2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25
Theatrical art has long flourished in our country. Buffoons amused the people with songs and dances, and also played funny scenes. At the fairs, booth-makers invited the people. And in the squares, wandering artists sang, danced and recited, entertaining the audience.
Two branches of art
The theater in Russia in the 18th century developed in two directions. Folk art continued the traditions of buffoons. Performances were held in the open air or in a special room - a booth.
The performances of the court theater were first documented during the reign of Mikhail Romanov, the founder of this dynasty on the Russian throne. The initiator of the new entertainment was the boyar Artamon Matveev. This man did a lot for Russian statehood. He was the head of the Posolsky Prikaz - the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of that time. Artamon Matveev often traveled abroad. He was deeply fascinated by the culture of many countries and tried to instill in Russia some European traditions. Artamon Matveev is considered the first Westerner.
Founder of dramaturgy and directing
The theater in Russia in the 18th century would not have taken place without this multifaceted person. On his behalf, a professional troupe was organized. And the first play shown in Russia wasbiblical story of Artaxerxes. A separate room was built for royal entertainment. The sovereign liked the performance, and its author was generously awarded. So who was the first Russian playwright and director? History has preserved his name. This is the German Johann Gregory who lived in Moscow.
The new entertainment caught on very quickly. Theaters worked in many rich houses of that time. The actors were both free people and serfs.
The Epoch Times
The theater in Russia in the 18th century is associated with the name of Peter the Great. During his reign, art flourished. Peter often invited foreign touring troupes to Russia. They not only showed new performances, but also carried progressive ideas, inspiring Russian authors. Peter built a theater on Red Square. It was later destroyed.
The theater in Russia in the 18th century developed not only in Moscow, but also in St. Petersburg. An institution with Russian actors was opened at the court of Anna Ioannovna. Plays for him were written by the famous playwright Alexander Sumarokov.
Further development
Under Elizabeth Petrovna, the so-called imperial theaters appeared. These state institutions existed at the expense of the treasury. Sumarokov was the director of the Imperial Theater on Vasilyevsky Island.
The theater of the 18th century in Russia continued its development during the reign of Catherine II. Several professional troupes worked at her court. Italian opera singers occupied a special position. The Russian also workeddrama troupe. During this period, the theater ceased to be purely palace entertainment. Public entertainment establishments were opened in the city, in which both Russian and foreign artists worked.
Creativity by Ivan Dmitrevsky
The theater of the 18th century in Russia knows the names of famous entrepreneurs: Titov, Belmonti, Medox. At this time, landlord troupes continue to exist in the provinces, where serf artists play. Ivan Dmitrevsky was a wonderful actor. He has had an outstanding career. In Volkov's first professional Russian troupe, young Dmitrevsky played female roles. Later he became the main actor of the Imperial Theater on Vasilyevsky Island. Catherine II sent Dmitrevsky abroad to improve his skills. In Paris, he studied the game of the famous tragedian Leken, and in London he watched performances with the participation of the great Garrick. Returning to St. Petersburg, Dmitrevsky opened a theater school. He later became the chief inspector of the imperial entertainment establishments.
Main development trends
The theater in the 18th century in Russia can be briefly described as classic. This trend dominated Europe in the 17th century. In the subsequent period, classicism was replaced by more democratic creativity of the Enlightenment. Russian art of the 18th century gravitated towards rationality, genre hierarchy and strict canons. Theatrical plays were strictly divided into tragedies and comedies. Mixing them was not allowed.
Theater and music of the 18th centuryin Russia were inextricably linked. Opera has become perhaps the most popular entertainment. Italian singers appeared at the court of Anna Ioannovna. The first libretto in Russian was written by Alexander Sumarokov. Classicist opera, like drama, tended to a strict division of genres. Tragic works were composed in the Italian tradition and were distinguished by sublime music. Comedies, considered a minor genre, were associated with the Russian traditions of the fair booth. Distinctive features of such cheerful operas are colloquial dialogues and song musical numbers. Works for the theater were written by composers Sokolovsky, Pashkevich, Bortnyansky. The operas were performed in French and Russian.
New trends
The theater of the 18th and 19th centuries in Russia developed in line with the Enlightenment. In 1782 Denis Fonvizin's comedy The Undergrowth saw the stage. The satire on modern Russian society was first shown so talentedly by the author. Fonvizin described the types of the upper class of that time with amazing accuracy. The evil Prostakova, her stupid husband and son Mitrofanushka brought fame to the author in his lifetime. The wise reasoning of Starodum about honor and dignity excites the audience even today. Despite the conventions of the characters, they have sincerity and expressiveness. Fonvizin's play was read by Pushkin, Gogol and other writers. She is admired by many generations of viewers. "Undergrowth" even today occupies an honorable place in the repertoire of the country's leading theaters. This work is inscribed in golden letters in the history of Russian literature.
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