MALEVANNAYA THEATRE
198178 Vasilevsky Island, Sredny (Middle)
Prospect 55. Larisa Malevannaya, Artistic Director
238-6289
Small group of St.Petersburg's actors formed by
vell known actress Malevannaya staging mainly
classics.
Zazerkalye (Through the Looking-Glass)
Bolshaya Zelenina St. 13 Info: 230-7881
This theatre offers children productions, popular
in St.Petersburg.
City Children Theatre, Artistic Director Boris
Ganapolsky 235-2142, 235-0655 fax 230-7880
Priyut Komedianta (Refuge of Comedian)
B. Morskaya St. 16 (Near St. Isick Sq) Info:
312-5352
Talanted actor-director Ury Tomashevsky successfuly
runs his small cabaret type theatre. There are 50
seats at best, with an East Village atmosphere, for
artistic folks. **
Director 594-5418
(review on Kharms production)
ACADEMY OF FOOLS
(former movie theatre "Rodina", one block from
Nevsky)
Artistic Director Slava Polunin 297-0179, Victor
Cramer, director 272-6827
WELCOME TO THE "ACADEMY OF FOOLS"
It may seem strange, but many well-known actors,
writes and producers wanted to register themselves
as "fools", when they gathered at the ceremonial
opening of the "Academy of Fools" in Moscow.
Perhaps because Viacheslav Polunin, a clown beloved
by all and who had at one time founded the
"Litsedei" Theatre, had undertaken to head this
Academy. He wants to revive the so-called
non-academic theatrical genres of clownery, plastic
theatre and street theatre, pantomime and carnival.
The head-quarters-room of the Academy is situated
in St.Petersburg, and in Moscow it has been taken
in by the well-known children's director and cinema
actor Roland Bikov, manager of the International
Fund for the Developing of Cinema and Television
for Children and Young People.
In the immediate plans of the "Academy of Fools"
are the rebirth of the traditional St.Petersburg
carnivals, the holding of an international festival
of women clownesses under the name of "Babi-Duri",
clowns traveling along the Volga on the "Ship of
Fools", stopping at the Russian riverside towns
with amusing presentations and even the publication
of its own newspaper, "The Academy of Fools".
("Academy of Fools" functions as a club and a sight
for mini-festivals of non-formal groups of
St.Petersburg).
TEATR DOZHDEY (THEATRE OF RAINS)
Fontanka 130
812/233-79-69 Alexander Vasilevsky, Janna Pleschuk (it's okay
to speak English, from 0 to 3 a.m. or from 9 to 11 a.m. Moscow
time); 279-70-03 Irina Isaeva and 259-62-53 Zhenya Koznova
(Russian please ).
Our theatre is one which is both experienced and
new. Our company was assembled some thirteen years
ago, as a subdivision of one of the well-known St.
Petersburg theaters, but when two different trends
arose, one of which was presented by us, we decided
to break away and form our own theatre company. So
we began our independent life already familiar with
each other, a company of old friends with theatre
experience, and even some of the plays produced
there still in our repertoire. and the memories of
many performances together. Our young
stage-director Natalya Nikitina turned out to be
the ideal director for us, so even in our country's
present straits, there are no vacant seats in our
theaters.
The main principles of our theatre are as follows:
The acting must be organic. The so-called "fourth
wall," the barrier between the actors and the
audience, is a falsehood--the spectators must be
involved in the acting process. In addition, we
wish to make every performance picturesque, a
poetical-musical joint action, paying great
attention not only to the theatrical, but also to
the emotional, spiritual side of the performance.
This is the main difference between ours and other
theaters, and it shows in everything we do--our
shows are filled with music, dancing, and above
all, a great love for the work we are doing.
Our theatre, "The Experimental Theatre Company
"TEATR DOSHDEY" ("Theatre of Rain"), was founded in
October, 1989, and our first year we spent on other
different organizational problems, including
finding a theatre hall, equipment, and even our
name. Since then, however, we've managed to renew
some of our old performances, as well as new
performances.
