the interior of the Bolshoi Theater. The building was restored in 1856 by the architect A.K. Kavos.

In the 2nd half of the 19th century, the Bolshoi Theater ballet was significantly inferior to the St. Petersburg ballet (there was neither such a talented director as M. I. Petipa, nor the same favorable material conditions for development). The Little Humpbacked Horse by Pugni, staged by A. Saint-Leon in St. Petersburg and transferred to the Bolshoi Theater in 1866, enjoyed enormous success; This revealed the long-standing tendency of Moscow ballet towards genre, comedy, everyday and national characteristics. But few original performances were created. A number of productions by K. Blazis (“Pygmalion”, “Two Days in Venice”) and S. P. Sokolov (“Fern, or Night under Ivan Kupala”, 1867) indicated some decline creative principles theater The only significant event was the play “Don Quixote” (1869), staged on the Moscow stage by M. I. Petipa. The deepening of the crisis was associated with the activities of choreographers V. Reisinger (The Magic Slipper, 1871; Kashchei, 1873; Stella, 1875) and J. Hansen (The Virgin of Hell, 1879) invited from abroad. The production was also unsuccessful. Swan Lake"Reisinger (1877) and Hansen (1880), who failed to understand the innovative essence of Tchaikovsky's music. During this period, the troupe had strong performers: P. P. Lebedeva, O. N. Nikolaeva, A. I. Sobeshchanskaya, P. M. Karpakova, S. P. Sokolov, V. F. Geltser, and later L. N. Gaten, L. A. Roslavleva, A. A. Dzhuri, A. N. Bogdanov, V. E. Polivanov, I. N. Khlustin and others; talented mimic actors worked - F.A. Reishausen and V. Vanner, the best traditions were passed on from generation to generation in the families of the Manokhins, Domashovs, Ermolovs. The reform carried out in 1882 by the Directorate of Imperial Theaters led to a reduction ballet troupe and aggravated the crisis (especially manifested in the eclectic productions of choreographer J. Mendes, invited from abroad - “India”, 1890; “Daita”, 1896, etc.).

Stagnation and routine were overcome only with the arrival of choreographer A. A. Gorsky, whose work (1899-1924) marked an entire era in the development of the Bolshoi Theater ballet. Gorsky sought to free ballet from bad conventions and cliches. Enriching ballet with the achievements of modern dramatic theater and fine art, he staged new productions of Don Quixote (1900), Swan Lake (1901, 1912) and other ballets by Petipa, and created the mime drama Gudula's Daughter by Simon (based on Notre Dame de Paris) V. Hugo, 1902), the ballet “Salammbô” by Arends (based on the novel of the same name by G. Flaubert, 1910), etc. In his pursuit of the dramatic fullness of a ballet performance, Gorsky sometimes exaggerated the role of the script and pantomime, and sometimes underestimated music and effective symphonic dance. At the same time, Gorsky was one of the first directors of ballets set to symphonic music not intended for dance: “Love is fast!” to the music of Grieg, “Schubertian” to the music of Schubert, the divertissement “Carnival” to the music of various composers - all 1913, “The Fifth Symphony” (1916) and “Stenka Razin” (1918) to the music of Glazunov. In Gorsky’s performances, the talent of E. V. Geltser, S. V. Fedorova, A. M. Balashova, V. A. Coralli, M. R. Reizen, V. V. Krieger, V. D. Tikhomirova, M. M. Mordkina, V. A. Ryabtseva, A. E. Volinina, L. A. Zhukova, I. E. Sidorova and others.

At the end of 19 - beginning. 20th centuries Ballet performances of the Bolshoi Theater were conducted by I. K. Altani, V. I. Suk, A. F. Arends, E. A. Cooper, theater decorator K. F. Waltz, artists K. A. Korovin, A. took part in the design of the performances. Ya. Golovin et al.

The Great October Socialist Revolution opened up new paths for the Bolshoi Theater and determined its blossoming as the leading opera and ballet company in artistic life countries. During the Civil War, the theater troupe, thanks to the attention of the Soviet state, was preserved. In 1919, the Bolshoi Theater joined the group of academic theaters. In 1921-22, performances at the Bolshoi Theater were also given at the New Theater. A branch of the Bolshoi Theater opened in 1924 (operated until 1959).

From the first years of Soviet power, the ballet troupe faced one of the most important creative tasks - to preserve the classical heritage and bring it to a new audience. In 1919, “The Nutcracker” (choreographer Gorsky) was staged for the first time in Moscow, then new productions of “Swan Lake” (Gorsky, with the participation of V.I. Nemirovich-Danchenko, 1920), “Giselle” (Gorsky, 1922), “Esmeralda” "(V.D. Tikhomirov, 1926), "The Sleeping Beauty" (A.M. Messerer and A.I. Chekrygin, 1936), etc. Along with this, the Bolshoi Theater sought to create new ballets - one-act works were staged to symphonic music (“Spanish Capriccio” and “Scheherazade”, choreographer L. A. Zhukov, 1923, etc.), the first experiments were made to implement modern theme(children's ballet extravaganza “Eternally Living Flowers” ​​to the music of Asafiev and others, choreographer Gorsky, 1922; allegorical ballet “Smerch” by Bera, choreographer K. Ya. Goleizovsky, 1927), development of choreographic language (“Joseph the Beautiful” Vasilenko, ballet Goleizovsky, 1925; “Footballer” by Oransky, ballet by L. A. Lashchilin and I. A. Moiseev, 1930, etc.). The play “The Red Poppy” (choreographer Tikhomirov and L.A. Lashchilin, 1927) acquired landmark significance, in which a realistic presentation of a modern theme was based on the implementation and renewal of classical traditions. The creative search for the theater was inseparable from the activities of artists - E. V. Geltser, M. P. Kandaurova, V. V. Krieger, M. R. Reizen, A. I. Abramova, V. V. Kudryavtseva, N. B. Podgoretskaya , L. M. Bank, E. M. Ilyushenko, V. D. Tikhomirova, V. A. Ryabtseva, V. V. Smoltsova, N. I. Tarasova, V. I. Tsaplina, L. A. Zhukova and others .

