Thå State Academic Bolshoi Theatre of Russia is one of the best musical theaters in the world. The Bolshoi Theater was founded in 1776, by the moment when the First regular troupe in Ìîsñîw was organized by Peter Urussov, an educated theatrical Figure and Moscow public prosecutor, and his partner Mikhail Medoks. The troupe was formed from the actors of an earlier Moscow theatrical company, students of Moscow University, and newly engaged serf actors.
Originally the theater did not have its oisin building therefore performances were staged in à private house of Mr. Vorontsov at Znamenka Street. But in 1780 the theater moved to à special theatrical stone edifice built on the place of the modern Bolshoi Theatre. According to the namå of the street, where the theater was situated, they called it Petrovsky Theatre. The repertoire of this first professional musical theater in Moscow consisted of drama, opera, and ballet performances. But the center of special attention were operas - that is why the Petrovsky Theatre was mîrå often called the Opera House. The troupe of the theater was not divided into opera and drama companies: the same actors appeared in dramatic and opera performances.
At that time, this exercised influence on formation of the school of opera singers who were required to be equally professional in vocal and dramatic arts.
Contacts of the Petrovsky Theater troupe with the folk musical art were establishing national traits of execution style on Moscow stage. Also contributing to this was the repertoire which mainly consisted of operas by Russian composers written on the basis of national themes and imbued with popular song art. The most significant of the operas were "The Miller - Sorcerer, Deceiver and Match-Maker" by Mikhail Sokolovsky, "The Bad Luck from the Coach", "Saint-Petersburg’s Trade Stalls", "The Miser" by Vassily Pashkevich and many others.
The Petrovsky Theatre was distinguished for one remarkable feature which was not peculiar then to for one theater in the world. It had à Consultative Committee which consisted of leading actors and decided all creative matters: adopted plays for staging, composed the repertoire and cast the plays.
In 1805, the edifice îf thå theater was burnt down, and till 1825 performances were staged on various theatrical sites.
In 1806, the theatre became à national one under the authority of the Office of Moscow Imperial Theatres. At that time, works of Italian and French composers were for the first time staged at the theater. Domestic operas by composers Alexander Aliabiev and Stepan Davydov were directed as well.
In 1824, on the place of the burnt down Petrovsky Theatre à new theater, which was named Bolshoi Petrovsky, was built by architect Î. Bove. It was opened on January 18, 1825 by the Prologue "The Triumph of the Muses" to music of À1åõåi Verstovsêó and Alexander Aliabiev.
The new edifice of the Bolshoi Theatre became one of the most beautiful theatrical buildings in the world due to its perfect classical architecture.
After moving of the theater to the new edifice, its organization was headed by theatrical Figures - dramatist Feodor Kokoshkin and composer Alexei Verstovsky.
Works of domestic musical dramatic art firmly established in the repertoire: at first there were operas vaudevilles and ballets-variety entertainments based on folk melodies and stories, and later - full-length operas, the best oI which was "Askold s Grave" by Alexei Verstovsky.
Beginning from 1840-s, operas by Wolvgang Mozart, Joaccino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti, Vincenzo Bellini, Daniel Auber, and others start to appear in the repertoire.
Opera productions of Mikhail Glinka, the founder of Russian classical music, became the most important event in the history of the Bolshoi Theater. Âó stagin: "Ivan Sussanin" in 1842 and "Ruslan and Ludmila" in 1846 the Bolshoi Theater started to create national classical repertoire.
In March 1853, à destructive fire failed to exterminate only the external walls of the theater and its columned front facade. The edifice xi.as restored and slightly reconstructed by the architect Albert Kavos and was opened in 1856. 1ï this appearance, Ìé minor alterations, it exists up to now.
Of great significance to the history of the theater was opera and ballet legacy of the great Russian composer Piotr Chaikovsky. His operas "Eumeni Oneguin", "The Queen of Spades", "The Cherevichki", "Ìàõåðà", "Iolanta", ballets "The Swan Lake", "The Sleeping Beauty" produced in 1870’s - 1890’s and later - the ballet "Nutcracker" are placed on golden record. of the repertoire, In 80’s and 90’s of the XIX century, works of composers from "The Mighty Group" - "Boris Godunov" by Modest Mussorgsky, "Sadko" and "The Snow-Girl" by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, "The Prince Igor" by Alexander Borodin- were produced on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater.
The history of the Bolshoi Theater numbers many distinguished singers who were passing traditions îf Russian vocal school and actor s mastery from generation to generation.
The real golden age of Russian vocal-execution school set in at the beginning of the ÕÕ th century and was connected with coming to the Bolshoi Theater of Leonid Sobinov, Antonina Nezhdanova, Feodor Shaliapin.
Creative work of these great actors placed Russian vocal-dramatic art among the best in the world.