Our company is composed of 30 people, ranging in
age from 18 to 38. We are also interested in
establishing contacts with theaters and audiences
of other countries--the worldwide strengthening of
human and spiritual contacts is not an abstract
concept, but a real affair, and our affair as well.
And now, our repertoire: Chekhov, "The Seagull".
"The Seagull" is a classic of Russian culture. a
play about which so much has already been written,
one can hardly add more. In our performance we are
at all times aware of the traditions of Russian
intelligencia, Russian cultural wealth, and
Chekhov's view and language... "Ten lonely people,
spending every day together, crying at the top of
their voices about their loneliness and not hearing
each other. The selfishness of a dying man calling
for help. "The Seagull" is an infinite creation of
Chekhov's genius, simple and difficult as a life
itself." ( V. Ermilov.)
There are 15 actors in this performance, and it
lasts 2 hours, plus a fifteen minute intermission.
Grigory Gorin "The House Which Swift Built". The
strange mystical figure of Jonathan Swift,
satirist, philosopher, and religious figure has
always riveted not only the attention of the
scholar, but the whole reading world.
"Mystifier"--it's a name given to him both by his
contemporaries and his descendants.
The performance has many layers of reality, and one
can hardly know which of them he exists in at any
given moment. The performance is visually
fascinating, full of music and interesting plastic.
It is impossible to fully explain the sense of this
play in a few words--it's about everything which
happened to the man during his life, but it is also
about kindness and wisdom, and of course, these
things are boundless. In the performance, we try to
touch subconscious, parapsychological levels of
perception. This is one of our larger shows,
requiring 30 actors and lasting 2 hours, plus a
fifteen minute intermission.
Leonid Juhovitsky "The Last Woman of Seignior
Huan". "The Last Woman" is a very funny and
eccentric play, and our performance is very much
about Love. The larger-than-life grotesque is
balanced by very lyrical scenes, and because the
play is about Spain, it is bright and picturesque.
The plot can be easily understood without
translation. It uses 15 actors, and runs 2 hours,
with a fifteen minute intermission.
"Balaganchick" ("The Show-booth")" by Alexander
Block and "Feast at the Time of Plague" by
Alexander Pushkin. We pay a great deal of
attention to this work. It is a strange, mystical
piece in which we join together two of the
everlasting creations of Russian poetic geniuses.
Our interest, however, is not only in this, but
also in the connection of all things in
performance, the dualistic struggle between bases,
between two fundamental principles--life and death,
black and white, form and essence, a struggle which
neither side may win, because the struggle is an
end unto itself.
In all respects, this piece is an experimental one
for us--although linked in meaning, the drama and
dance parts exist as independent entities, the text
is poetic, the characters are figurative, and the
performance is a continuous musical-poetic picture.
The main part of this work is dedicated to our
beloved city, St. Petersburg, with it's past divine
beauty and in it's present desolation and
profanation. It involves 15 actors, and lasts one
and a half hours.
Our current repertoire: Anton Chekhov "Seagull",
"Three Sisters", Leonid Juhovytsky "The Last woman
of Seignior Huan", Richard Nash "The Rain Seller"
Our plans: Gorin "The House Which Swift Built" (to
renew), Goldoni "Tavern-keeper", Shakespeare "Romeo
and Juliet", Gibbson "Rag Dolly"
Three Sisters, directed by Natalia Nikitina:
Whenever doing a play such as "Three Sisters", the
tradition behind it is always a problem. The
artists are torn between two conflicting emotions,
the first being respect for the brilliant
productions before theirs, and the corresponding
fear that those productions may have said
everything there is to say with the play, and the
second being the desire to say something new and
different, to reinvent the play in keeping with
different people and a different time. Moreover,
the audience is usually split between those who
have come to see the "classic" as they remember it,
and who will react angrily if too many liberties
are taken, and those who will react with derision
if they detect echoes of previous productions.