1930s in the development of the Bolshoi Theater ballet were marked by major successes in the embodiment of the historical and revolutionary theme (The Flame of Paris, ballet by V. I. Vainonen, 1933) and images of literary classics (The Bakhchisarai Fountain, ballet by R. V. Zakharov, 1936) . A direction that brought it closer to literature and dramatic theater triumphed in ballet. The importance of directing and acting has increased. The performances were distinguished by the dramatic integrity of the development of action and the psychological development of characters. In 1936-39, the ballet troupe was headed by R.V. Zakharov, who worked at the Bolshoi Theater as a choreographer and opera director until 1956. Performances on a modern theme were created - “The Little Stork” (1937) and “Svetlana” (1939) by Klebanova (both - ballet master A. I. Radunsky, N. M. Popko and L. A. Pospekhin), as well as “ Prisoner of the Caucasus"Asafiev (after A.S. Pushkin, 1938) and "Taras Bulba" by Solovyov-Sedoy (after N.V. Gogol, 1941, both by ballet dancer Zakharov), "Three Fat Men" by Oransky (after Yu. K. Olesha, 1935, ballet by I. A. Moiseev) and others. During these years, the art of M. T. Semyonova, O. V. Lepeshinskaya, A. N. Ermolaev, M. M. Gabovich, A. M. Messerer flourished at the Bolshoi Theater , the activities of S. N. Golovkina, M. S. Bogolyubskaya, I. V. Tikhomirnova, V. A. Preobrazhensky, Yu. G. Kondratov, S. G. Koren and others began. Artists V. V. participated in the design of ballet performances Dmitriev, P. V. Williams, Yu. F. Fire achieved high conducting skills in the ballet.

During the Great Patriotic War, the Bolshoi Theater was evacuated to Kuibyshev, but part of the troupe that remained in Moscow (headed by M. M. Gabovich) soon resumed performances in a branch of the theater. Along with the presentation of the old repertoire, a new performance of “Scarlet Sails” by Yurovsky was created (ballet choreographer A. I. Radunsky, N. M. Popko, L. A. Pospekhin), staged in 1942 in Kuibyshev, and in 1943 transferred to the stage of the Bolshoi Theater. Brigades of artists repeatedly went to the front.

In 1944-64 (with interruptions) the ballet troupe was headed by L. M. Lavrovsky. The following were staged (the names of the choreographers in brackets): “Cinderella” (R.V. Zakharov, 1945), “Romeo and Juliet” (L.M. Lavrovsky, 1946), “Mirandolina” (V.I. Vainonen, 1949), " Bronze Horseman"(Zakharov, 1949), "Red Poppy" (Lavrovsky, 1949), "Shurale" (L. V. Yakobson, 1955), "Laurencia" (V. M. Chabukiani, 1956), etc. The Bolshoi Theater repeatedly contacted to revivals of the classics - “Giselle” (1944) and “Raymonda” (1945) staged by Lavrovsky, etc. In the post-war years, the pride of the Bolshoi Theater stage was the art of G. S. Ulanova, whose dance images captivated with their lyrical and psychological expressiveness. A new generation of artists has grown up; among them M. M. Plisetskaya, R. S. Struchkova, M. V. Kondratyeva, L. I. Bogomolova, R. K. Karelskaya, N. V. Timofeeva, Yu. T. Zhdanov, G. K. Farmanyants, V. A. Levashov, N. B. Fadeechev, Ya. D. Sekh and others.

In the mid-1950s. In the Bolshoi Theater productions, the negative consequences of choreographers’ passion for one-sided dramatization of a ballet performance (everydayism, the predominance of pantomime, underestimation of the role of effective dance) began to be felt, which was especially reflected in the performances “The Tale of the Stone Flower” by Prokofiev (Lavrovsky, 1954), “Gayane” (Vainonen, 1957), “Spartak” (I. A. Moiseev, 1958).

A new period began in the late 50s. The repertoire included stage performances for Soviet ballet by Yu. N. Grigorovich - “ Stone Flower"(1959) and "The Legend of Love" (1965). In Bolshoi Theater productions, the range of images and ideological and moral problems expanded, the role of the dance element increased, the forms of drama became more diverse, the choreographic vocabulary was enriched, and interesting searches began to be carried out in the embodiment of modern themes. This was manifested in the productions of choreographers: N. D. Kasatkina and V. Yu. Vasilyov - “Vanina Vanini” (1962) and “Geologists” (“Heroic Poem”, 1964) by Karetnikov; O. G. Tarasova and A. A. Lapauri - “Second Lieutenant Kizhe” to the music of Prokofiev (1963); K. Ya. Goleizovsky - “Leyli and Majnun” by Balasanyan (1964); Lavrovsky - “Paganini” to the music of Rachmaninov (1960) and “ Night city"to the music of Bartók's The Marvelous Mandarin (1961).

In 1961, the Bolshoi Theater received a new stage - the Kremlin Palace of Congresses, which contributed to the wider activities of the ballet troupe. Along with mature masters- Plisetskaya, Struchkova, Timofeeva, Fadeechev and others - the leading position was taken by talented young people who came to the Bolshoi Theater at the turn of the 50-60s: E. S. Maksimova, N. I. Bessmertnova, N. I. Sorokina, E. L. Ryabinkina, S. D. Adyrkhaeva, V. V. Vasiliev, M. E. Liepa, M. L. Lavrovsky, Yu. V. Vladimirov, V. P. Tikhonov and others.

Since 1964, the chief choreographer of the Bolshoi Theater has been Yu. N. Grigorovich, who consolidated and developed progressive trends in the activities of the ballet troupe. Almost every new performance at the Bolshoi Theater is marked by interesting creative explorations. They appeared in “The Rite of Spring” (ballet by Kasatkina and Vasilev, 1965), “Carmen Suite” by Bizet - Shchedrin (Alberto Alonso, 1967), “Aseli” by Vlasov (O. M. Vinogradov, 1967), “Icare” by Slonimsky (V.V. Vasiliev, 1971), “Anna Karenina” by Shchedrin (M.M. Plisetskaya, N.I. Ryzhenko, V.V. Smirnov-Golovanov, 1972), “Love for Love” by Khrennikov (V. Boccadoro, 1976), “Chippolino” by K. Khachaturyan (G. Mayorov, 1977), “These enchanting sounds...” to the music of Corelli, Torelli, Rameau, Mozart (V.V. Vasiliev, 1978), “Hussar Ballad” by Khrennikov ( O. M. Vinogradov and D. A. Bryantsev), “The Seagull” by Shchedrin (M. M. Plisetskaya, 1980), “Macbeth” by Molchanov (V. V. Vasiliev, 1980), etc. It acquired outstanding significance in the development of Soviet ballet play “Spartacus” (Grigorovich, 1968; Lenin Prize 1970). Grigorovich staged ballets on the themes of Russian history (“Ivan the Terrible” to the music of Prokofiev, arranged by M. I. Chulaki, 1975) and modernity (“Angara” by Eshpai, 1976), which synthesized and generalized creative search previous periods in the development of Soviet ballet. Grigorovich's performances are characterized by ideological and philosophical depth, a wealth of choreographic forms and vocabulary, dramatic integrity, and a wide development of effective symphonic dance. In the light of new creative principles, Grigorovich also staged productions of the classical heritage: “The Sleeping Beauty” (1963 and 1973), “The Nutcracker” (1966), “Swan Lake” (1969). They achieved a deeper reading of the ideological and figurative concepts of Tchaikovsky’s music (“The Nutcracker” was staged entirely anew, in other performances the main choreography of M. I. Petipa and L. I. Ivanov was preserved and the artistic whole was decided in accordance with it).

