Stage setup. (so that beginners do not get confused in terms). Stage history of the play "The Inspector General" Stage history of the play The Inspector General briefly

The “Inspector” was sent to the III Department on February 27, 1836 for permission to submit. On March 2, a resolution was received: “Approved for presentation.” Censor Oldekop seemed not to have read the comedy. He hastily wrote: “The play does not contain anything reprehensible.” “The Inspector General” was approved for publication on March 13, and on April 19, 1836 it was shown in St. Petersburg at the Alexandrinsky Theater, and on May 23, 1836 in Moscow at the Maly Theater. The mayor was played in St. Petersburg by I.I. Sosnitsky, in Moscow - M.S. Shchepkin. Gogol was dissatisfied with the St. Petersburg production.

In the article “A warning for those who would like to play The Inspector General properly,” the author gave the following instructions to the actors: “The thing to be most careful about is not to fall into caricature. There should be nothing exaggerated or trivial even in the last roles. On the contrary, it is necessary The actor should especially try to be more modest, simpler and, as it were, nobler than the person who is being presented actually is. The less the actor thinks about making people laugh and being funny, the more funny the role he has taken will be revealed.

"Inspector". Poster for the first performance of the play in St. Petersburg. 1836

The funny will reveal itself by itself precisely in the seriousness with which each of the persons depicted in the comedy is busy with his work. They are all busily, fussily, even passionately busy with their work, as if it were the most important task of their lives. The viewer can only see from the outside the trifle of their worries. But they themselves do not joke at all and certainly do not think that anyone is laughing at them. An intelligent actor, before grasping the small quirks and minor features of the external face of the person assigned to him, must try to capture the universal human expression of the role. Must consider why this role is recognized; must consider the main and primary concern of each person, on which his life is spent, which constitutes a constant subject of thoughts, an eternal nail sitting in the head. Having caught this main concern of the person he has taken, the actor must be filled with it himself in such a force that the thoughts and aspirations of the person he has taken are assimilated to him and remain in his head inseparably during the entire performance of the play. He doesn't have to worry much about private scenes and little things. They will come out on their own successfully and deftly, if only he does not for a moment throw out of his head this nail that has lodged itself in the head of his hero. All these particulars and various small accessories, which even such an actor can so happily use, who knows how to tease and capture gait and movement, but not create the entire role, are nothing more than paints that need to be applied already when the drawing is composed and done right. They are the dress and body of the role, not its soul. So, first of all, it is this role’s soul that should be captured, and not its dress.”

Portrait of N.V. Gogol at the rehearsal of the play “The Inspector General” at the Alexandrinsky Theater. Drawing by P.A. Karatygina. 1836

Gogol's comedy caused the most controversial assessments in society. Many laughed, seeing The Inspector General as nothing more than a funny farce. Among those laughing was Emperor Nicholas I, who exclaimed: “Well, a play! Everyone got it, and I got it more than anyone else.” Most of the officials present at the performances guessed the serious, revealing meaning of the comedy. “Comedy was recognized by many as a liberal statement,” wrote Prince P.A. Vyazemsky, - like, for example, Beaumarchais’s comedy “The Barber of Seville”, is recognized as some kind of political brand, thrown into society under the guise of comedy... Some welcomed it, rejoiced at it as a bold, albeit covered up, attack on the powers that be. According in their opinion, Gogol, having chosen his provincial town as a battlefield, was aiming higher... From this point of view, others, of course, looked at comedy as an assassination attempt on the state: they were excited, frightened by it, and in the unfortunate or happy comedian they saw almost a dangerous rebel “Gogol wrote to M.S. Shchepkin on April 29, 1836: “The effect produced by it [the comedy] was great and noisy. Elderly and respectable officials shouted that nothing was sacred to me when I dared to speak like that about serving people. The police are against me, the merchants are against me, the writers are against me. They scold me and go to the play; they can’t get tickets for the fourth performance.<...>If it were not for the high intercession of the Sovereign, my play would never have been on stage, and there were already people trying to ban it. Now I see what it means to be a comic writer."

The truth said by Gogol rose to a high generalization. The bureaucratic tribe could not forgive Gogol for this. They began to accuse him of crushing the foundations of society - after all, the characters in the comedy and thousands of their prototypes considered themselves to be the founders of the foundations. “To say about a rogue that he is a rogue is considered in our country to undermine the state machine; to say just one living and true line means, in translation, to disgrace the entire class and arm others or his subordinates against it,” Gogol noted with pain. He very accurately formulated his thought about the situation of the satirical writer in Russia: “It’s sad when you see what a pitiful state our writer is in. Everything is against him, and there is no equivalent side for him. "He's a firebrand!" He is a rebel!" And who is speaking? These are people of state speaking, people who have earned a reputation, experienced people who should have some intelligence to understand the matter in its true form, people who are considered educated and whose world, at least Russian the world, calls them educated. They brought rogues onto the stage, and everyone is in bitterness, why bring rogues onto the stage.”

Questions and tasks

1. Read the textbook articles and other materials available to you about the comedy “The Inspector General.” Prepare a report on the creative and stage history of comedy.
2. Why was Gogol’s comedy received sharply negatively by the bureaucratic world and all adherents of class orders? What justification does the writer himself give for this?

Living word

Watch one of the modern theatrical productions of the play and write a review of it.

Open literature lesson on the topic: “The creative and stage history of the creation of N.V. Gogol’s comedy “The Inspector General.” 8th grade.

Lesson objectives:

 Repetition of known information about the life and work of N.V. Gogol

Acquaintance with the creative and stage history of the creation of comedy, development of students' perception of a literary work.

 Fostering love for the writer’s work, moral qualities of students, introduction to art and theater.

Design, equipment

 Computer, multimedia projector, presentation, excerpt from the play “The Inspector General,” excerpt from Leonid Parfenov’s film “Gogol Bird,” illustrations for the comedy.

