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Everyone knows that St. Petersburg is the cultural capital of Russia. Indeed, no city in the country can boast of being the birthplace of so many prominent artists. Peter is also a real treasure trove of cultural heritage. We offer you a kind of cultural route, the checkpoints of which will be the legendary St. Petersburg theaters. Take a fan, an umbrella and a couple of posters with you, because your attention is on the ten best theaters in St. Petersburg. Third call, we begin!
10 Theater Shelter comedian
One day, director Yuri Tomashevsky decided to modernize the concept of “one-man theater”, spice it up a little with his own ideas. In general, this is how in 1987 the history of the St. Petersburg chamber theater “Comedian’s Shelter” began. Over time, the project began to gain momentum, evenings were held in the theater with the participation of such artists as Alla Bayanova, Igor Volkov and Natalya Danilova. The highlight of the performances was the non-standard presentation, which liberates the acting potential of the participants. From the basement, the “Comedian’s Shelter” moved to a building on Sadovaya Street, in the city center. Over the years, Ivan Krasko, Inga Oboldina and Pavel Chinarev appeared on the theater stage.
9. Theater Workshop
Further on our route is one of the youngest theaters in St. Petersburg. It was founded only 8 years ago, but the professionalism of the director (Grigory Kozlov is in charge of the theater) and a well-chosen cast made the Workshop famous and recognizable. Although the troupe does not involve stars of the first magnitude, the theater’s repertoire includes works whose names everyone has heard. “The Brothers Karamazov”, “Tom Sawyer”, “Days of the Trubins” and “Quiet Don” – this is not a complete list of performances staged in the “Workshop”. Every year the theater participates in many festivals and wins prizes.
8. Youth Theater on the Fontanka
The history of this theater began in 1979, when the actors of the youth theater of Leningrad started rehearsing in the building of the former skating rink in Izmailovsky Garden. The debut performance of the theater took place on January 18, 1980. Since then, the youth theater on the Fontanka has firmly taken its place among the best cultural institutions in St. Petersburg. The concept of the theater fully reflects the life position of its leader (Semyon Yakovlevich Spivak dominates the Fontanka). “It is easy to talk about complex things” – this is the main idea. Izmailovsky Garden eventually became a kind of patrimony of the youth theater: everywhere there are sculptures made by actors and workers. In particular, the famous “Petersburg Angel”.
7. Musical comedy theater
The Musical Comedy Theater is one of the oldest cultural institutions not only in St. Petersburg, but throughout Russia. Its building, located along Italian Street, was erected in 1800. As for the theater itself, the house passed into use for the artists in 1929 (actually, the date of foundation). From the first day of the war, concert brigades were created in the theater, playing performances and performances for soldiers wherever possible. The actors themselves, in addition to rehearsals, also practiced military and sanitary work. Since 2005, the theater has been directed by Yuri Schwarzkopf, and since 2006, the actors of the troupe have annually won the highest theatrical award, Peter the Golden Soffit, in one category or another.
6. Buff Theater
This theater has a special history. After all, its existence is divided into 2 periods. “Buff” was founded already in 1870 as a circus, which quite easily turned into a theater. At first, the performances consisted mainly of music, dances and magic tricks (often foreign artists played roles). However, in 1872 the theater building burned down completely. With the house, the former popularity of the institution also disappeared, and in 1917 “Buff” was abolished. The theater found a second life in the early 80s and exists to this day. Today, comedies, melodramas, musicals, as well as music shows are staged here. It is curious that such personalities as Igor Kornelyuk, Alexander Vasilyev (“Spleen”), Yuri Galtsev and Elena Vorobei spent a segment of their careers at Buff.
5. Bolshoi Drama Theater
In the meantime, we are returning to the Fontanka, where a welcome call invites us to go to the hall of the Bolshoi Drama Theater (BDT), which is preparing to celebrate its centenary next year. Among the theater’s selected repertoire are performances such as Bernard Alba’s House, The Night Before Christmas, A Month in the Country and the legendary Heartbreak House. The actors of the troupe regularly become laureates of the country’s prestigious theatrical awards, including the Golden Mask. Over the years, many famous artists have appeared on the BDT stage. Alisa Freindlich, Nina Usatova, Sergei Yursky, Ivan Krasko, Evgeny Sidikhin – the list goes on and on. BDT is a true legend of St. Petersburg.
4. Alexandria Theater
As you guessed, only selected theaters remained on our route. Fortunately, in St. Petersburg there are plenty of those. Next in line is the famous Alexandrinka, perhaps the oldest theater in Russia, which has successfully survived to this day. In 1756, the institution was opened under the leadership of the “father of the Russian theater” Fyodor Volkov. After more than 250 years, the most famous performances performed by true masters of acting art are played on the Alexandrinsky stage. “Seagull”, “Living Corpse”, “Inspector”, “Double” – everyone has heard these names. In the same way, every theatergoer considers it his duty at least once in his life to visit the cult building on Ostrovsky Square.
3. Mikhailovsky Theater
The Mikhailovsky Theater is also not young. Its opening took place in 1833, and Nicholas I personally signed the decree for this. The history of the theater is very rich in sonorous names. Over the years, Fyodor Chaliapin, Matilda Kshesinskaya and Sarah Bernard appeared on the stage of Mikhailovsky. In addition, at one time the theater had an orchestra under the direction of Johann Strauss. Parterre also did not lag behind in stardom. Often in the auditorium were seen such personalities as Pushkin, Tchaikovsky, Tolstoy and Zhukovsky. Wow company, right? Another interesting fact is that the Mikhailovsky Theater has been renamed 6 times in its history, and in 2001 they returned to the historical name, closing the circle.
2. Hermitage Theater
The building of the Hermitage Theater cannot be confused with anything – its green facade “looks” exactly at the Neva. In turn, the entire Palace Embankment admires the theater house. November 16, 1785 is considered to be the opening date of the cultural institution. It was on this day that the first opera was played on the stage, which had the name “The Miller, the Sorcerer, the Deceiver and the Matchmaker”. At one time, Ivan Dmitrievsky, Pyotr Plavilshchikov, Tatyana Troepolskaya and Yakov Shumsky were employed in the acting troupe of the Hermitage Theater. Court balls and masquerades were often held in the theater building. Today, the theater maintains absolutely all historical traditions and carries the spirit of high culture.
1. Mariinskii Opera House
It would be amazing if the final point of our route was another theater, wouldn’t it? After all, the legendary Mariinsky Theater is not only the opera diamond of St. Petersburg, but also the pearl of the world theatrical art. The history of the Mariinsky Theater dates back to 1783, when the Bolshoi Theater (subsequently renamed) was erected by decree of Catherine the Great. Today, the Mariinsky Theater is a whole theater complex that includes three stages (located in different buildings), as well as three branches (a stage in Vladivostok and two buildings in Vladikavkaz). It is noteworthy that Valery Gergiev has been the permanent artistic director of the Mariinsky Theater for 30 years.