Ballet performances of the Bolshoi Theater were conducted by G. N. Rozhdestvensky, A. M. Zhiuraitis, A. A. Kopylov, F. Sh. Mansurov and others. V. F. Ryndin, E. G. Stenberg, A. D. participated in the design. Goncharov, B. A. Messerer, V. Ya. Levental and others. The designer of all performances staged by Grigorovich is S. B. Virsaladze.

The Bolshoi Theater ballet troupe toured the Soviet Union and abroad: in Australia (1959, 1970, 1976), Austria (1959. 1973), Argentina (1978), Egypt (1958, 1961). Great Britain (1956, 1960, 1963, 1965, 1969, 1974), Belgium (1958, 1977), Bulgaria (1964), Brazil (1978), Hungary (1961, 1965, 1979), East Germany (1954, 1955, 1956, 1958 ), Greece (1963, 1977, 1979), Denmark (1960), Italy (1970, 1977), Canada (1959, 1972, 1979), China (1959), Cuba (1966), Lebanon (1971), Mexico (1961 , 1973, 1974, 1976), Mongolia (1959), Poland (1949, 1960, 1980), Romania (1964), Syria (1971), USA (1959, 1962, 1963, 1966, 1968, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1979), Tunisia (1976), Turkey (1960), Philippines (1976), Finland (1957, 1958), France. (1954, 1958, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1977, 1979), Germany (1964, 1973), Czechoslovakia (1959, 1975), Switzerland (1964), Yugoslavia (1965, 1979), Japan (1957, 1961, 1970, 1973, 1975, 1978, 1980).

Encyclopedia "Ballet" ed. Yu.N.Grigorovich, 1981

On November 29, 2002, the New Stage of the Bolshoi Theater opened with the premiere of Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera “The Snow Maiden”. On July 1, 2005, the main stage of the Bolshoi Theater was closed for reconstruction, which lasted more than six years. On October 28, 2011, the grand opening of the Historical Stage of the Bolshoi Theater took place.

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The history of the Bolshoi Theater, which is celebrating its 225th anniversary, is as majestic as it is complicated. From it you can equally well create an apocrypha and an adventure novel. The theater burned down several times, was restored, rebuilt, its troupe merged and separated.

Twice Born (1776-1856)

The history of the Bolshoi Theater, which is celebrating its 225th anniversary, is as majestic as it is complicated. From it you can equally well create an apocrypha and an adventure novel. The theater burned down several times, was restored, rebuilt, its troupe merged and separated. And even the Bolshoi Theater has two dates of birth. Therefore, his centenary and bicentennial anniversaries will be separated not by a century, but by only 51 years. Why? Initially, the Bolshoi Theater counted its years from the day when a splendid eight-column theater with the chariot of the god Apollo above the portico appeared on Teatralnaya Square - the Bolshoi Petrovsky Theater, the construction of which became a real event for Moscow early XIX century. Beautiful building in classic style, decorated inside in red and gold tones, according to contemporaries, it was the best theater in Europe and in scale was second only to Milan's La Scala. Its opening took place on January 6 (18), 1825. In honor of this event, the prologue “The Triumph of the Muses” by M. Dmitriev with music by A. Alyabiev and A. Verstovsky was given. It allegorically depicted how the Genius of Russia, with the help of the muses, on the ruins of the Medox Theater creates a new beautiful art - the Bolshoi Petrovsky Theater.

However, the troupe, whose forces performed the Triumph of the Muses, which caused universal admiration, had already existed for half a century by that time.

It was started by the provincial prosecutor, Prince Pyotr Vasilyevich Urusov, in 1772. On March 17 (28), 1776, the highest permission followed “to support him with all kinds of theatrical performances, as well as concerts, vauxhalls and masquerades, and besides him, no one should be allowed any such entertainment at all times appointed by privilege, so that he would not be undermined.”

Three years later, he petitioned Empress Catherine II for a ten-year privilege to maintain a Russian theater in Moscow, undertaking to build a permanent theater building for the troupe. Alas, the first Russian theater in Moscow on Bolshaya Petrovskaya Street burned down even before it opened. This led to the decline of the prince's affairs. He handed over the affairs to his companion, the Englishman Mikhail Medox - an active and enterprising man. It was thanks to him that in the wasteland regularly flooded by Neglinka, despite all the fires and wars, the theater grew, which over time lost its geographical prefix Petrovsky and remained in history simply as the Bolshoi.

And yet, the Bolshoi Theater begins its chronology on March 17 (28), 1776. Therefore, in 1951 the 175th anniversary was celebrated, in 1976 - the 200th anniversary, and ahead is the 225th anniversary of the Bolshoi Theater of Russia.

Bolshoi Theater in mid-19th century century

The symbolic name of the performance that opened the Bolshoi Petrovsky Theater in 1825, “The Triumph of the Muses,” predetermined its history over the next quarter of a century. The participation in the first performance of outstanding stage masters - Pavel Mochalov, Nikolai Lavrov and Angelica Catalani - set the highest performing level. The second quarter of the 19th century is the awareness of Russian art, and the Moscow theater in particular, of its national identity. The work of composers Alexei Verstovsky and Alexander Varlamov, who were at the head of the Bolshoi Theater for several decades, contributed to its extraordinary rise. Thanks to their artistic will, Russian culture took shape on the Moscow Imperial stage. opera repertoire. It was based on Verstovsky’s operas “Pan Tvardovsky”, “Vadim, or the Twelve Sleeping Maidens”, “Askold’s Grave”, and the ballets “The Magic Drum” by Alyabyev, “The Fun of the Sultan, or the Slave Seller”, “Tom Thumb” by Varlamov.

The ballet repertoire was not inferior to the operatic repertoire in richness and variety. The head of the troupe, Adam Glushkovsky, a graduate of the St. Petersburg ballet school, a student of C. Didelot, who headed the Moscow ballet even before the Patriotic War of 1812, created original performances: “Ruslan and Lyudmila, or the Overthrow of Chernomor, evil wizard", "Three Belts, or the Russian Cendrillon", "The Black Shawl, or Punished Infidelity", brought Didelot's best performances to the Moscow stage. They showed the excellent training of the corps de ballet, the foundations of which were laid by the choreographer himself, who was also at the head of the ballet school. The main roles in the performances were performed by Glushkovsky himself and his wife Tatyana Ivanovna Glushkovskaya, as well as the Frenchwoman Felicata Gyullen-Sor.