Traditions of national Russian ballet started to form on the Bolshoi Theater stage as far back as the beginning of the XIX-th century and were connected with activities ofbaIler-master Adam Glushkovsky, later - with ballet-dancers Ekaterina Sankovskaya, Nadezhda Bogdanova, Praskovia Lebedeva, on the åvå and at the beginning of the XX th century - with Liubov Roslavleva, Adelaida Jury, Ekatenna Gueltser, Yassili Tikhomirov, ballet-master Alexander Gorsky.
At the conductor’ s desk of opera and bàllet- performances there stood conductors Ippolit Altani, Vyacheslav Suk, Serguei Rakhmaninov, chorus leader Ulrikh Avranek, sets were designed by Carl Waits, Alexander Golovin, Konstantin Korovin.
After the year of 1917, works of Soviet composers - the operas "The Still Don-River" and "The Upturned Virgin Soil" by Ivan Dzerzhinsky, the ballet "The Red Ðîððó" by Reingold Glier - ’ were produced on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater together with the best works of Russian and foreign classical composers.
The operas "The Decembrists" by Juri Shaporin, "The War and the Ðåàñå", "Semion Kotko", "The Gambler" by Sergei Prokofiev, "The Optimistic Tragedy" by Alexander Kholminov, "The October" by Vànî Muradeli, "The Unknown Soldier" and "Quiet Are the Dawns Here" by Kirill Molchanov, "The Stealing îf the Moon" by Otar Taktakishvili, "The Dead Souls" by Rodion Schedrin, the ballets "Romeo and Juliette", "The Cinderella", "Ivan the Terrible", "The Stone Flower" by Sergei Prokofiev, "Spartacus" by Àram Khachaturyan, "Assel" by Vladimir Vlassov, "The Legend about Love" by Arif Melikov, "Anna Karenina", "The Sea-Gull", "The Lady with à Doggy" by Rodion Schedrin, "The Hussar Ballad" by Tikhon Khrennikov, "Aniuta" by Valeri Gavrilin are brilliant productions îf the Bolshoi Theatre in 1950s - 1980s.
The opera dramatic art of the ÕÕ-th century is represented by the names of Nadezhda Obukhova, Valeria Barsova, Ivan Kozlovsky, Alexander Pirogov, Ksenia Derzhinskaya, Serguei Lemeshev, Mark Reizen, Nikolai Ozerov, Maria Maksakova, Maxim Mikhailov, Dmitri Golovin, Elena Stepanova, Panteleimon Nortsov, Irina Maslennikova, Nikandr Khanaev, Elizaveta Shumskaya, Vera Davydova, Georgi Nelepp, Alexei Ivanov, Ivan Petrov, Alexei Krivchenia, Alexander Ognivtsev.
The ballet, represented in 1920s by the art of Ekaterina Gueltser, Vassili Tikhomirov, Victorina Krigher, Maria Reizen, Leonid Zhukov, received in 1930s - 1940s brilliant continuation owing to the art of Matina Semionova, Asaf Messerer, Galina Ulanova, Alexei Ermolaev, Olga Lepeshinskaya, Mikhail Gabovich, Vladimir Preobrazhensky, Juri Kondratov, and later - Ìàóà Plissetskaya, Raissa Struchkova. Talented ballet-masters of older generation, namely Vassili Vainonen, Rostislav Zakharov, Leonid Lavrovsky, worked with these actors.
In 1918, à school headed by Konstantin Stanislavsky and where the principles of opera direction were formed was organized in the theater. These undertakings were continued in the works of Vladimir Lossky, Iosif Lapitsky, Leonid Baratov, and later - Georgi Anissimov, The dramatic culture of the theatre achieved particular success in the creative work of director Boris Pokrovsky.
The vocalists Irina Arkhipova, Galina Vishnevskaya, Òàmara Ìilashkinà, Elena Obraztsova, Bela Rudenko, Vladimir Atlantov, Juri Mazurok, Alexander Vedernikov, Eugenie Nesterenko, Artur Eizen, Zurab Sotkilava, Tamara Siniavskaya, Makvala Kasrashvili, Nina Terentieva are famous in many countries all over the world now.
Thanks to the ballet-dancers Ekaterina Maksimova, Nina Timofejeva, Natalia Bessmertnova, Ludmila Semeniaka, Nadezhda Pavlova, Svet1ànà Adyrkhajeva, Nina Semizorova, Alla Mikhalchenko, Vladimir Vassiliev, Maris Liepa, Mikhail Lanovsky, Alexander Bogatyriov, Viacheslav Gordejev, Irek Mukhamedov, the ballet art of the Bolshoi Theatre gained international acknowledgment.
In the ballet performances directed by Juri Grigorovich in 1960s - 1990s, the art of ballet dancers was revealed in full splendour.
