Kachalova theatre, Kazan: history of creation and repertoire

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

Kazan Academic Russian Drama Theater named after V. I. Kachalova is one of the oldest theaters in our country. 1791 can be considered the year of its foundation, since it was then, on the initiative of Prince S. M. Barataev, the governor of Kazan, that the first public theater was organized, which gave regular performances for the townspeople. The room for him was specially rented for this purpose in the very center of the city.

Historical background

Kazan Drama Theatre. Kachalova has existed for more than two centuries. As already mentioned, the governor of Kazan S. M. Barataev was the initiator of its opening in 1791. On Voskresenskaya Street was the building that the public theater rented. Performances for residents of the city were held regularly.

In 1802, a wooden building for the theater was built by the landowner P. P. Esipov. He also formed a troupe of his serfs and several freemen. The theater was headed by P. A. Plavilshchikov, an actor and playwright. In 1836, M. S. Shchepkin staged a performance based on the play The Inspector General at the Kazan Theater, inin which he himself played one of the roles. Since 1841 he came to Kazan every year. Already at that time, in terms of the level of productions, the Kazan Theater of Kachalov could be compared with the Moscow and St. Petersburg Imperial Theaters. The history of the appearance of the stone building of the theater began in 1849. The city built a new building for the troupe, which was in no way inferior in terms of technical equipment to the best theaters in Russia. In 1852, N. K. Miloslavsky became the artistic director, who played all his most famous roles here. 1867-1888 were the period of entreprise P. M. Medvedev, who was known as a brilliant teacher and discovered a huge number of talented actors. At that time, the Kazan Theater was a real forge of the best personnel for the imperial stage. The artists taught by P. M. Medvedev became the decoration of such capital theaters as the Alexandrinsky and Maly. Since 1874, an opera troupe has been formed in the city, which regularly gave performances and laid the foundation for the formation of the opera house.

In 1919 there was a fire, the old building of the theater was destroyed in the fire and the troupe was forced to move to the building of the Bolshoi Theater. In 1933-1934. in Kazan, a stationary troupe was formed, unique in its composition, headed by G. D. Rigorin. Since 1939, touring activities began, in Moscow and Leningrad, a team of artists from Kazan became famous as one of the strongest.

B. I. Kachalov

In 1948, the Bolshoi Theater was named after People's Artist of the USSR Vasily Ivanovich Kachalov. the theater where hebegan his career, immortalized it within his walls - the monument to V. I. Kachalov was opened in a solemn atmosphere, in the atrium of the theater.

Vasily Ivanovich was the owner of a unique voice, which in 1931 sounded from the movie screen in the very first sound Soviet film "The Ticket to Life". The artist reads there a small introductory text to the picture, which tells about the difficult fate of homeless children. It was the only work of V. I. Kachalov in the cinema, but his voice lived in the memory of several generations of Soviet people.

The real name of the artist is Shverubovich. He was born in 1875 in Vilna, his father - an Orthodox priest - assigned his son to sing in the church choir when he was still a little boy. But the moment came when Vasily Ivanovich felt cramped in a small choir at the church, and he had a dream - to become an artist at the opera house.

As a child, he often visited the theater for opera and drama performances, after which he staged his own performances at home, in the absence of his parents.

At school during breaks, he recited monologues to his classmates, showed scenes in their faces. While still a schoolboy, Vasily Ivanovich played his first role in the theater - it was Khlestakov.

At the will of his father, V. Kachalov, after graduating from high school, had to enter the law faculty of St. Petersburg University, where he studied for 4 years. But during his student years he also managed to go through theater universities, in St. Petersburg he became a regular at the Imperial Alexandrinsky Theater. Already after the 1st year of university, Vasily becameto take part in the productions of a group of students, which was directed by V. N. Davydov, the leading actor of the Alexandrinsky Theater. The student troupe enjoyed great success, all the capital's newspapers wrote about their performances, and everywhere the student Shverubovich was specially noted, calling him a nugget. Special epithets were awarded to the timbre of his voice, as well as his plasticity.

Since 1896, Vasily was accepted into the troupe of the professional theater of A. S. Suvorin, while remaining a law student. That's when Shverubovich turned into Kachalov. The idea of such a pseudonym is attributed to F. Chaliapin, who was a friend of Vasily. In the summer of 1986, Vasily played more than 35 performances. After such a vacation, he realized that his life is a theater, and dropped out of the university.

In January 1900, Kachalov went to conquer Moscow and got there the role of Tsar Berendey in the fairy tale "The Snow Maiden", staged by K. S. Stanislavsky at the Moscow Art Theater, in which he then served for 48 years and where he played leading roles in performances.

V. I. Kachalov received the highest state award - the Order of Lenin, in 1936 he was awarded the title of People's Artist of the USSR, and in 1943 he received the Stalin Prize.

In 1948, the brilliant actor died of lung cancer.