The main event in the activities of the Moscow Bolshoi Theater in the first half of the last century were the premieres of two operas by Mikhail Glinka. Both of them were first staged in St. Petersburg. Despite the fact that it was already possible to get from one Russian capital to another by train, Muscovites had to wait several years for new products. “A Life for the Tsar” was first performed at the Bolshoi Theater on September 7 (19), 1842. “...How can I express the surprise of true music lovers when, from the first act, they were convinced that this opera resolved an issue that was important for art in general and for Russian art in particular, namely: the existence of Russian opera, Russian music... With Glinka’s opera is something that has long been sought and not found in Europe, a new element in art, and begins in its history new period- the period of Russian music. Such a feat, let’s say, hand on heart, is a matter not only of talent, but of genius!” - exclaimed the outstanding writer, one of the founders of Russian musicology V. Odoevsky.

Four years later, the first performance of “Ruslan and Lyudmila” took place. But both of Glinka’s operas, despite favorable reviews from critics, did not last long in the repertoire. Even the participation in the performances of guest performers - Osip Petrov and Ekaterina Semenova, who were temporarily forced out of St. Petersburg by Italian singers, did not save them. But decades later, it was “A Life for the Tsar” and “Ruslan and Lyudmila” that became the favorite performances of the Russian public; they were destined to defeat the Italian opera mania that arose in the middle of the century. And according to tradition, the Bolshoi Theater opened each theater season with one of Glinka’s operas.

On ballet stage By the middle of the century, performances on Russian themes, created by Isaac Abletz and Adam Glushkovsky, were also supplanted. Western romanticism ruled the roost. “La Sylphide,” “Giselle,” and “Esmeralda” appeared in Moscow almost immediately after their European premieres. Taglioni and Elsler drove Muscovites crazy. But the Russian spirit continued to live in the Moscow ballet. Not a single guest performer could outshine Ekaterina Bankskaya, who performed in the same performances as visiting celebrities.

In order to accumulate strength before the next upsurge, the Bolshoi Theater had to endure many shocks. And the first of these was the fire that destroyed the Osip Bove Theater in 1853. All that was left of the building was a charred shell. The scenery, costumes, rare instruments, and music library were destroyed.

Architect Albert Kavos won the competition for the best project for restoring the theater. In May 1855, construction work began, which was completed after 16 (!) months. In August 1856, the new theater opened with V. Bellini’s opera “The Puritans”. And there was something symbolic in the fact that it opened with Italian opera. The actual tenant of the Bolshoi Theater soon after its opening was the Italian Merelli, who brought a very strong Italian troupe to Moscow. The public, with the delight of converts, preferred Italian opera to Russian. All of Moscow flocked to listen to Desiree Artaud, Pauline Viardot, Adeline Patti and other Italian opera idols. The auditorium at these performances was always crowded.

The Russian troupe had only three days a week left - two for ballet and one for opera. Russian opera, which had no material support and was abandoned by the public, was a sad sight.

And yet, despite any difficulties, the Russian operatic repertoire is steadily expanding: in 1858 “Rusalka” by A. Dargomyzhsky was presented, two operas by A. Serov - “Judith” (1865) and “Rogneda” (1868) - were staged for the first time. , “Ruslan and Lyudmila” by M. Glinka is resumed. A year later, P. Tchaikovsky made his debut on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater with the opera “The Voevoda”.

A turning point in public tastes occurred in the 1870s. Russian operas appear one after another in the Bolshoi Theater: “The Demon” by A. Rubinstein (1879), “Eugene Onegin” by P. Tchaikovsky (1881), “Boris Godunov” by M. Mussorgsky (1888), “The Queen of Spades” (1891) and “Iolanta” (1893) by P. Tchaikovsky, “The Snow Maiden” by N. Rimsky-Korsakov (1893), “Prince Igor” by A. Borodin (1898). Following the only Russian prima donna Ekaterina Semenova, a whole galaxy of outstanding singers appear on the Moscow stage. These are Alexandra Alexandrova-Kochetova, and Emilia Pavlovskaya, and Pavel Khokhlov. And it is they, and not the Italian singers, who become the favorites of the Moscow public. In the 70s, the owner of the most beautiful contralto, Eulalia Kadmina, enjoyed special affection from the audience. “Perhaps the Russian public has never known, either earlier or later, such a unique, full of real tragic force performer,” they wrote about her. M. Eikhenwald was called the unsurpassed Snow Maiden, the idol of the public was the baritone P. Khokhlov, whom Tchaikovsky highly valued.

In the middle of the century, the Bolshoi Theater ballet featured Marfa Muravyova, Praskovya Lebedeva, Nadezhda Bogdanova, Anna Sobeshchanskaya, and in their articles about Bogdanova, journalists emphasized “the superiority of the Russian ballerina over European celebrities.”

However, after their departure from the stage, the Bolshoi Theater ballet found itself in difficult situation. Unlike St. Petersburg, where the single artistic will of the choreographer dominated, ballet Moscow in the second half of the century was left without a talented leader. The visits of A. Saint-Leon and M. Petipa (who staged Don Quixote at the Bolshoi Theater in 1869, and debuted in Moscow before the fire, in 1848) were short-lived. The repertoire was filled with random one-day performances (the exception was Sergei Sokolov’s Fernnik, or Midsummer Night, which lasted a long time in the repertoire). Even the production of “Swan Lake” (choreographer Wenzel Reisinger) by P. Tchaikovsky, who created his first ballet specifically for the Bolshoi Theater, ended in failure. Each new premiere only caused irritation among the public and the press. The auditorium at ballet performances, which in the middle of the century provided a substantial income, began to be empty. In the 1880s, the question of liquidating the troupe was seriously raised.

And yet, thanks to such outstanding masters as Lydia Gaten and Vasily Geltser, the Bolshoi Theater ballet was preserved.

On the eve of the new century XX

Approaching the turn of the century, the Bolshoi Theater lived hectic life. At this time, Russian art was approaching one of its peaks. Moscow was at the center of a vibrant artistic life. A stone's throw from Theater Square, the Moscow Public Art Theater opened, the whole city was eager to see performances of the Mamontov Russian Private Opera and symphonic meetings of the Russian Musical Society. Not wanting to lag behind and lose viewers, the Bolshoi Theater quickly made up for lost time in previous decades, ambitiously wanting to fit into the Russian cultural process.

This was facilitated by two experienced musicians who came to the theater at that time. Hippolyte Altani led the orchestra, Ulrich Avranek led the choir. The professionalism of these groups, which had grown significantly not only quantitatively (each had about 120 musicians), but also qualitatively, invariably aroused admiration. Outstanding masters shone in the Bolshoi Theater opera troupe: Pavel Khokhlov, Elizaveta Lavrovskaya, Bogomir Korsov continued their careers, Maria Deisha-Sionitskaya came from St. Petersburg, Lavrenty Donskoy, a native of Kostroma peasants, became the leading tenor, Margarita Eikhenwald was just beginning her career.