The orchestra of the Bolshoi Theater is one of the best symphony orchestras in the world. The glorious traditions of’ its conductor’ s school were founded by Nikolai Golovanov, Samuil Samosud, Ariy Pazovsky, Alexander Melik-Pashajev, Juri Fajer, Vassili Nebolsin, Boris Khaikin, Eugeni Svetlanov, Gennadi Rozhdestvensky, Mstislav Rostropovich, Mark Ermler, Alexander Lazarev.
The sets for the performances of the theatre were designed by Feodor Feodorovsky, Piotr Viliams, Vladimir Dmitriev, Vadim Ryndin, Nikolai Zolotariov, Simon Virsaladze, Valery Levental, Sergei Barkhin, David Borovsky.
Creative activities of the Bolshoi Theatre are complex and diverse: preparation of new performances, fundamental revival of "golden reserves", à lot of tours. Nowadays, àll continents of the planet know the Bolshoi Theatre.
Famous foreign companies and outstanding actors have performed on its stage: La Scala, Vienna Opera, opera and ballet troupes from America, England, Sweden, Germany; Montserrat Ñàbàllå, Lucano Pavarotti, Jose Carreras, Alicia Alonso, Ivette Chauvire, Vladimir Malakhov, ballet stars of Paris Opera, and many others. Many well-known foreign directors and distinguished conductors worked in the Bolshoi Theatre.
At present, almost 2500 people work at the Bolshoi Theatre.
The general director of the Bolshoi theatre is Anatoly Ixanov.
Now the musical director and the cheaf-conductor of the Bolshoi theatre - Alexander Vedernikov.
The principal guest conductor of the Bolshoi theatre - Nikolay Alexseev.
Art director of the Boshoi ballet troupe - Boris Akimov.
Art director of the Bolshoi opera troupe - Makvala Kasrashvili.
The creative team numbers about 900 actors of opera, chorus, ballet, orchestra, pantomime group, children’ s choir.
Besides participating in performances, the actors take partin various concerts (solo or ensemble ones) in the Beethoven’s Hall or in the White Foyer of the theater. The Chorus of the Bolshoi Theatre, the Symphony Orchestra, the Brass Band, the Children’ s Choir, the Percussion Instruments Ensemble and the Chamber Group of the Orchestra show exceptional concert programs.
Today, the whole world knows the highest mastery of our performers. These are the conductors - Alexander Vedernikov, Alexander Kopylov, Fuat Mansurov, Pavel Sorokin, Alexander Sotnikov, Vladimir Andropov, Alexei Stepanov, Pavel Klinichev; îðåãà soloists - Elena Evsejeva, Maria Gavrilova, Elena Zelenskaya, Makvala Kasrashvili, Marina Lapina, Larissa Rudakova, Elena Bryleva, Lolitta Semenina, Irina Dolzhenko, Tatiana Erastova, Elena Obraztsova, Tamara Siniavskaya, Olga Teriushnova, Marina Shutova, Sergei Gaidei, Lev Kuznetsov, Oleg Kulko, Andrei Dunaev, Vsevolod Grivnov, Àlåõàïder Lomonosov, Badri Maisuradze, Zurab Sotkilava, Vitaliy Taraschenko, Juri Vådenejev, Vladislav Verestnikov, Serguei Murzaev, Vladimir Redkin, Juri Nechaev, Pavel Chernykh, Piotr Gluboky, Vladimir Matorin, Maksim Mikhailov, Eugene Nesterenko, Mikhail Kazakov, Alexander Kiselev, Nikolai Nizienko, Viacheslav Pochapsky; ballet solotsts - Nadezhda Grachiova, Galina Stepanenko, Nina Ananiashvili, Anna Antonicheva, Maria Alexandrova, ekaterina Shipulina, Ilze Liepa, Elena Andrienko, Elina Palshina, Inna Petrova, Marianna Ryzhkina, Anastasia Jatsenko, Juliana Malkhasyants, Anastasia Goryacheva, Nina Kaptsova, Dmitri Belogolovtsev, Konstantin Ivanov, Juri Klevtsov, Vladimir Moissejev, Vladimir Neporozhny, Mark Peretokin, Alexei Popovchenko, Alexander Petukhov, Ilia Ryzhakov, Andrei Uvarov, Serguei Filin, Nikolai Tsiskaridze, Dmitri Gudanov, Jan Godovsky, Gennadi Janin among others.
Today’ s Bolshoi Theater means the grandeur of traditions being developed in the contemporaneity, è means the scale of artistic individualities gathered in its troupe, it means the repertoire it means’concentrated creative life, it means daily hard work and regular improvement of mastery.
Source: Bolshoi Theater Official Web Site
The Official Web Site
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