Small Stage Opening

On October 4, 2012, the Kachalov Theater (Kazan) opened a new 222nd theatrical season, which was the denominator of the fact that the troupe had a Small Stage. This new hall is designed to accommodate up to 170 spectators, and the seats at the performances will be located in different ways:in the traditional way - on one side of the stage, around the stage - from all sides, or from two or three sides from it. How the audience seats will be arranged for each specific performance depends on the director's decision. According to the actors of the theater named after V. I. Kachalov, performances on the small stage turn out to be completely different than on the big one, the interpretation of the images changes, the relationships take place on a different level, even the characters become different. In such a hall, there is a different atmosphere, more trusting, here it is no longer possible to lie or overact, here it is necessary to live the role even more strongly, because the viewer can see everything.

Building renovation

Kazan Academic Theatre. Kachalova was under reconstruction for more than 10 years, which was completed only by the end of 2014. On the opening day of the theater, the comedy "Wedding" based on M. Zoshchenko was presented. During the reconstruction, the stage, the auditorium, the backstage, as well as the foyer were updated. The stage was equipped with new technical means - a turning circle, lifting, light and sound equipment. In the auditorium, the flooring, ceiling, doors, chairs, curtains, chandeliers were replaced, and boxes were reconstructed. The backstage part of the theater was expanded, for which it was necessary to make an extension to the theater, now comfortable conditions have been created for the artists - dressing rooms designed for three people, and not for six, as it was before, each is equipped with a bathroom and shower. Also, the renovated temple of Melpomene named after V. I. Kachalov - a theater in Kazan - now hasa rehearsal hall with a large area, workshops, a museum room, large rooms for storing costumes and props.

The theater management today

Today, Alexander Yakovlevich Slavutsky is the director and artistic director of the V. I. Kachalov Theater. The theater (Kazan) under his strict guidance develops, opens up new horizons, expands the repertoire. Alexander Yakovlevich himself is an Honored Art Worker of Russia and People's Artist of Russia, as well as Tatarstan, a laureate of State Prizes.

The current head of the theater was born in 1947 in Chelyabinsk, graduated from a professional studio at the Zwiling Theatre, after which he was an actor in the Theater for Young Spectators. Then he graduated from the directing department at the Higher Theater School named after B. V. Schukin. In the theater named after V. I. Kachalova has been serving since 1994, at first he served as the chief director, and since 2007 he became the artistic director-director.

Theatre Troupe

Kazan Kachalov Theater is a troupe of 39 professional and talented artists of different ages. Among them are thirteen honored artists of the Republic of Tatarstan and three awarded the title of People's Artist.

Repertoire

Kachalov Theater (Kazan) offers a repertoire for viewers of different ages. Among the performances there are performances for children, such as "Little Red Riding Hood", "The Golden Key, or the Adventures of Pinocchio", "Doctor Aibolit" and manyothers.

The theater named after V. I. Kachalov offers its audience an extensive repertoire for adults. The theater (Kazan) demonstrates the following performances for this age category: “Family Portrait with an Outsider” based on the play by S. Lobozerov, “Squaring the Circle” by V. Kataev, “American Whore” by I. Kvirikadze, “Dust in the Eyes” by E. Labish and many more both classical and contemporary pieces.

Performance reviews

Nowadays, you can easily find reviews about any theater or performance on numerous forums of interest. What do the audience of the theater named after V. I. Kachalov write? He always gives his performances to a full house, the audience leaves almost only rave reviews about the theater itself, about its productions and about what wonderful and talented actors are involved in the performances.

Tours

The artists of the Kachalov troupe are actively touring. The theater takes its performances to other cities in Russia, where they are always received with a bang, and all performances are sold out. Artists also travel abroad, successfully participate in theater festivals and conquer foreign audiences.

Excursion "Service Entrance"

The Kachalov Theater has recently launched a project called "Service Entrance". This is an excursion for the audience, which gives them the opportunity to see the theater from the inside, as the actors see it. The role of guides was assumed by the artists themselves, who are more than anyone familiar with the mysterious world behind the scenes. Spectators can see the hall where the rehearsals are taking place;a sham workshop, where scenery for performances is created or restored; a sewing shop where costumes are sewn, altered and restored. In the artist's office, you can see sketches of future scenery. In the dressing room - make-up, wigs and mustaches, and the most daring can even experience the magic of reincarnation. The props workshop will allow you to get acquainted with how props are made and stored - fake cutlets, revolvers, masks and much more.

Also, the audience has a unique opportunity to visit the stage and understand how the artists see the hall, how they feel.

How to get there

The Kachalov Theater (Kazan) is located on Bauman Street, house number 48. The nearest metro station, from which it is most convenient to get to the theater, is Kremlyovskaya. Near the theater building are located: the Rodina cinema, school number 5, the Business Center, the Youth Theater. Nearest streets: Moussa Jalil and Kavi Najmi.