Lesson type introductory

Lesson type mixed (combination of different types of lesson - lecture lesson, film lesson, etc.)

Methods informational, partially search, illustrative and explanatory, visual teaching methods.

Preliminary homework individual messages.

During the classes.

1. Teacher's word

In previous lessons we studied the works of Pushkin and Lermontov. And today we will get acquainted with the work of another writer. I suggest you watch a fragment of the film and you yourself will try to determine the topic of our lesson.

(Video “Gogol “The Inspector General” beginning”)

Yes, you read that right. We will talk about N.V. Gogol and his famous comedy “The Inspector General”. This comedy left an indelible mark on the history of drama and theater. The work was written almost two centuries ago, but still does not leave the stage.(Slide 1)

2. The teacher’s story about some biographical data of N.V. Gogol.

Teacher. Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol often called himself a traveler and considered the road his home. But still, there are several places on earth that were dear to him.

Gogol cannot be imagined without Vasilyevka, without Dikanka, without Sorochinets, where he was born, without St. Petersburg, where he became a writer...

Let's take a journey through the pages of the life of the great writer, take a closer look at the living features of those places that remember him.(Slide 2)

N.V. Gogol was born in the town of Velikie Sorochintsy, Mirgorod district, Poltava province

Maria Ivanovna, Nikolai Vasilyevich’s mother, came here to save her child, because her two previous children were stillborn. The boy was unusually weak and thin, but survived. Fearing for his life, the doctor observed little Nikolai for 6 weeks, and two months later the mother and child went to their native Vasilyevka. The doctor said about the newborn: “He will be a glorious son!” He, of course, meant life and health, but it turned out that the words took on a different meaning, and the son of Maria Ivanovna and Vasily Afanasyevich became a glorious son of Russia.(Slide 3.4)

Gogol spent his childhood years on his parents' estate Vasilievka.(Slide 5)

The cultural center of the region was Kibintsy, the estate of D. P. Troshchinsky (1754-1829), a distant relative of the Gogols; Gogol's father acted as his secretary. In Kibintsy there was a large library, there was a home theater, for which Father Gogol wrote comedies, being also its actor and conductor.(Slide 6)

In May 1821 he entered the gymnasium of higher sciences in Nizhyn. Here he is engaged in painting, participates in performances - as a set designer and as an actor, and with particular success he plays comic roles.(Slide 7, 8)

After graduating from high school, Gogol dreams of public service, dreams of being a lawyer in order to eradicate the injustice that reigned all around. In 1828 he went to St. Petersburg. In St. Petersburg, Gogol tries to find a place for service, but to no avail. At the same time he begins to write. He tries himself in both the poetic and prose genres.(Slide 9, 10)

What works of Gogol do you know?

It was here, in St. Petersburg in 1835, that Gogol planned to write the famous comedy “The Inspector General.” This is a dramatic work.(Slide 11)

What is the purpose of a dramatic work? (Performance on the theater stage)

Why did Gogol decide to turn to the theater?

What facts from Gogol’s biography indicate his interest in theater?

( Father, V.A. Gogol-Yanovsky, wrote comedies for the home theater of the wealthy nobleman Troitsky, in which Gogol played with his parents.

Gogol also performed on stage at the gymnasium in Nizhyn. On the small stage, lyceum students loved to play comic and dramatic plays on holidays. They played both ready-made and independently written plays. Gogol and Prokopovich were the first authors and performers.)

Teacher. We have bibliographers working in our classrooms.. The guys received a proactive task: to find interesting information about Gogol’s attitude to the theater.

Bibliographer 1 So one day they composed a play about Little Russian life, in which Gogol undertook to play the silent role of a decrepit old Little Russian man. We learned the role and did several rehearsals. The evening of the performance arrived, to which many relatives of the lyceum students and strangers gathered. The play consisted of two acts; the first act went well, but Gogol did not appear in it, but should have appeared in the second. The public did not yet know Gogol. In the second act there is a Little Russian hut on stage. There is a bench near the hut; there is no one on stage.

Here comes a decrepit old man in a simple casing, a sheepskin cap and greased boots. Leaning on a stick, he can barely move, grunting, giggling, coughing. Yes, finally he giggled and coughed with such a suffocating, hoarse old man’s cough, with an unexpected addition, that the entire audience roared and burst into uncontrollable laughter. And the old man calmly rose from the bench and trudged off the stage, making everyone laugh.

Bibliographer 2. From that evening on, the public recognized and became interested in Gogol as a wonderful comedian. Another time, Gogol tries to play the role of an old man - a miser. Gogol practiced in this role for more than a month, and his main task was to make his nose meet his chin. He sat for hours in front of the mirror and pressed his nose to his chin. Until, finally, I achieved what I wanted. He played the satirical role of the miser uncle excellently, filled the audience with laughter and gave them great pleasure. Everyone thought then that Gogol would go on stage, because he had enormous stage talent.

Teacher . What interesting stories from the life of N.V. Gogol!

Yes, everyone thought then that Gogol would be an actor. But he had a great desire to write for the stage.Besides,According to Gogol, theater had great educational value. This is a pulpit from which a living lesson is read to a whole crowd at once.He dreamed of comedy.

Comedy - one of the types of drama that depicts life situations and characters that cause laughter.

Look at the slide, there are 2 masks shown here,which of them can be classified as comedy, why? (laughs).

Why did Gogol decide to turn specifically to comedy?

(laughter helps to expose the vices of society (vulgarity, servility, servility, bribery, lies, adventurism, indifference to official duty), a person is most afraid of laughter).(Slide 12)

3. The creative history of the creation of the comedy “The Inspector General”. Fragment from Leonid Parfenov’s film “Bird - Gogol”.

What formed the basis for the creation of N.V. Gogol’s comedy?