Theater of Rain does make a worthy attempt to
balance these two---although they retain the full
Chekhov text, and use the traditional themes for
this play, the beautiful, abstract landscape of the
set and some of the atmospheric dances are a
welcome contrast to the naturalistic staging
Chekhov is usually subjected to. However, the
production generally fails to go far enough with
these new elements, and so they cannot breathe new
meaning and new life into the play. Instead, they
simply stand as sad reminders of what might have
been had the director and actors been willing to
take a few more chances.
The Seagull, by Anton Chekhov, derected by Natalia
Nikitina: Definitely this theater's strongest
production, this avoided the over-naturalism which
tends to be barnacled around Chekhov, with a number
of expressionistic lighting effects and stage
devices, as well as powerful dumb-scenes at the
beginning of each act. Like most Theater of Rain
shows, however, few liberties were taken with
Chekhov's actual text or intentions. This wasn't
an attempt to use Chekhov's text to make a
statement, but simply an attempt to stage and
express what is in the text, and as such, succeeds.
THEATRE DEREVO (TREE)1
Artistic Director Anton Adassinsky 272-6739
DEREVO Company was created in St.Petersburg in
1988. At first it united five members of a big
theatrical studio that A.Adassinsky, hte leader of
the company, had started a year before. At present
after Derevo's system of workshops called "The
Scholl On Weels" was started, new productions are
often made by performers from different countries.
From the very beginning Derevo prefers not to
define the style of its work while in the mass
media one can come across such sefinition as
"silent theatre", "new dance", "Butoh",
"anti-clowning"... But most likly it's a magical
blend of many theatrical genres and music, and all
of them can be seen in Derevo's performances - from
street clownery to pantomine, from a powerful flow
of rock music to an absolutely transparent silence.
Derevo never uses such words as "actor", "play" and
beleives that the moment of creativity is a proof
of the inner freedim and quietness, and its
realization completely depends on the way of
everyday life. The main them of all Derevo's
performances is the man with his eternal
philosophical problems of life and death that keep
worried new and new generations.
The performances are never strictly fixed, they are
always "in progress", though wisually the
scenografic part of a performance can exist for
quite a long time. Usually a series of such
performances has its own name.
"The audience is offered not a complete but an
unfinitely developing form. The performance lacks
not
only a literary vasis, but also what can be played,
there's no story that could be distinctly retold".
Derevo pays much attantion to the material part of
the performances and mostly works with real "live"
things, but not with their models meant for the
stage. thus, there may appear on the stage a
ferry, an old waggon, an automobile...
Silence, sound, music are always live, up-to-date.
Different musicians work with Derevo and add new
colours to its productions.
The range of work is very wide. Derevo has pieces
for well-equipped theatres, big projects that need
special preparation and street perfomances and
improvisations good for any place: street, square,
shore of a like, hospital...
Derevo was a success with the very first piece
called "The zone of Red" that was shown in
St.Petersburg in 1988 for the first time. Since
then Derevo has toured in most Europian countries,
Israel and the USA.
Horseman, presented on the Baltic House Second
Stage, directed by Anton Addasensky: Derevo seems
willing to do just about anything for a good time,
unwilling to follow established rules about how
their theatrical genre should work. Although
they're a movement-based theater group, they also
make use of language, although they are adept at
minimalistic dance pieces, they also hurl around
all manner of props and sets. Even more important,
they are one of the few companies in their genre
who fully exploit the possibilities for slapstick
humor along with the po-faced seriousness so common
to the Russian avant-garde. Although alll
involved displayed a consistently high level of
talent and professionalism, the show still had an
anarchic, improvisatory, "anything goes", feel to
it, which kept things moving as the actors would
change locations, costumes, characters, and even
stage personas. In the end, the throughline for
all of the parts was not all the way there, and a
single whole never wuite emerged. However, this in
no way interfered with the brilliance of each
individual scene, or with the extremely high
quality of the actors, who showed themselves
capable of going from dance, to music, to comedy,
to drama, to audience participation, all without
missing a beat.