This made it possible to include virtually all the world classics in the repertoire - operas by G. Verdi, V. Bellini, G. Donizetti, C. Gounod, J. Meyerbeer, L. Delibes, R. Wagner. New works by P. Tchaikovsky regularly appeared on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater. With difficulty, but still, the composers of the New Russian School made their way: in 1888 the premiere of “Boris Godunov” by M. Mussorgsky took place, in 1892 - “The Snow Maiden”, in 1898 - “The Night Before Christmas” by N. Rimsky - Korsakov.

In the same year, A. Borodin’s “Prince Igor” appeared on the Moscow Imperial stage. This revived interest in the Bolshoi Theater and contributed to no small extent to the fact that by the end of the century singers joined the troupe, thanks to whom the Bolshoi Theater opera reached enormous heights in the next century. The Bolshoi Theater ballet also reached the end of the 19th century in excellent professional form. The Moscow Theater School worked without interruption, producing well-trained dancers. Caustic feuilleton reviews, such as the one posted in 1867: “What are the corps de ballet sylphs like now?.. all so plump, as if they deigned to eat pancakes, and their legs are dragging as they please” - have become irrelevant. The brilliant Lydia Gaten, who had no rivals for two decades and carried the entire ballerina repertoire on her shoulders, was replaced by several world-class ballerinas. One after another, Adelina Jury, Lyubov Roslavleva, and Ekaterina Geltser made their debuts. Vasily Tikhomirov was transferred from St. Petersburg to Moscow, becoming the premier of the Moscow ballet for many years. True, unlike the masters of the opera troupe, so far there was no worthy application for their talents: the secondary, meaningless extravaganza ballets of Jose Mendes reigned on the stage.

It is symbolic that in 1899, with the transfer of Marius Petipa’s ballet “The Sleeping Beauty”, choreographer Alexander Gorsky, whose name is associated with the flourishing of Moscow ballet in the first quarter of the 20th century, made his debut on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater.

In 1899, Fyodor Chaliapin joined the troupe.

A new era was beginning at the Bolshoi Theater, which coincided with the advent of a new XX century

It's 1917

By the beginning of 1917, nothing foreshadowed revolutionary events at the Bolshoi Theater. True, there were already some self-government bodies, for example, the corporation of orchestra artists, headed by the accompanist of the 2-violin group, Y. K. Korolev. Thanks to the active actions of the corporation, the orchestra received the right to organize symphony concerts at the Bolshoi Theater. The last of them took place on January 7, 1917 and was dedicated to the work of S. Rachmaninov. The author conducted. "The Cliff", "Island of the Dead" and "Bells" were performed. The Bolshoi Theater choir and soloists - E. Stepanova, A. Labinsky and S. Migai - took part in the concert.

On February 10, the theater showed the premiere of “Don Carlos” by G. Verdi, which became the first production of this opera on the Russian stage.

After the February Revolution and the overthrow of the autocracy, the management of the St. Petersburg and Moscow theaters remained common and was concentrated in the hands of their former director V. A. Telyakovsky. On March 6, by order of the commissioner of the temporary committee of the State Duma N. N. Lvov, A. I. Yuzhin was appointed authorized commissioner for the management of Moscow theaters (Bolshoi and Maly). On March 8, at a meeting of all employees of the former imperial theaters - musicians, opera soloists, ballet dancers, stage workers - L.V. Sobinov was unanimously elected manager of the Bolshoi Theater, and this election was approved by the Ministry of the Provisional Government. On March 12, the search arrived; artistic part from the economic and service parts, and L. V. Sobinov headed the actual artistic part of the Bolshoi Theater.

It must be said that “Soloist of His Majesty”, “Soloist of the Imperial Theaters” L. Sobinov broke the contract with the Imperial Theaters back in 1915, unable to fulfill all the whims of the management, and then performed in theater performances Musical drama in Petrograd, then at the Zimin Theater in Moscow. When the February Revolution took place, Sobinov returned to the Bolshoi Theater.

On March 13, the first “free gala performance” took place at the Bolshoi Theater. Before it began, L. V. Sobinov made a speech:

Citizens and citizens! With today's performance, our pride, the Bolshoi Theater, opens the first page of its new free life. Bright minds and pure, warm hearts united under the banner of art. Art sometimes inspired fighters of ideas and gave them wings! The same art, when the storm that made the whole world tremble subsides, will glorify and sing folk heroes. From their immortal feat it will draw bright inspiration and endless strength. And then the two best gifts of the human spirit - art and freedom - will merge into a single powerful stream. And our Bolshoi Theater, this marvelous temple of art, will become a temple of freedom in its new life.

March 31 L. Sobinov is appointed commissioner of the Bolshoi Theater and Theater School. His activities are aimed at combating the tendencies of the former management of the Imperial Theaters to interfere with the work of the Bolshoi. It comes to a strike. In protest against the encroachments on the theater's autonomy, the troupe suspended the performance of the play "Prince Igor" and asked the Moscow Council of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies to support the demands of the theater staff. The next day, a delegation was sent from the Moscow Soviet to the theater, welcoming the Bolshoi Theater in the fight for its rights. There is a document confirming the respect of the theater staff for L. Sobinov: “The Corporation of Artists, having elected you as director, as the best and staunch defender and exponent of the interests of art, convincingly asks you to accept this election and notify you of your consent.”

In order No. 1 of April 6, L. Sobinov addressed the team with the following appeal: “I make a special request to my comrades, opera, ballet, orchestra and choir artists, to all production, artistic, technical and service personnel, artistic, pedagogical the staff and members of the Theater School to make every effort for the successful completion of the theater season and school year schools and to prepare, on the basis of mutual trust and comradely unity, for the upcoming work in the next theater year.”

In the same season, on April 29, the 20th anniversary of L. Sobinov’s debut at the Bolshoi Theater was celebrated. The opera “The Pearl Fishers” by J. Bizet was performed. The comrades on stage warmly welcomed the hero of the day. Without taking off his make-up, in Nadir’s costume, Leonid Vitalievich delivered a response speech.

“Citizens, citizens, soldiers! I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your greeting and I thank you not on my own behalf, but on behalf of the entire Bolshoi Theater, which Hard time you provided such moral support.

On the difficult days of the birth of Russian freedom, our theater, which until then had represented an unorganized collection of people who “served” at the Bolshoi Theater, merged into a single whole and based its future on an elective basis as a self-governing unit.

This elective principle saved us from destruction and breathed into us the breath of new life.

It would seem to live and be happy. The representative of the Provisional Government, appointed to liquidate the affairs of the Ministry of the Court and Appanages, met us halfway - he welcomed our work and, at the request of the entire troupe, gave me, the elected manager, the rights of a commissar and director of the theater.

Our autonomy did not interfere with the idea of ​​uniting everyone state theaters in the interests of the state. For this, a person with authority and close to the theater was needed. Such a person was found. It was Vladimir Ivanovich Nemirovich-Danchenko.

This name is familiar and dear to Moscow: it would have united everyone, but... he refused.