4. Stage history of comedy.

Teacher. There is a plot, the comedy is ready in a surprisingly short time, it took Gogol two months to create the play. “The Inspector General” was accepted for production at the Alexandrinsky Theater in St. Petersburg.

Biographer 3. Gogol began to work closely as a director. Before the start of rehearsals, Gogol himself read the text to the actors, took care of the costumes, the scenery, and the manner of acting. His comments are precise, his requirements are definite. Gogol does not want the comedy to look like a cheerful trifle. Not to entertain the audience, but to disturb it with caustic and sharp laughter, revealing the absurdities and ugliness of reality - this is Gogol’s goal.(Slide 13)

The premiere was scheduled for April 19, 1836. Gogol was very worried. Fans of theater news gathered at the posters and box office. “St. Petersburg is a great lover of theatre. If you are walking along Nevsky Prospekt on a fresh, frosty morning... go into the vestibule of the Alexandrinsky Theater at this time: you will be amazed at the stubborn patience with which the assembled people besiege the ticket distributor,” wrote Gogol.

And finally, the first performance. The magnificent hall of the best theater in St. Petersburg is full. The boxes and the first rows of the stalls shine with the stars of dignitaries and the jewels of ladies. In the royal box is Nicholas 1 with his heir, the future Alexander 2. Representatives of the democratic circle are crowded in the gallery. There are many of Gogol’s acquaintances in the theater: Zhukovsky, Krylov, Glinka.(Slide 14)

Annenkov spoke about the first performance: “After the first act, bewilderment was written on all faces, as if no one knew how to think about the picture that had just been presented. This bewilderment increased with each act. There was almost no applause, but intense attention, convulsive intense following of all shades of light, and sometimes dead silence showed that what was happening on stage terribly captured the hearts of the audience.

The king laughed and applauded a lot at the performance, wanting to emphasize that the comedy was harmless and should not be taken seriously. He understood perfectly well that his anger would be another confirmation of the veracity of Gogol’s satire. Leaving the box, NikolaiIsaid: “Well, a play! Everyone got it, and I got it more than everyone else!”

5. Parade of characters.

Teacher: Let's go to the premiere of Gogol's comedy "The Inspector General." The theater begins with a poster. On the slide we see a poster for the first performance of “The Inspector General” at the Alexandrinsky Theater.It's time to meet the characters of the comedy.

Attention: “parade” of heroes. (Slide 15-22)

(on the slides are photographs of famous actors in roles from “The Inspector General” or drawings from the anthology). Textbook p.19-21

“The mayor is Anton Antonovich Skvoznik-Dmukhonovsky. Already aged in the service and a very intelligent man in his own way. Although he is a bribe-taker, he behaves very respectably; quite serious; a few are even resonant; speaks neither loudly nor quietly, neither more nor less. His every word is significant. His facial features are coarse and hard, like those of anyone who began hard service from the lower ranks. The transition from fear to joy, from baseness to arrogance is quite rapid, as in a person with crudely developed inclinations of the soul. He is dressed, as usual, in his uniform with buttonholes and boots with spurs. His hair is cropped and streaked with gray.”

“Anna Andreevna, his wife, a provincial coquette, not yet quite old, brought up half on novels and albums, half on the chores in her pantry and maid's room. Very curious andat case shows vanity. Sometimes she takes power over her husband only because he is unable to answer her; but this power extends only to trifles and consists of reprimands and ridicule. She changes into different dresses four times throughout the play.”Marya Antonovna - daughter of Anton Antonovich Skvoznik-Dmukhanovsky (Gorodnichey)

« Khlestakov, a young man of about twenty-three, thin and thin; somewhat stupid and, as they say, without a king in his head - one of those people who in the offices are called empty. He speaks and acts without any consideration. He is unable to stop constant attention on any thought. His speech is abrupt, and words fly out of his mouth completely unexpectedly. Dressed in fashion."

« Osip, servant , such as servants who are several years old usually are. He speaks seriously, looks a little down, reasonerAnd loves to read moral lectures to himself for his master. His voice is always almost even, and in conversation with the master it takes on a stern, abrupt and even somewhat rude expression. He is smarter than his master and therefore guesses more quickly, but he does not like to talk much and is silently a rogue. His costume is a gray or blue shabby frock coat.”

« Bobchinsky And Dobchinsky, both are short, short, very curious; extremely similar to each other; both with small bellies; both speak quicklyAnd Gestures and hands help a lot. Dobchinsky is a little taller and more serious than Bobchinsky, but Bobchinsky is more cheeky and lively than Dobchinsky.”

« Lyapkin-Tyapkin, judge, a man who has read five or six books and is therefore somewhat free-thinking. The hunter is big on guesses, and therefore he gives weight to every word. There is always a significant expression on the face. He speaks in a deep bass voice with an elongated drawl, a wheeze and a gulp - like an ancient clock that first hisses and then strikes.”

« Strawberry, trustee of charitable institutions , a very fat, clumsy and clumsy man, but for all that a sly and a rogue. Very helpful and fussy."

Teacher:

These are our main characters in the comedy “The Inspector General”.

Exercise:

 Flip through the play “The Inspector General”, determine how many acts (actions) there are in it and how many phenomena each act consists of? (5 actions, each from 6 to 16 phenomena)

 How many characters? Who didn't we name? (25 specific actions. Persons of different ranks and positions, many guests, merchantsAlready reading the posters makes it possible to assume that the comedy shows a broad picture of life, the peculiar anatomy of a county town: here is the head of the administration - the mayor, and officials: the superintendent of schools, the judge, the trustee of charitable institutions, the chief of police; district doctor, police officers, city landowners and city ladies, and merchants, and townspeople, and servants.)