Shishli-Mishli, presented by the Derevo Theater, on
the Baltic House Second Stage, directed by Anton
Addasinsky: It starts slowly---the characters are
isolated from each other, each performing his or
her own actions. It all begins to change with the
arrival of the first major prop, a fantastic,
crazed, wonderful flying machine. The actors play
at being pilots, then the machine and the show
explode into a thousand pieces. Like Derevo's
previous show, "Horseman", "Shishli-Mishli" is a
collage, a collection of moments, dances, images.
But while the lack of a strong throughline for
"Horseman" made it somewhat like flipping channels
on a high-class TV, each image in "Shishli-Mishli"
comments on and develops the others, finally adding
together into a profound and moving meditation on
the meaning of dreaming, or art itself. And of
course, a wonderful time is had along the way. The
performers are all hypertalented actors, dancers,
mimes, and creators, and each of the pieces in the
show is clever, powerful, demanding, and
impressive, not to mention extremely funny. While
most theater is trapped in prose, "Shishli-Mishli"
is staged poetry, one re-read with performance.
DO THEATRE
Artistic Director EVGENI KOZLOV 232-9696
198103 St. Petersburg A/B 157
phone: (812) 312-4882 fax:(812) 275-5822
ARTISTIC ATELIER "SMELKOV" Do Theatre 144-1665
The "Do-Theatre" was formed as a theatre-school in
1987 by Evgeni Kozlov. The school's basic
principles were the individual sensual experience,
paratheatrical experience, the culture of movement
and dance training, and some principles of Antonin
Artaud and Gorden Craig's The Theatre of Cruelty.
Of particular interest to us were the ideas of
taboo, of overcoming human inertia, of both the
ritual traditions existing now and those that
existed before, and of the culture of the carnival
and mysteries.
During the time of its existence, the group has
managed to realize many small and large stage
projects. At present, the main body of the company
is composed of five actors, three musicians, a
light mechanic, and a manager. Also working with
the "Do-Theatre" is the photographer Vyacheslav
Allerov. His mobile exhibition "The Dance of
Photography" is presented before our performances.
The "Do-Theatre" Cast
Evgeni Kozlov-artistic director
Irene Kozlova-actress
Alexander Bondarev-actor
Irene Andreeva-actress
Yuliana Petrova-actress
Dmitry Tyulpanov-musician, actor
Pavel Litinov-musician
Nikolai Rubinov-musician
Maria Tovstopyatova-light mechanic
Dmitry Stemasov-manager
From the very beginning, we tried to avoid the
words actor, acting, theatre. Most important was
the recognition that we really exist, exist
biologically, physically, metaphysically...
We tried to find the form of community allowing us
to join our life with our creativity.
Now we are trying to look at ourselves, our life,
and our work from the perspective of a past which
has not yet come into existance. This way of
looking at oneself incorporates both the eyes of a
child, wide open and absorbing all that is
happening around, and the stupified attention of a
fish, and is simultaneously aware of the two sides
of life.
With this vision of the world, one may see the
world moving softly and unhurriedly, and the events
taking place all around fitting into their place in
history.
The dance, which is at once a sketch and a ritual,
allows us to find the distance separating us from
ourselves. It shows the unreality of our thoughts
and the illusiveness of any feeling. That gives us
the possiblity to balance somewhere between the
life which is real and the life of dreams, while
the somnambulistic feeling of balance inspires the
reverence we often feel towards old age and death.
We see no sense in words; their absense gives us a
chance to breathe freely. More important for us
are the beginning of a sound, movements,
immobility, old men's whispers, children's
laughter, the rustle of autumn leaves.