Other people came, very respectable, respected, but alien to the theater. They came with the confidence that it would be people outside the theater who would give reforms and new beginnings.

Less than three days have passed since attempts to end our self-government began.

Our elected offices have been postponed, and we are promised one of these days a new regulation on the management of theaters. We still don’t know who and when it was developed.

The telegram vaguely says that it meets the wishes of theater workers, which ones we do not know. We did not participate, were not invited, but we know that the recently released chains of command are again trying to confuse us, again the discretion of the command argues with the will of the organized whole, and the quieted command rank raises its voice, accustomed to shouts.

I could not take responsibility for such reforms and resigned as director.

But as an elected theater manager, I protest against the capture of the fate of our theater in irresponsible hands.

And we, our entire community, are now appealing to representatives of public organizations and the Soviets of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies to support the Bolshoi Theater and not give it to Petrograd reformers for administrative experiments.

Let them take care of the stable department, the appanage winemaking, and the card factory, but they will leave the theater alone.”

Some provisions of this speech require clarification.

A new regulation on theater management was issued on May 7, 1917 and provided for separate management of the Maly and Bolshoi theaters, and Sobinov was called the commissioner for the Bolshoi Theater and Theater school, and not a commissioner, i.e., in fact, a director, according to the order of March 31.

Mentioning the telegram, Sobinov means the telegram he received from the Commissioner of the Provisional Government for the department of the former. courtyard and estates (this included the stable department, winemaking, and card factory) of F.A. Golovin.

And here is the text of the telegram itself: “I am very sorry that due to a misunderstanding you resigned. I urge you to continue working until the matter is clarified. One of these days a new general regulation on the management of theaters will be published, known to Yuzhin, which will meet the wishes of theater workers. Commissioner Golovin."

However, L.V. Sobinov does not cease to direct the Bolshoi Theater and works in contact with the Moscow Council of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies. On May 1, 1917, he himself took part in a performance in favor of the Moscow Council at the Bolshoi Theater and performed excerpts from Eugene Onegin.

Already on the eve of the October Revolution, October 9, 1917, the Political Directorate of the War Ministry sent the following letter: “To the Commissioner of the Moscow Bolshoi Theater L.V. Sobinov.

According to the petition of the Moscow Council of Workers' Deputies, you are appointed commissar over the theater of the Moscow Council of Workers' Deputies ( former theater Zimina)".

After the October Revolution, E.K. Malinovskaya was placed at the head of all Moscow theaters, who was considered the commissar of all theaters. L. Sobinov remained as director of the Bolshoi Theater, and an (elected) council was created to help him.

185 years ago the Bolshoi Theater was inaugurated.

The founding date of the Bolshoi Theater is considered to be March 28 (March 17), 1776, when the famous philanthropist and Moscow prosecutor, Prince Pyotr Urusov, received the highest permission to “contain ... theatrical performances of all kinds.” Urusov and his companion Mikhail Medox created the first permanent troupe in Moscow. It was organized from actors of a previously existing Moscow theater troupe, students of Moscow University and from newly recruited serf actors.
The theater initially did not have an independent building, so performances were staged in Vorontsov’s private house on Znamenka Street. But in 1780, the theater moved to a stone theater building specially built according to the design of Christian Rozbergan on the site of the modern Bolshoi Theater. To build the theater building, Medox bought a plot of land at the beginning of Petrovskaya Street, which was in the possession of Prince Lobanov-Rostotsky. The three-story stone building with a plank roof, the so-called Medox Theater, was erected in just five months.

Based on the name of the street on which the theater was located, it became known as “Petrovsky”.

The repertoire of this first professional theater in Moscow included drama, opera and ballet performances. But operas received special attention, so the Petrovsky Theater was more often called the “Opera House”. The theater troupe was not divided into opera and drama: the same artists performed in both drama and opera performances.

In 1805, the building burned down, and until 1825, performances were staged at various theater venues.

In the early 20s of the 19th century, Petrovskaya Square (now Teatralnaya) was completely rebuilt in the classicist style according to the plans of the architect Osip Bove. According to this project, its current composition arose, the dominant feature of which was the building of the Bolshoi Theater. The building was built according to the design of Osip Bove in 1824 on the site of the former Petrovsky. The new theater partially included the walls of the burnt Petrovsky Theater.

The construction of the Bolshoi Petrovsky Theater was a real event for Moscow at the beginning of the 19th century. A beautiful eight-column building in the classical style with the chariot of the god Apollo above the portico, decorated inside in red and gold tones, according to contemporaries, was the best theater in Europe and was second in scale only to Milan's La Scala. Its opening took place on January 6 (18), 1825. In honor of this event, a prologue “The Triumph of the Muses” was given by Mikhail Dmitriev with music by Alexander Alyabyev and Alexei Verstovsky. It allegorically depicted how the Genius of Russia, with the help of the muses, on the ruins of the Medox Theater creates a new beautiful temple of art - the Bolshoi Petrovsky Theater.

The townspeople called the new building "Colosseum". The performances held here were invariably a success, gathering high-society Moscow society.

On March 11, 1853, for an unknown reason, a fire started in the theater. Theatrical costumes, stage sets, the troupe's archives, part of the music library, and rare musical instruments were destroyed in the fire, and the theater building was also damaged.

A competition was announced for the restoration of the theater building, in which the plan submitted by Albert Kavos won. After the fire, the walls and columns of the porticos were preserved. When developing a new project, architect Alberto Cavos took the three-dimensional structure of the Beauvais Theater as a basis. Kavos approached the issue of acoustics carefully. He considered the optimal structure of the auditorium to be based on the principle musical instrument: the deck of the ceiling, the deck of the parterre floor, wall panels, and balcony structures were made of wood. The acoustics of Kavos were perfect. He had to endure many battles with his contemporaries, architects, and with firefighters, proving that the installation of a metal ceiling (as, for example, in the Alexandrinsky Theater by architect Rossi) could be detrimental to the acoustics of the theater.

While maintaining the layout and volume of the building, Kavos increased the height, changed the proportions and reworked the architectural decoration; Slender cast-iron galleries with lamps were built on the sides of the building. During the reconstruction of the auditorium, Kavos changed the shape of the hall, narrowing it towards the stage, changed the size of the auditorium, which began to accommodate up to 3 thousand spectators. The alabaster group of Apollo, which adorned the Osip Bove Theater, died in a fire. To create a new one, Alberto Cavos invited the famous Russian sculptor Pyotr Klodt, the author of the famous four equestrian groups on the Anichkov Bridge over the Fontanka River in St. Petersburg. Klodt created the now world-famous sculptural group with Apollo.

The new Bolshoi Theater was built in 16 months and opened on August 20, 1856 for the coronation of Alexander II.