After the production of “The Inspector General” on stage, Gogol is full of gloomy thoughts. He was not completely satisfied with the acting. He is depressed by the general misunderstanding. In these circumstances it is difficult for him to write, it is difficult for him to live. He decides to go abroad, to Italy. Reporting this to Pogodin, he writes with pain: “A modern writer, a comic writer, a writer of morals must be further away from his homeland. The prophet has no glory in his homeland.” But as soon as he leaves the borders of his homeland, the thought of her, the great love for her with new strength and poignancy arises in him: “Now there is a foreign land in front of me, a foreign land around me, but in my heart is Rus', not nasty Rus', but only beautiful Rus' "

Why do you think Gogol was full of dark thoughts? (Gogol was not understood by the public and was dissatisfied with the production of the play: “I was angry with the audience for not understanding me, and with myself, who was to blame for not understanding me.” The comedy did not fit into the framework of ordinary vaudeville, so Gogol from the actors demanded naturalness and verisimilitude on stage)

Laughter is the only “honest, noble face in comedy” (if we have time)

Teacher: Today N.V. Gogol is one of the most popular writers. His work is in third place in the world after the Bible and the works of F. M. Dostoevsky. First of all, he is known to the general public as the author of the comedy "The Inspector General." It has been staged on the stage of various theaters hundreds of times. And today, if we look at the posters of various theaters around the country and the world, we will certainly see “The Inspector General”. This is one of the most successful and popular performances today.

What is the secret of her immortality? Why are the problems raised by the author still relevant today? Will we not recognize the heroes of today's century among the characters? What does the great satirist teach us? We will have to answer these and other questions in the course of studying comedy.

6. Announcement of homework. (Slide 23)

1. Prepare a message: “Image of the Mayor”, “Image of Khlestakov” (according to the table).

Table “Image Characteristics”

Appearance

Character

Speech

Actions

On the first day of the production of The Inspector General, the Alexandrinsky Theater was crowded. The privileged public, accustomed to looking at theatrical performances as light entertainment, was stunned by the deep life truth of Gogol's comedy. Gogol’s comedy “made a lot of noise” (as censor A.V. Nikitenko wrote in his diary) and caused widespread speculation in society. Reactionary circles angrily accused the author of slandering officials. Gogol invented “some kind of Russia and some kind of town in it, into which he dumped all the abominations that you occasionally find on the surface of real Russia...” wrote the reactionary Vigel.

Gogol's brilliant comedy was perceived completely differently by advanced social circles. V.V. Stasov recalled that all the youth of that time were delighted with The Inspector General. “We then repeated by heart to each other, correcting and supplementing each other, entire scenes, long conversations from there.” But most of the actors did not understand the depth and vitality of the comedy and played it like a stereotyped vaudeville, and reactionary criticism and government circles irritated by the play angrily attacked the author of the “stupid farce.” Subsequently, Gogol in “Theatrical Travel” spoke with bitter irony about this attitude of the ruling circles, conveying the words of a certain “gentleman”: “Rock! But you can't joke with laughter. It means destroying all respect, that's what it means. But after that, everyone will beat me up in the street and say: “But they’re laughing at you; and you have the same rank, so here’s a slap on the wrist!’ Because that’s what it means.” His interlocutor replies: “Of course! This is a serious thing! they say: a trinket, trifles, a theatrical performance. No, these are not simple trinkets; You need to pay strict attention to this. People even send you to Siberia for things like this. Yes, if I had the power, the author would not have made a peep from me. I would put him in such a place that he wouldn’t even see the light of God.”

The writer was deeply shocked both by the performance of the play itself and by the attitude of the hostile privileged public towards it: “...“The Inspector General” was played,” Gogol wrote about the first performance of the comedy, “and my soul is so vague, so strange.. “I expected, I knew in advance how things would go, and despite all this, a sad and annoyingly painful feeling came over me.”

Main parts of the scene

The stage box along its vertical section falls into three main parts: the hold, the plank and the grate (Fig. 2). Hold- This is the room located under the stage, which is why it is also called the lower stage. The hold contains wheel drive mechanisms, lifting and lowering platforms and other equipment. The lower stage is used to install hatches from the stage and to implement various effects. The area of ​​the hold is usually equal to the area of ​​the main stage, minus the space reserved for the storage of soft decorations - the “safe”. The height of the hold depends on the mechanization of the stage plank - the design of the turntable and lifting and lowering platforms. However, under any conditions, the hold height cannot be less than 1.9 m, counting from the floor to the lower planes of the upper structures.

Tablet- called the stage floor, a wooden flooring that serves as a place for actors to play and set decorations to be installed.

Grate bars - lattice ceiling of the stage. Blocks of decorative, individual, soffit lifts and other riding equipment are placed on the grate. At the tablet level, the stage is adjacent to the stage from the auditorium side - the proscenium, at the back - the rear stage room, and on the sides - the so-called pockets.

Proscenium- this is the section of the stage that extends into the auditorium beyond the curtain line. In modern theaters, the proscenium is often included in the volume of the stage box and is supplied with all the necessary set of mechanical equipment for changing scenery. The front stage is used as a place for actors to play in front of the curtain in close proximity to the audience.

The boundary between the main stage and its front part is Red line- the line along which the intermission curtain runs. Sometimes the red line is called a part of the scene, on

¶which a fire-retardant curtain is lowered, but due to the fact that in modern buildings this curtain is often placed on the orchestra barrier, it is more correct to consider the active zone as the beginning of the stage, i.e. the zone located behind the main stage curtain. The entire stage area is divided into conditional sections running parallel to the ramp. These sections are called stage plans. The countdown of plans starts from the red line. First comes the zero shot, followed by the first, second, etc. to the back wall of the stage. Previously, the border separating one plan from another was the scenes and pads hanging in permanent places. The backstage is a soft or hard decoration suspended from the sides of the stage and covering its side parts. The pads are, in essence, the same backstage, but suspended horizontally across the stage.