We have always valued the books of ancient times,
the reality of dreams, and the spontaneity of
impressions.
We are not quite sure of anything, but dance brings
us together every day.
Open type (space) projects have always been of
particular interest to us. The noise of the
streets, the absence of the limits typical to the
theatre and of the boundries between a dancer and
the life surrounding him, performing in a place
where people are not just passive spectators
restricted by the conventionality of the auditorium
and seats---all of this brings a peculiar spirit
into our performance. It is there that we feel the
atmosphere of the theatre where every person plays
the part assigned to him. The way this person
stops, his posture---all this is dancing of the
Part. Standing in his place, each spectator joins
the dance, forgetting for a while the words of his
own play.
Our projects are not limited by street shows, but
they do require special work with the space. Work
with the space's composition, architecture, rhythm,
sound, and lighting (at night) makes it possible to
create unusual, fairytale images in the ordinary
surroundings so familiar to people in everyday
life. This place can be a street, a park, a city
square, or an abandoned building. This perception
of space is the main idea of our street shows.
We are also interested in joint projects combining
different types of art (music, painting,
photography, theatre, dance), and in organizing
shows combining different theatrical approaches,
methods, and genres. These shows will exist in
order to open new forms of communication inside our
culture, and to enrich the experience of each
theatrical group participating in the project.
The "Do-Theatre-Dance" company workshop centers its
activities on developing the trend associated with
the feeling of freedom, expressing that through
movement, breathing, and voice. Freedom, in this
case, is interpreted as a way of living, a form of
sensual thought.
The workshop program compromises special body work
performed as a ritual of communication with one's
own self. It includes exercises which enable one
to get into the secret corners of one's life and
open vast areas one never thought existed. It
gives one a chance, while dancing, to immerse
oneself in the flow of reminiscences and
associations, to slip into the world of dreams and
illusions, to experience being trees, lakes,
mountains, and experience many other feelings to
which people have no access to in their everyday
thinking.
Classes can be conducted in English, French, and
German. They are accompanied by live music to aid
submerging in the exercise.
Intonations of a Woman on the Edge of Balance,
presented on the Baltic House Second Stage,
directed by Evgeney Kozlov. Despite the slow
start, the show soon became an exciting and
powerful piece, each moment developing and
deepening levles the piece's themes of anxiety and
androgeny. All of the actors displayed astonishing
body and face control, and the production often
tended to work, not through any kind of linear,
Aristotalean plot development, but rather through a
series of images, each of which contributed to the
whole. The end effect was subtle, dignified, and
powerful, like million matches which add up to a
bomb.
THEATRE SUBBOTA
("SATURDAY")
196126 Pravda St. 10 info: 315-0154 Yury
Smirnov-Nesvitsky, Artistic Director 217-4595 (h)
Tatiana Kondratieva, Managing Director 296-3840
(h)
"Subbota" with the auditorium, which admits no more
than 200 hundred spectators, is situated downtown.
Originally, since the day of foundation on March
18, 1969, Subbota has been formed by a company of
young men and the spectators always feel themselves
as if they were part of this brotherhood. The
Subbota's repertoire has the unique peculiarity.
It mostly contains the titles of the plays,
Subbota's own pieces, born in the actor family of
the theatre, and also inspired, written and
embodied by in on the stage: often the performers
play themselves under their own names and family
names.
Having once appeared in the gateways, in a small
company as a theatre of amateur actors, Subbota has
now turned into a professional theatre, and
nevertheless it has lost none of the unique
sincerity, warmth and cosiness, inherent in a small
theatre. Diverse repertoire emables everybody to
choose the rirle one likes: classics, frolicsome
comedy performances and farces, small shows and
lyrical ones, evoking and nostalgic moods in the
spirit of A.P. Chekhov; folklore motifs are not
foreing to Subbota.
Subbota makes successful tours of Russia and has
also visited England, Sweden, Denmark and Hungary.