The Kavos Theater did not have enough space to store scenery and props, and in 1859 the architect Nikitin made a project for a two-story extension to the northern facade, according to which all the capitals of the northern portico were covered. The project was implemented in the 1870s. And in the 1890s, another floor was added to the extension, thereby increasing the usable area. In this form, the Bolshoi Theater has survived to this day, with the exception of minor internal and external reconstructions.

After the Neglinka River was drawn into the pipe, the groundwater receded, the wooden foundation piles were exposed to atmospheric air and began to rot. In 1920, the entire semi-circular wall of the auditorium collapsed during the performance, the doors jammed, and the audience had to be evacuated through the barriers of the boxes. This forced the architect and engineer Ivan Rerberg in the late 1920s to place a concrete slab on a central support, shaped like a mushroom, under the auditorium. However, the concrete spoiled the acoustics.

By the 1990s, the building was extremely dilapidated, its deterioration was estimated at 60%. The theater fell into disrepair both structurally and decoratively. During the life of the theater, they endlessly added something to it, improved it, tried to make it more modern. Elements of all three theaters coexisted in the theater building. Their foundations were at different levels, and accordingly, cracks began to appear on the foundations, on the walls, and then on the interior decoration. The brickwork of the facades and the walls of the auditorium were in disrepair. The same goes for the main portico. The columns deviated from the vertical by up to 30 cm. The tilt was recorded back in late XIX centuries, and since then everything has increased. These columns of white stone blocks tried to “heal” the entire 20th century - humidity caused visible black spots at the bottom of the columns at a height of up to 6 meters.

The technology is hopelessly behind the modern level: for example, until the end of the 20th century, a decoration winch from the Siemens company, manufactured in 1902, operated here (now it has been handed over to the Polytechnic Museum).

In 1993, the Russian government adopted a decree on the reconstruction of the Bolshoi Theater complex.
In 2002, with the participation of the Moscow government, the New Stage of the Bolshoi Theater was opened on Teatralnaya Square. This hall is more than two times smaller than the historical one and can only accommodate a third of the theater’s repertoire. The launch of the New Stage made it possible to begin the reconstruction of the main building.

According to plan appearance The theater building will remain almost unchanged. The only thing that will lose its extensions is the northern façade, which has been covered for many years by warehouses where decorations are stored. The Bolshoi Theater building will go 26 meters deep into the ground; in the old and new building there will even be room for huge set structures - they will be lowered to the third underground level. The Chamber Hall with 300 seats will also be hidden underground. After reconstruction, the New and Main stages, which are located 150 meters from each other, will be connected to each other and to the administrative and rehearsal buildings by underground passages. In total, the theater will have 6 underground tiers. The storage will be moved underground, which will allow the rear facade to be restored to its proper form.

Unique work is underway to strengthen the underground part of the theater buildings, with a guarantee from the builders for the next 100 years, with parallel placement and modern technical equipment of parking lots under the main building of the complex, which will make it possible to relieve traffic from the most complex interchange in the city - Theater Square.

Everything that was lost in the building will be recreated in the historical interior of the building. Soviet times. One of the main tasks of the reconstruction is to restore the original, largely lost, legendary acoustics of the Bolshoi Theater and make the stage floor covering as comfortable as possible. For the first time in the Russian theater, the gender will change depending on the genre of the performance being shown. Opera will have its own gender, ballet will have its own. In terms of technological equipment, the theater will become one of the best in Europe and the world.

The Bolshoi Theater building is a historical and architectural monument, so a significant part of the work is scientific restoration. The author of the restoration project, Honored Architect of Russia, Director of the scientific and restoration center "Restavrator-M" Elena Stepanova.

According to Russian Minister of Culture Alexander Avdeev, the reconstruction of the Bolshoi Theater will be completed by the end of 2010 - beginning of 2011.

The material was prepared based on information from RIA Novosti and open sources.

In continuation of the series of stories about opera houses around the world, I want to talk about the Bolshoi Opera House in Moscow. State academic theater Opera and Ballet of Russia, or simply the Bolshoi Theater, is one of the largest opera and ballet theaters in Russia and one of the largest opera and ballet theaters in the world. Located in the center of Moscow, on Teatralnaya Square. The Bolshoi Theater is one of the main assets of the city of Moscow

The origin of the theater dates back to March 1776. This year, Groti ceded his rights and obligations to Prince Urusov, who undertook to build a stone public theater in Moscow. With the assistance of the famous M.E. Medox, a place was chosen on Petrovskaya Street, in the parish of the Church of the Savior, in Kopje. With the tireless labors of Medox, the building was built in five months. Grand Theatre, according to the plan of the architect Rosberg, cost 130,000 rubles. Petrovsky Theater of Medox stood for 25 years - on October 8, 1805, during the next Moscow fire, the theater building burned down. The new building was built by K.I. Rossi on Arbat Square. But it, being wooden, burned down in 1812, during Napoleon’s invasion. In 1821, construction of the theater began on the original site according to the design of O. Bove and A. Mikhailov.

The theater opened on January 6, 1825 with the performance “The Triumph of the Muses.” But on March 11, 1853, the theater burned down for the fourth time; The fire preserved only the stone outer walls and the colonnade of the main entrance. In three years, the Bolshoi Theater was restored under the leadership of architect A.K. Kavos. To replace the alabaster sculpture of Apollo that was lost in the fire, a bronze quadriga by Pyotr Klodt was installed above the entrance portico. The theater was reopened on August 20, 1856.

In 1895, a major renovation of the theater building was carried out, after which many wonderful operas were staged in the theater, such as “Boris Godunov” by M. Mussorgsky, “The Woman of Pskov” by Rimsky-Korsakov with Chaliapin in the role of Ivan the Terrible and many others. In 1921-1923, another reconstruction of the theater building took place, and the building was also reconstructed in the 40s and 60s

Above the pediment of the Bolshoi Theater is a sculpture of Apollo, patron of the arts, in a chariot drawn by four horses. All figures of the composition are hollow, made of sheet copper. The composition was made by Russian craftsmen in the 18th century according to the model of the sculptor Stepan Pimenov

The theater includes a ballet and opera troupe, the Bolshoi Theater Orchestra and the Stage Brass Band. At the time of the theater's creation, the troupe included only thirteen musicians and about thirty artists. At the same time, the troupe initially had no specialization: dramatic actors took part in operas, and singers and dancers - in dramatic performances. Thus, the troupe at different times included Mikhail Shchepkin and Pavel Mochalov, who sang in operas by Cherubini, Verstovsky and other composers