Fig 2. Stage-box structure:

1 - construction portal; 2 - lighting gallery; 3 - working gallery; - transition bridge; 5 - grate bars; 6 - portal tower; 7 - fire-resistant curtain

In the theater this concept was preserved, but received a broader meaning. Formally, the boundary of the stage plan is considered to be the line of soffit batteries. This is perhaps the only sign by which the stage space can be divided. The stage plan, equipped with a rotating circle or lifting and lowering platforms, has lost a clear designation of parallel sections, so in some theaters the plans are defined very conditionally and in different ways.

In addition, the stage area is divided into the playing part and the side backstage spaces. The playing part is the middle part of the stage, which lies within normal visibility from the auditorium. From the sides it is limited by the scenes, and from behind by some kind of background. This term is also used in a narrower sense; it denotes that part of the stage that is open to the audience in a given act or picture. In this case, it is more correct to talk about the playing area, and not about the playing part of the stage. Everything that is outside the playing stage belongs to auxiliary, utility spaces.

The stage communicates with the proscenium through a portal opening.

Special wings and bows located behind the portal arch can change the size of the stage opening, forming a so-called working stage mirror or working portal.

On the sides of the stage there are additional reserve areas called pockets. Unlike the side spaces of the stage, the pockets are located outside the stage box and therefore have a reduced height, approximately equal to the height of the portal. The pockets are used to prepare decorations assembled on rolling platforms. Since the most actively played area is the first plans of the stage, the pocket rooms are located in this area.

backstage, or otherwise the back stage, is, like the pockets, a separate enclosed space adjacent to the back of the main stage. It is separated from it by a main wall with a wide arched opening. The structure and purpose of the rear stage is similar to pockets. Its space is often used to install projection equipment that operates on the principle of rear projection, i.e., “through-the-air” projection. In a number of cases, when a particularly large depth of stage space is required, the rear stage area is included in the playing part and scenery is installed on it.

¶That is why the back stage room is made high and equipped with lifting devices.

According to fire safety requirements, the rear stage arch is isolated from the side of the main stage with a fire-resistant curtain.

Determining the proportion between the main parts of the scene is a matter of utmost importance. The quality of the stage itself and its suitability for professional work depend on how correctly the relationships between the various parts of the stage space are defined. This data is developed centrally and serves as the main document for all designers. The published “Norms and Technical Specifications for the Design of Theater Buildings” regulate the basic initial data of the stage and the building as a whole.

The starting point in determining the main dimensions of the stage is the dimensions of the portal opening. All linear dimensions of the stage and pockets - width, depth, length - are closely related to the width of the portal arch, just as all their heights are directly dependent on the height of the portal opening (Fig. 3).

The width of the stage is twice the width of the portal, and the depth is from 1.5 to 1.8 of this value. The height from the tablet to the grate in relation to the height of the portal is especially important. The triple headroom ensures complete cleaning of suspended decorations, minimal use of hoops and sufficient opening of the stage space.

The depth of the pockets, somewhat greater than the width of the portal, allows you to mount decorations on the furnaces, which, when fed to the playing part, completely fill the working opening of the mirror. As for the width of the side stages, the usually used stage area does not exceed 5-6 m in depth, therefore

Rice. 3. Basic proportions of the scene:

A- stage plan; b - vertical longitudinal section of the scene

¶Wider forks don't make much sense. Accordingly, the width of the pocket is selected, which is usually one third of the entire depth of the stage. And the height, as we have already said, is approximately equal to the height of the portal.

The dimensions of the backstage are directly dependent on the type of rolling platform that is located in it. If this is a simple decorative van, then the width of the back stage is made 4-5 more than the width of the portal m, and the depth can be equal to the width of the pocket. The height of the rear stage exceeds the height of the portal by 2-3 m. If a turntable is inscribed in the furka, then the area of ​​the rear stage should be significantly increased.

All this data for determining the size of the stage is not strictly necessary. They fix the main starting points and can be changed in one direction or another during the design process. The given standards are designed for a conventional box stage. Consequently, when creating a special form of the scene, these relations undergo certain changes; only the fundamental foundations laid down in the norms are preserved.

The specified dimensions of the stage depend on many reasons: the type of mechanization of the stage, the specific design of the mechanisms, the decision of the stage horizon, etc., etc. For example, the width of the stage depends on the nature of the drive of the boom lifts, which serve to move the scenery vertically . If the boom lifts are equipped with an electric drive, then the working galleries on which the winches are installed have the same width. If the galleries are free from drive mechanisms, then their width is significantly reduced. And the larger the width of the gallery, the larger the width of the stage should be, since sufficient space is needed between the outer edge of the galleries and the edge of the circle for hanging the wings. There are many such unexpected dependencies. The theatrical stage is a complex knot of interconnected and often mutually exclusive elements, which are not easy to reconcile.

Stage auxiliary equipment includes: galleries, transition bridges, portal scenes and towers, grate bars. Galleries- these are original balconies running along the side and rear walls of the stage. The purpose and functions of galleries depend on their location. The first, lowest gallery is installed at a height of 1-1.5 m from the top edge of the portal. This gallery is called a lighting gallery because spotlights are usually mounted on its front railing, illuminating the stage with overhead light. The topmost gallery is located 2-2.5 below the grate m. The rest divide the distance between the first and last into equal parts. These are working galleries. The one with which the decoration is controlled -

¶tional lifts is called the main working gallery. And galleries on which electric drives for lifts and winches are installed for various stage needs are usually called machine galleries.

The rear galleries serve as a continuation of the side ones and are used to transition from one side of the stage to the other, as well as for installing radio-acoustic equipment, backlighting and various auxiliary works.