Avant-guard trends are not foreign to the Subbota
theatre, either; it is not by accident, that
critics found it possible to express the folowing
view of the performance, staged after Macbeth:
"This performance is dangerous to describe...
Adepts of classic purity of style may stone us...
The old and formidale melody is arranged in
supermoder rock rhythms. Reality and premonitions,
our fears and pain together with our salutary black
humour gave blended. That is why, even if Matias
Rust lands during the performance on the stage, or
Maradona runs out, kicking the ball, or Egor
Kuzmich Ligatchov popsup with his speech (for
choice!), Subbota will continue its performance,
without so much as batting an eyelid (Smena, Olga
Skorochkina).
And yet, Subbota is not striving for supermodern
things, it disilikes abstract constryctions,
preferring cordeial relations with the audience and
feeling averse to scaring or reproaching them. Its
acting carries on the vest traditions of Russian
school. It is largely sue to Yuryi
Smirnov-Nesvitsky, doctor of Art, producer and
dramatist, its founder and head. He is the author
of many books about Russian and modern theatre, in
particular, of the well-known book about Yevgenyi
Vachtangov.
According to the tastes and aesthetic prefernces of
the theatre's head, the acting in his theatre has
been ingluenced by Yevgenyi Vachtangov's and
Mikhail Chekhov's ideas. The school of acting in
Subbota includes a special seminar, where the
lectures on methods of acting alternate with
practicing different exercises, done by the actors.
Foreign collegues show an interest in such courses.
The head of the theatre attaches great impormance
also upleringingthe youth. Subbota stages
performances for young spectators, and children
with their parents enjoy watching such merry pieces
as Winnie-the-Pooh, Suitcase of Nonsense, etc.
The performance Windows, Streets, Gateways, which
grown-urs and chilren watch with excitement still
now, was a significant stage in the Subbota's
program of upbringing. Those, who love old
St.Petersburg and understand the poetry of the
stome slums and the straight lines of the
Vasilievsky Island, who listen to street songs with
palpitating heart, feel double gratitude to the
funny and sad Subbota.
To lovers of rare titles, Subbota offers such a
spectacular musical show as Of Human Bondage after
Saumereset Maugham's novel. In the theatres
history it is the first stafing of this work by
S.Maugham.
One of Subbota's program performance is staging the
Ruta V.'s Soul Yearing, a modern Kitch, where a
deep penetration in the contermporary private life
of the firls Rita, Tanya and Kira, played by Rita,
Tanya and Kira themselves in accordance with the
theatre's tradition, goes side by side with the
attempt at penetrating mysterious (almost Bergman)
atmosphere of understatement. (From Subbota's PR):
Shows: Gibson, Fitzerald, Janson
THEATRE THE COMEDIANS (new)
Ligovsky Prospect 44 (Pertsov House)
Alexandr Plush, director
Artistic Director - Michail Levshin
Shows: Postan, De Fellippo, Averchenko
BURAGO THEATRE. Alexey Burago, Artistic Director
516-1207 Anastasia-1993 show, Dumas by Shepenko.
No permanent stage or company, casting for each
show professional actors from St. Petersburg big
theatres. Theatre changed it's name too many time,
since it's sponsers dropped thier support many
times (Russians even had established a new term
Kidat' (thrown out, dropped) to indicate the stage
of being abonded.
THEATRE OSOBNIAK (MANSION) _H___R _SOBNYAK
Kamennostrovsky (Kirovsky) Prospect 55, ph.
307-4177 Mailing address: 195247 PO Box 142
Michael Solntzev 274-0704, 557-0470 (h), Igor
Larin 591-3125 (h)
Latest: St.Jeronomus & Petrushka shows
Fogging: A Variation on Dostoyevsky's Crime and
Punishment, presented the Theatre "Manision" Stage.
