Obraztsov Puppet Theater: an extraordinary concert

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

The Obraztsov Central Academic Puppet Theater, which has no analogues in the world, the largest representative of theatrical puppet art, is located in Moscow, on Sadovaya-Samotechnaya Street, house number 3, not far from the Tsvetnoy Bulvar metro station.

The founder of the Moscow Puppet Theater is Sergei Vladimirovich Obraztsov, a graduate of the art university "VHUTEMAS".

Creating a puppet theater

In 1920, Sergei Obraztsov laid the foundation for theatrical puppet performances, having gathered around him a group of like-minded people and masters who could create puppet characters at a high artistic level. So the puppet theater of Sergei Obraztsov appeared. The first performances were in the nature of children's productions on a fairy-tale theme. Then the repertoire of puppet shows expanded, diversity became possible with the advent of new puppets, which were created by Obraztsov himself with his assistants. Sometimes self-made heroes of productions were brought by Muscovites, and it happened that they were brought from abroad by fellow actors who came on tour to the USSR. Puppetthe Obraztsov Theater was known all over the world, he had many friends and admirers.

People of various professions tried to get into the creative group of the master. The specifics of the work of the puppet theater requires both technicians to develop kinematic schemes according to which the puppets should move, and professional costume designers, since the "actors" must be dressed in the outfits of their time. Portrait painters also had a place in the creative team of the Obraztsov Theater. Many performances required puppets with a characteristic expression, and it was not an easy task to give the character's face an optimal facial mask, suitable for all occasions, for all episodes.

Parodies

By 1930, Sergei Obraztsov gained unprecedented popularity, became a well-known pop artist in Moscow, he managed to create programs in the parody genre called "Romances with Dolls", and later staged several vaudeville performances. Performances were held at random venues, however, the popularity of the puppeteer Obraztsov and his performances grew at a rapid pace.

Theater and professorship

In 1931, on the wave of general interest in puppet productions, Sergei Obraztsov created the Central Puppet Theater in Moscow, which is already operating on a permanent basis. Sergei Vladimirovich was a stage director of performances and artistic director of the theatre. In 1949 Obraztsov became director of the Moscow Central Television and Television Company and remained in this position for 43 years until his death in 1992.

Puppet Theatre. Obraztsova is a unique structure that requires constant creative renewal, which is a never-ending process. Despite the fact that Sergey Obraztsov devoted all his time to the theater, he also managed to work in the cinema, was a screenwriter and director of documentaries. In addition, Sergei Vladimirovich was engaged in pedagogical activities. In 1973 he became a professor at GITIS and taught theater for many years.

Master Achievements

In 1976, Sergei Obraztsov was elected president of the International Union of Puppeteers, and in 1984 he became its honorary president. Since 1955, Obraztsov has been a corresponding member of the Berlin Academy of Arts.

Among other things, Sergei Vladimirovich, during his fruitful life, has collected a unique collection of exotic dolls, which he found in different parts of the globe.

Moving

In 1970, the Obraztsov puppet theater received a new building on Sadovo-Samotechnaya Street. The new house was chosen well - a spacious foyer and a large auditorium for the restless children's audience fit perfectly. The clock of the Obraztsov Puppet Theater was placed on the facade of the theater; it is considered one of the main attractions of Moscow. There are 12 houses along the perimeter of the dial, their doors open one by one every hour, and fairy-tale characters come to life behind them. The Obraztsov Puppet Theater (photos are presented in the article) is a diverse children's world, each visit to which for a child isunforgettable holiday.

Children's repertoire

Obraztsov's puppet theater created more than one hundred and twenty performances for children. And how many times they have been played in 80 years, it is impossible to calculate. The repertoire includes performances for the youngest viewers - these are funny kind fairy tales in which there is nothing frightening. There are performances for older children, mostly they are also entertaining stories, but already with meaning.

Staff

Currently, the troupe of the puppet theater includes 57 actors, three of them are people's artists of the Russian Federation, seventeen are honored. For 37 years - from 1945 to 1982 - the popular theater and film actor Gerdt Zinovy Efimovich worked in the theater (who does not know Panikovsky from the film "The Golden Calf", filmed in 1968 based on the novel of the same name by Ilf and Petrov?). Zinovy Gerdt played many roles in the Obraztsov Central Television Theater, but his most stellar character was the entertainer Eduard Aplombov from the play "An Extraordinary Concert".

The theater's repertoire includes five performances for adults:

• In 1941, the play "The Night Before Christmas" was staged based on the play by E. V. Speransky.
• In 1946 - "An Extraordinary Concert" written by Alexander Vvedensky.
• In 1961 - "The Divine Comedy" based on the play by Isidor Stock.
• In 1976 - two performances: "Don Juan" - staged by V. B. Livanova, G. Ya. Bardina, Z. E. Gerdt, as well as "Noah's Ark" according to the script by I. V. stock.

Performances for adults

The most popular performance for the sophisticated audience is considered to be "An Extraordinary Concert". The Obraztsov Puppet Theater first presented it to the audience in 1946. This is one of the five performances in the repertoire for adults, based on the play by Alexander Vvedensky "Variety Concert". Initially, the play was adapted into a performance for children, the characters in it were animals. Then the performance was staged as a satirical parody for adults, ridiculing the stereotyped stage techniques. This work was very popular. The fame of her went not only in the capital, but also in many other cities of the Union.

In 1968, the "Extraordinary Concert" in the new version was even more successful, was recognized as the best puppet show in the world, played about 10 thousand times, thanks to which it entered the Guinness Book of Records.

In the play "The Divine Comedy", staged in 1961, Zinovy Gerdt played Adam. The author of the play was the playwright Isidor Shtok. The performance of Obraztsov's puppet theater has nothing to do with Dante's Divine Comedy. The production script was written based on the drawings of Jean Effel's "Creation of the World", where God is trying to restore order in paradise, but he is not good at it. Eve and Adam became bored in paradise, they decided to descend to earth. "Let there be nothing to eat down there, but you can do whatever you want," they thought so.

Another performance for adults - "Don Juan" - was staged in 1976 as a satirical version of a foreign musical. The authors of the play are the artist-animator G. Ya. Bardin and famous film actor V. B. Livanov. Few people know that Vasily Livanov - everyone's favorite Sherlock Holmes - is also a talented animator. The production of "Don Juan" is aimed at ridiculing the theatrical fashion in art. Sergei Obraztsov has always believed that true art cannot follow fashion.

How to understand the incomprehensible

It is characteristic that the performance "Don Juan" is played in the language of "gibberish", when the words are mixed in a chaotic sequence, they sound ironic and unpredictable. However, the viewer in some incomprehensible way easily recognizes the meaning of all this abracadabra. Creating character dialogues in an incomprehensible language is also a kind of art. The author of the texts for the play "Don Juan" was Zinovy Gerdt.

Simultaneously with "Don Juan" was staged the play "Noah's Ark" scripted by Isidor Stock. Archangel Michael several times reported to God about the atrocities committed by people on earth. In order to restore order, God created the Flood, which lasted forty days and forty nights, but before that, he gathered in a wooden ark the animals of "all creatures in pairs", the righteous Noah, his wife and three sons with their wives. What came out of all this, the play tells.

"Moscow,puppet theater Obraztsova" - this phrase is familiar to everyone who is interested in theatrical art. The founder to this day lives in the unforgettable performances he created for children and adults.