The supporting structures of the galleries are made of reinforced concrete or steel with a concrete coating. For small-capacity theaters, wooden flooring is possible, which is laid along the axis of the gallery. Free space is left between the stage wall and the gallery for installing guides and moving the counterweights of the boom lifts.

Each side gallery (Fig. 4) is fenced on both sides with strong steel railings, usually made from gas pipes. The external fence must have a height of at least 1 m. Manual lifting ropes, rigging ropes, cables, etc. are tied to it. Therefore, special attention is paid to the strength of the fences. The railings of the galleries are designed for a horizontal load of at least 100 kg/linear m with a load factor of 1.2. The internal fence (to the stage wall) is made with a height of 0.8 m. This fence not only prevents accidents, but also has purely operational functions. Firstly, the worker leans on it when working with a manual lift, and secondly, the leading lifting rope is attached to the fence handrail using hoses (short pieces of rope embedded on the handrail).

¶while loading or unloading the counterweight. The high height of the railing makes it difficult to balance the lift.

For safety reasons, all fences up to half their height are covered with metal mesh, and from below, to the flooring, side boards with a height of 15 to 20 are attached. cm. These boards prevent tiles or other objects from falling from the gallery floor onto the stage board. Typically, counterweight tiles are laid along the inside of the gallery. In order to strengthen this part of the flooring (in wood) and to prevent accidentally falling tiles from breaking the floor, an additional thick board is laid along the entire gallery along its inner part.

The width of the working galleries depends on the type of drive of the boom lifts. For manual lifts, the width of the gallery is approximately 1.5 m, and with machine - from 2 to 2.5 m. The fact is that, according to safety regulations, the free passage in a straight line between the gallery fences and the extreme point of the equipment located on the gallery must be at least 0.8 m. And between the winch and the control panel is at least 0.5 m.

Decorations hanging above the stage and their movement in the space under the grate pose a certain danger for people working below. Therefore, the riding worker must be sure to see the place where he lowers the bar. Thus, when determining the width of the gallery, not only the size of the free passage along its flooring is taken into account, but also the size of the viewing area of ​​the stage board.

Lighting galleries differ from working galleries in that their external handrail is a road along the grooves of which lighting devices move on special carriages. On the outside of the gallery there is a metal mesh catcher that protects people working on stage from accidental falling of frames, light filters, lamp fragments, etc.

The galleries running along the back wall of the stage have a simpler design. Since they are adjacent to the wall, internal fencing is not required. To save space, their width is reduced to 0.8 m.

The working galleries are connected to each other by hanging transition bridges, crossing the stage space in the transverse direction. They serve for the quick transition of mounted workers from one side of the stage to the other. In addition, bridges are necessary for a wide variety of auxiliary work (ropes are lowered from them to manually lift high decorations, chandeliers, lampshades), as well as for the implementation of some stage effects.

The first transition bridges are laid along the portal wall of the stage. Their number can be equal to the number of tiers of galleries. The next row is located near the center of the stage on

The height is not lower than the second gallery, and the next ones rise even higher to the level of the third tier. The further the bridge is from the portal, the higher it should be located. Otherwise, the bridges artificially cut the height of the stage visible from the hall, depriving it of air and space.

Despite the fact that the transition bridges have a small width (0.5 m clean), they all occupy a certain space of the stage, deadening the area underneath. In order to rationally use this space, soffit batteries are placed under the bridges. The total number of bridges on a medium-sized stage ranges from two to three, including portal ones.

Just like galleries, bridges are equipped with side boards and strong fences at least a meter high. Using metal rods, the supporting structures of the bridges are rigidly suspended from the lower chords of the stage floor trusses.

Grate bars made from wooden blocks with an approximate cross-section of 6X6 cm. The bars are attached with screws to the stage floor beams perpendicular to the portal and at a distance of no more than 5 cm from each other.

The grate is necessary for boom lifts, the cables of which pass through it. In addition, the lattice coating allows you to install temporary blocks of individual lifts at any point, both manually and mechanically.

Safety regulations impose special requirements for the operation of grate bars. This is understandable - any, even the smallest part, falling from a great height can lead to a serious accident. Therefore, persons who have undergone special instructions and received permission from the stage operator are allowed to work on the grate. A hand tool is tied to a belt, and for small parts a tarpaulin measuring at least 1.5X1.5 is spread on the grate m. Those on stage are warned about the work being carried out, and particularly dangerous areas of the tablet are marked with a special fence.

Portal scenes are installed immediately after the intermission curtain. Unlike conventional stage curtains, they are mounted on a rigid frame. The portal scenes form a kind of frame for the performance, so they are made movable. The simplest type of portal curtain is a wooden or metal frame covered with fabric. The movement of the scenes is carried out in different ways. In some cases they move parallel to the ramp, in others they rotate around their axis, in others they extend out like screens. The nature of the movement and the appearance of the backstage itself are determined based on the specific conditions of the scene.

¶ Portal towers perform the functions of backstage: they diaphragm the stage mirror and form a movable frame framing the stage picture, and at the same time they are a movable light post. If the portal scenes are in many cases installed almost close to the intermission curtain, then the portal towers are moved back to a distance sufficient to exit along the zero plan and install two or three boom lifts. The amount of travel of the tower is calculated so that in the extreme position the tower reaches the edge of the turntable and even extends its cantilever part a little further. In this case, when using pavilion decoration, the tower covers the edge of the decorative walls.

In theatrical practice, there are two types of portal towers. The first type includes multi-story, tower structures with a thickness of 0.8-0.9 m. Lighting equipment is located on each floor. The second type, the most common, is more similar to a reinforced rocker (Fig. 5). The frame of this tower is only 140 mm. Lighting bridges located one above the other are attached to its inner side. The bridges occupy only the middle part of the tower, leaving space for vertical stairs running along both

¶sides of the frame. The small thickness of the frame is optically more favorable and better masks the ends of hard decorations. But the light power of such a tower is much less than that of the first type of tower.