This was clearly a variation on Dostoyevsky's
novel, not an adaptation--although many of the
characters were the same, and the action was the
same, the ending of the narrative with the murder,
and the use of a variety of stage techniques,
created a world far crueler than Dostoyevsky's, a
world with no God, only the Devil. This was put
forth through an extremely Brechtian stage
methodology, using such "alienation" techniques as
direct adresses to the audience, mustached men
playing women's roles, deliberately inappropriate
music, and a hypertheatrical play-within-the-play.
This was all well executed, and rather than being
dryly intellectual, the show's refusal to go for
the easy, cliched emotional reactions gave it a
cold power that few can match. After the
performance, I heard one member of the audience
say, "Now, let's go to think." Clearly, the show's
goal was achieved.
Repetoire
Dream about Cherry Orchard -- the sketch by tunes
of Anton Chekhov Cherry Orchard.
Darkening -- variouse by tune of novel by
F.Dostoevsky Crime and Punishment.
My first friend -- mono-play by rememberings of I.
Puschin and poems of Alexandr Pushkin.
Vertinsky. Confession of Baron -- mono-play about
Vertinsky's life through look him lovely role.
Punch -- street performance, old national dolly
comedy with the poems, songs and jokes.
Abduction in Mumi-Dole -- sharp-theme children
detective by tunes of Norway tales (Tuvee Yanson).
Artists are joking -- performance-concert from the
sketches, jokes, songs, poems and advertisment and
also immitative show Circus on the Stage.
Plans. Mimical ballets: Posthumous mask, Jesus
Christmas, Mono-play Yevgeny Onegin, Performance
Double-man by Durenmant
BASIC WAYS OF THEATRE DEVELOPMENT
By the way of modern understanding of classical
master-pieces, finding of new forms development of
Staislavsky's system, bio-mechanic of V.Meierkhold,
system of education actor by M.Chekhov Theatre is
working at education of universal actor of the
future who capable connect in oneself all schools
and ways of dramatic art.
Company size
1. Solntsev Michail - Director, Administrator,
Finansial Director
2. Zavarin Igor - Artistic Director, Actor, Artist
3. Krechno Tamara - Costumer, Actress
4. Podnozov Dimitry - Actor, Stage Manager
5. Teterina Olga - Actress, ?propeties?........
6. Semionov Sergey - Sound, Light
In addition: 1. Shaposhnikov Sergey - guest actor
2. Gurina Marina - ticket-salor
3. Fiodorova Luba - ticket-salor
THEATRE DaNyet (YesNo) _____ "_____"
Pishkinskaya St. 10, Managing director Maxim
Solomin 112-27-71, 164-53-86
Small experiment orientent group around the oldest
St.Petersburg underground stage director Boris
Ponizovsky.
Miss Julie, by August Strindberg, presented on the
Balshoi Small Stage, director Boris Ponizovsky:
Like all of DaNyet's work, this show's foundation
was the movement which, together with skillful use
of the minimal props, communicated well the themes
of Strindberg's play. Beginning with a monologue
directly to the audience, the play included dance,
straight dialogue, a clever, minimal, wheeled set,
and occasional strange props, which included a
typewriter with guitar straps and giant toys on
wheels. This production, as a whole, was not
dedicated to naturalistic "staging", but instead to
incarnated metaphors, each movement or property
having symbolic value, making for a performance
engaging both aesthetically and intellectually.
FROM THEATRICAL SILENCE
IN THEATRE LANGUAGE
Pantomime of drama theatre. Variouses for two and
four actors.
This is the performance-project for language and
style of the future plays of the theatre. The
script written by actors and artists by the method
of Artistic Director.
...Poetic of the method:
All - face: Face - face,
Dust - face, words - face.
All faces. His. God.
But he is without face.
Art from nothing. Combination superior and
insignificant. Divine not given to actors.