Throughout the history of the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow, its artists, in addition to admiration and gratitude from the public, have repeatedly received various signs of recognition from the state. During the Soviet period, more than 80 of them received the title of People's Artists of the USSR, Stalin and Lenin Prizes, eight were awarded the title of Heroes of Socialist Labor. Among the theater soloists are such outstanding Russian singers as Sandunova, Zhemchugova, E. Semyonova, Khokhlov, Korsov, Deisha-Sionitskaya, Salina, Nezhdanova, Chaliapin, Sobinov, Zbrueva, Alchevsky, E. Stepanova, V. Petrov, the Pirogov brothers, Katulskaya, Obukhova, Derzhinskaya, Barsova, L. Savransky, Ozerov, Lemeshev, Kozlovsky, Reizen, Maksakova, Khanaev, M. D. Mikhailov, Shpiller, A. P. Ivanov, Krivchenya, P. Lisitsian, I. Petrov, Ognivtsev, Arkhipova, Andzhaparidze, Oleinichenko, Mazurok, Vedernikov, Eizen, E. Kibkalo, Vishnevskaya, Milashkina, Sinyavskaya, Kasrashvili, Atlantov, Nesterenko, Obraztsova and others.
Of the singers more younger generation who came forward in the 80-90s, it is necessary to note I. Morozov, P. Gluboky, Kalinina, Matorin, Shemchuk, Rautio, Tarashchenko, N. Terentyeva. Major conductors Altani, Suk, Cooper, Samosud, Pazovsky, Golovanov, Melik-Pashaev, Nebolsin, Khaikin, Kondrashin, Svetlanov, Rozhdestvensky, Rostropovich worked at the Bolshoi Theater. Rachmaninov (1904-06) performed here as a conductor. Among the best directors of the theater are Bartsal, Smolich, Baratov, B. Mordvinov, Pokrovsky. The stage of the Bolshoi Theater hosted tours of the world's leading opera houses: La Scala (1964, 1974, 1989), Vienna State Opera(1971), Berlin Komische Oper (1965)

Bolshoi Theater repertoire

During the theater's existence, more than 800 works were staged here. The Bolshoi Theater's repertoire includes such operas as "Robert the Devil" by Meyerbeer (1834), "The Pirate" by Bellini (1837), "Hans Geiling" by Marschner, "The Postman from Longjumeau" by Adam (1839), "The Favorite" by Donizetti (1841), "The Mute of Portici" by Auber (1849), "La Traviata" by Verdi (1858), "Il Trovatore", "Rigoletto" by Verdi (1859), "Faust" by Gounod (1866), "Mignon" by Thomas (1879), "Un ballo in maschera" "Verdi (1880), "Siegfried" by Wagner (1894), "The Trojans in Carthage" by Berlioz (1899), "The Flying Dutchman" by Wagner (1902), "Don Carlos" by Verdi (1917), "A Midsummer Night's Dream" by Britten ( 1964), "The Castle of Duke Bluebeard" by Bartok, "The Spanish Hour" by Ravel (1978), "Iphigenia in Aulis" by Gluck (1983) and others.

The Bolshoi Theater hosted world premieres of Tchaikovsky's operas "The Voevoda" (1869), "Mazeppa" (1884), and "Cherevichki" (1887); Rachmaninov's operas "Aleko" (1893), "Francesca da Rimini" and " Stingy Knight" (1906), Prokofiev's "The Gambler" (1974), a number of operas by Cui, Arensky and many others.

On turn of the 19th century and the 20th century the theater reaches its peak. Many St. Petersburg artists are seeking the opportunity to participate in Bolshoi Theater performances. The names of F. Chaliapin, L. Sobinov, A. Nezhdanova are becoming widely known throughout the world. In 1912 Fyodor Chaliapin staged M. Mussorgsky’s opera “Khovanshchina” at the Bolshoi Theater.

In the photo Fyodor Chaliapin

During this period, Sergei Rachmaninov collaborated with the theater, who proved himself not only as a composer, but also as an outstanding opera conductor, attentive to the peculiarities of the style of the work being performed and achieving a combination of ardent temperament with subtle orchestral finishing in the performance of operas. Rachmaninov improves the organization of the conductor's work - thus, thanks to Rachmaninov, the conductor's stand, previously located behind the orchestra (facing the stage), is moved to its modern place.

In the photo Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninov

The first years after the 1917 revolution are characterized by the struggle to preserve the Bolshoi Theater as such and, secondly, to preserve part of its repertoire. Operas such as The Snow Maiden, Aida, La Traviata and Verdi in general were attacked for ideological reasons. There were also proposals to destroy ballet, as “a relic of the bourgeois past.” However, despite this, both opera and ballet continued to develop in Moscow. The opera is dominated by works by Glinka, Tchaikovsky, Borodin, Rimsky-Korsakov, and Mussorgsky. In 1927, director V. Lossky created a new edition of “Boris Godunov”. Operas by Soviet composers are staged - “Trilby” by A. Yurasovsky (1924), “The Love for Three Oranges” by S. Prokofiev (1927).

In the 1930s, Joseph Stalin’s demand for the creation of “Soviet opera classics” appeared in the press. Works by I. Dzerzhinsky, B. Asafiev, R. Gliere are staged. At the same time, a strict ban on works by foreign composers is introduced. In 1935, the premiere of D. Shostakovich’s opera “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” took place with great success among the public. However, this work, highly appreciated throughout the world, causes sharp discontent at the top. The well-known article “Confusion Instead of Music,” authored by Stalin, became the reason for the disappearance of Shostakovich’s opera from the repertoire of the Bolshoi Theater

During the Great Patriotic War, the Bolshoi Theater was evacuated to Kuibyshev. The theater celebrates the end of the war bright premieres S. Prokofiev’s ballets “Cinderella” and “Romeo and Juliet”, where Galina Ulanova shone. In subsequent years, the Bolshoi Theater turns to the work of composers of the “fraternal countries” - Czechoslovakia, Poland and Hungary, and also revises productions of classical Russian operas (new productions of Eugene Onegin, Sadko, Boris Godunov, Khovanshchina and many other). Most of These productions were carried out by opera director Boris Pokrovsky, who came to the Bolshoi Theater in 1943. His performances in these years and the next few decades served as the “face” of the Bolshoi Theater opera

The Bolshoi Theater troupe often tours, having success in Italy, Great Britain, the USA and many other countries


Currently, the Bolshoi Theater's repertoire retains many classical productions of opera and ballet performances, but at the same time the theater strives for new experiments. Directors who have already gained fame as film directors are involved in working on operas. Among them are A. Sokurov, T. Chkheidze, E. Nyakrosius and others. Some new productions of the Bolshoi Theater aroused the disapproval of part of the public and the honored masters of the Bolshoi. Thus, a scandal accompanied the production of L. Desyatnikov’s opera “Children of Rosenthal” (2005), due to the reputation of the author of the libretto, writer V. Sorokin. Indignation and rejection of the new play “Eugene Onegin” (2006, director D. Chernyakov) was expressed by famous singer Galina Vishnevskaya, refusing to celebrate her anniversary on the Bolshoi stage, where similar productions are staged. At the same time, the mentioned performances, no matter what, have their fans