The running gear of the portal towers consists of drive wheels and upper guide rollers. The driving wheels are located at the bottom of the tower. To accurately fix the movement, a guide rail is cut into the stage board, and the running wheels are equipped with flanges. The tower is moved manually or using a simple drive. The turret drive consists of a system of sprockets connected by an endless chain and a gear transmission with a handle. The drive sprockets are mounted on the road wheels, and the tension sprocket is attached to the tower frame. Since the distance between the wheels is quite large - from two to three meters - an additional supporting sprocket is installed below to prevent the chain from sagging. The movement of the tower or backstage is carried out by rotating the handle.

The stability of the tower is ensured by two horizontal rollers located in the upper part of the frame. The rollers slide along a box-shaped track attached to fixed parts of the stage structure, most often to the bottom of the transition portal bridge.

The portal transition bridge, located at the level of the first gallery, and the portal towers form a single frame, interpreted as the second portal of the stage. At the same time, this frame is also a light portal, since the transition bridge performs the same functions as the lighting galleries and the towers themselves. For greater maneuverability during the installation of the light, the middle part of the bridge is made up and down. Thus, a movable structure is placed between the towers, carrying diffused and directional light devices.

The outside of the tower and the wings are covered with thick fabric, the color and texture of which can be different. Some theaters cover the backstage with the fabric from which the intermission curtain is made, others prefer more neutral linings, such as black velvet, etc. In addition to the main, permanent covering, the backstage and towers are often covered with additional materials in accordance with the overall coloristic and visual design of the performance.

Fireproof fire curtain mandatory for all theaters with a capacity of 800 seats or more. The main purpose of the curtain is to reliably protect the auditorium from fire and the penetration of toxic gases formed during combustion.

In addition to fire resistance and airtightness, the curtain must have increased strength, since during a fire, enormous pressure develops on the stage, which can squeeze it out into the auditorium. According to existing standards, the opposite

¶The fire curtain is designed for horizontal pressure from the stage side equal to 40 kg/m 2 at a frame temperature of at least 200° C. During a fire, the curtain is cooled by streams of water coming from a special pipe with spray heads located on the portal stage.

The curtain frame is made of steel beams and filled with fireproof materials: asbestos cement, concrete over a metal mesh and some others.

Fire-resistant curtains are usually made of the lift-and-fall type. An exception is for curtains in theaters built in seismic areas, in which the curtains may be retractable. The fact is that the lifting and lowering system not only ensures greater tightness of the stage ceiling, but also greatly facilitates the installation of an emergency non-motorized descent.

The curtain is suspended on two or more ropes going to the winch drum, and the same number of ropes to which counterweights are attached (Fig. 6). The curtain is always heavier than the counterweights. If the winch fails or the current supply to it stops, the curtain lowers by force of its own gravity. Braking of the curtain during non-motorized descent is carried out by a mechanical limit switch mounted on the winch.

The curtain movement is controlled from three points: the fire station, the stage board and the winch machine room. Under normal operating conditions, raising and lowering

Rice. 6. Fire curtain: a - curtain suspension diagram; b - the upper part of the curtain;

/ - a curtain; 2 - curtain blocks; 3 - grate blocks; 4 - counterweight; 5 - winch; 6 - stage portal wall; 7 - gutter; 8 - sand; 9 - visor; 10 - fender screen; 11 - pipe with water spray heads

¶Only allowed from the stage board to avoid accidents. The fire brigade must see the entire course of the curtain. Simultaneously with the beginning of the curtain movement, a sound and light alarm is activated, warning people working on the stage.

To seal the overlap of the portal opening of the stage, metal guides of a complex profile pass along the sides of the curtain and along the vertical walls of the portal, forming a labyrinthine lock between them. The upper edge of the curtain ends with a steel beam. The vertical part of this beam protrudes beyond the frame towards the auditorium. When the curtain is lowered, it crashes into sand or other fireproof material that fills the gutter located at the top of the portal. An elastic, fire-resistant cushion is attached to the bottom of the curtain. Under the curtain, in the same plane as it, there is a major firewall wall. Between this wall, located in the hold, and the curtain, only the wooden flooring of the tablet is allowed.

Safety rules prohibit placing decorations, furniture, or anything under the curtain that could interfere with the immediate closure of the stage. The projection of the curtain is applied with indelible paint onto the stage board.

Decorative safes or, in other words, warehouses for soft decorations, according to a long-standing tradition, are located in the hold on

Rice. 7. Safe with pull-out shelves:

A- cross section; b- plan; 1 - swivel bracket; 2 - shelf; 3 - a shelf extended into the span; 4 - boom lift

¶background of the scene. The fireproof storage is connected to the stage by fireproof covers, embedded in the stage plank and covered with wooden flooring on top. The length of the safe is slightly longer than the length of the rod, so that soft picturesque decorations rolled into bars can be stored in it.

Transporting and laying rolls on shelves is a very labor-intensive and unsafe operation. Therefore, great importance is attached to the mechanization of loading and unloading safes. One of the interesting ways to mechanize safes is a system of movable shelves, designed and implemented for the first time at the Leningrad Academic Opera and Ballet Theater. S. M. Kirov in 1954 (Fig. 7).

The twenty-meter-long shelves are mounted on swivel brackets. The two outer brackets are leading, as they are connected to the shelf by vertical pins. When the shelf moves to the middle of the safe, it moves to the side, simultaneously moving along the longitudinal axis. The angles of rotation of the brackets and the hinge system are designed so that the effort of one person is sufficient to move a fully loaded shelf in a horizontal plane. The width of the shelf in relation to the overall width of the safe is designed so that when extended into the bay, it fills it entirely. “Self-enclosure” of the shelf occurs due to adjacent sections located on each floor and due to its own barriers. Laying of rolled decorations is carried out by a special electric-powered lifting rod.

Mechanization of shelves does not eliminate the need to fence the open hatch of the safe. Installing a multi-meter rigid fence is quite a troublesome operation. Automatic

Rice. 8. Cassette safe:

1 - safe shaft; 2 - cassette; 3 - cover; 4 - scene tablet

Due to great technical difficulties, it has not yet been possible to create a system that reliably encloses the hole in the tablet that is formed when opening the lids of the safe. The most convenient and reliable system in all respects is the cassette safe system (Fig. 8).

A cassette safe is essentially a lift-and-fall warehouse. A number of shelves are placed in a single frame, which is raised to the desired height using spindle or squeezing devices. The closed design of the cassette does not require flatbed railings, which greatly simplifies the technique of loading and unloading shelves. Currently, cassette safes are becoming widespread.

Stage setup.

Source: “What is what? Reference-dictionary for a young man" Peter Monastyrsky

Backstage. The back of the stage, which serves as a backup room for storing scenery.

Grate bars. The upper part located above the stage board. The main element of the grate is the flooring of beams mounted at an appropriate distance from each other. This position allows them to raise or lower the scenery and other elements of the ongoing performance. Blocks for moving cables, lighting fixtures and everything that needs to be hidden from the eyes of spectators are installed above and below the grate.

Tablet. Floor in stage box. It is placed in such a way that there are no cracks in it. This is related to health protection and foot safety. In drama theaters, the tablet is made with mortise turntables and concentric rings. This “small mechanization” allows you to solve additional creative problems.

Circle ring. One of the most important elements of machinery on stage is a circle embedded in the tablet and rotating flush with the stationary part of the tablet. In the last three or four decades, a ring has also appeared in stage machinery. It can rotate with the circle if it is secured with appropriate fasteners. If necessary, it can rotate independently of the circle. This complex mechanic helps solve many scenographic ideas of the artist and director. Especially when the circle, say, moves clockwise, and the ring moves counterclockwise. If these tools are used correctly, additional video effects may occur.

Proscenium. Part of the stage, slightly extended into the auditorium. In drama theaters it serves as the setting for small scenes in front of a closed curtain, which are the connecting link between the main scenes of the play.

"Pocket". Convenient service spaces on both sides of the stage box, where, firstly, elements of the stage design of performances of the current repertoire can be stored, and secondly, moving trucks can be mounted on which the necessary scenery is assembled for delivery to the stage, so that the next one can be played against their background episode. Thus, while the left furka is involved in the performance, the right one is loaded for the next episode. This technology ensures the dynamics of changing the “scene of action”.

Backstage. In the theater, part of the hanging scenery, part of the “stage clothing”. Located on the sides of the stage box, parallel or at an angle to the portal, they limit the playing space, mask the scenery standing on the sides of the stage, cover the side spaces of the stage, hiding technical equipment, lighting equipment and artists ready to perform. The curtains make what is behind them invisible.

Stage portal. Cutouts in the front wall of the stage separating it from the auditorium, the left and right portals form the so-called stage mirror. In addition to the permanent stone ones on the stage, there are two movable ones, with their help the stage can be reduced in size.

Stage mirror. Reception in the architectural portal separating the stage box from the auditorium.

Decoration. Nowadays, when deciding on the artistic design of a play, it is preferable to talk about scenography rather than set design. For as long as the theater has existed, the scenery for performances has been an obligatory component only as a characteristic of the scene. This was required, firstly, by the purpose of the performance, in which the actors told the plot. Secondly, the author's remarks were obliged to format them according to the prompt of the location of the action. But since the figure of the director appeared in the theater, everything began to change towards creating the image of the performance, its emotional interpretation... The theater ceased to be a straightforward spectacle, it began to speak in allegories and allusions. In this case, the elementary decoration could no longer be useful: it could not provide any interesting union between the stage and the audience. In the new conditions, scenography became necessary, which over time began to increasingly win the hearts of both the audience and the greatest artists and creators of the performance.

Stage clothes. Framing the stage box, consisting of wings, arches, and backdrop. The pads are fixed above the tablet on horizontal rods. They “hide” the entire household located at the top; the valance is also a canopy, but it is located closer to the viewer and covers the radiator and the first soffit. Rugs cover a plank wooden floor that is not very attractive in appearance; in every serious theater there are several such sets, depending on the circumstances. As a rule, stage clothing is quite expensive.

Paduga. A strip of fabric in the same color as the stage box is suspended horizontally from the top of the stage box. It also blocks the viewers’ view of the “technical dirt located under the grates (soffits, lighting, other design elements).

Valance. A frill is a lace border that runs along the edge of something. Fixed on a rod.

Barbell. A part of the stage mechanism is a bar from the left to the right bridge, lowering and raising the elements of scenery attached to it, driven by hands or a motor.

Backdrop. A large painting that can serve as a backdrop for a performance. It should be recalled that the backdrop does not have to be picturesque. It can sometimes simply be part of the scene's clothing. This means that it can be neutral in the same color as the wings and pads.

Soffit. A battery of lights, assembled in a certain programmed sequence, aimed down at the tablet or at the backdrop or at the auditorium, or at different parts of the stage box.

Ramp. A long, low barrier along the proscenium that hides lighting fixtures aimed at the stage from the audience.

Proscenium. Stage space in front of the curtain. The proscenium is also an additional area that can be used for interludes, screensavers between paintings, and for communication with the audience.

A curtain. The curtain that separates the stage from the auditorium, after each action the curtain, so that after the intermission it rises again. In addition to the main curtain, large theaters also have a super-curtain hanging on the first rod and a fire curtain, which is lowered after each performance to isolate the stage from the auditorium. Every day before the start of the performance, the fire curtain rises and hangs there, at the top, in combat readiness, in case of fire.