Oneness of place, time... and unseccessive of
behaviour, strict of style and abundence of events,
eccentric of reasons, ....................... not
allow to improvisators to embody to their superior
characters. Masters of stage immitate the culture,
nature of theatrically, intellect and feelings,
using the parts of paradox and masks as partners,
not having the analog. Finale would be discount to
spectator, contradictories of finale transform him
to ....................... Naivity minutes of four
poems by to yet unknown poets during 2 hours 15
minutes are set up silence.
(Theory-Poem: The principles, method by spectator,
student, mytholog of the theatre - Artistic
Director Boris Ponizovsky)
THEATRE POPUGAI FLOBER (FLAUBERT THE PARROT)
196240 POB 353
Artistic Director Tatyana Kabanova 510-6245,
Managing Director Tatyana Surodina 467-6035
The theatre POPUGAI FLOBER is one of the numerous
theatres in St.Petersburg to continue the tradition
of cabaret-theatres and cafe'-concerto, which were
of such immense popularity in the turn of the
century period leading up to the 1917 Revolution.
The name and activities of the theatre reflect the
aestherics of the "Silver Age", and the devotion of
the theatre's founders to the extravagant and
strikingly spectacular.
The compact but mobile company is made up of young
and talanted graduates of theatrical and musical
collges who have already been priviliged abough to
work with many leading artists as well as
theatrical and variety companies.
The theatre is firmly committed to the "life"
performance of musical wirks - a form shich is
particularly appreciated in the world today. It is
this which determines the choice of instruments
used: upright piano, viola, acoustic guitar and
bayan (a kind of accordion).
In their current repertoire there are included a
number of musical programmes which are interesting
for mative and foreign audiences alike - a chamber
concert-sperctacle drawn from the songs of
Alexander Vertinski (acclaimed as one of thhe best
one-off performances to be shown in St.Petersburg
in the 1990 theatre season), Madam Bomzha - a
musical show inspired by the best of classic
jailbird songs, Isadora, Adieu! - a musical based
on the tragic live affair between the russian poet,
Strgei Esenin, and the American ballet dancer,
Isadora Dunacan, and a concert of old Russian and
gypsy romantic ballads.
Tatiana Kabanova - the Artistic Director of the
theatre and performance author - is one of the nost
noteworthy and talented of the new generation of
actors and actresses. She is an up and coming star
of the still infant Russian show-business world,
and the presenter of Musical News, a popular
television program shown on the local St.Petersburg
channel.
The voice of the actress, which posesses an
uncommon resonance and dramatic intensify, can
often be heard in musical broadcasts on
St.Petersburg local radio.
As an actress, she has worked both interestingly
and rewardingly in the cimena. Her most recent
performances were as an actress in Yuli Koltun's
psychological thriller, Lapa, and as a commissar of
Cheka (Stalin's KGB) in A Rogozhkin's The Chekist,
a Russian-French co-productionmade for French
television.
The theatre's performances are in the best way
commercial and attract wide-ranging audiences form
both home and abroad.
The theatre posesses both audio- and
video-advertising material, and anticipates the
release on record of classic jailbird songs.
THEATRE "MEETINGS" Artistic director Sergey
Rytov 159-3908. Children shows only.
THEATRE MIMIGRANTS (MIME THEATRE)
Pantomine, clowns
Artistic Director Alexandr Plush 251-6328,
210-9692 (h)
YOUTH CREATIVITY THEATRE (___) Nevsky 39
(Anichkov Bridge)
Artistic Director Evgeny Sazanov 310-44-68,
312-3307 (h),
Mnaging Director Oleg Meknikov 310-4822
"The Boys" by Victor Rozov (based on Dostoevsky
"Brorthers Karamazov"), "Romeo and Juliett" (1993)
THEATRE "FAMILY"
One of the founders of Russian Yough Theatre,
former Artisctic Direrctor of Leningrad Yought
Theatre (Bryantzeva) Zinovy Karagodsky 113-5192
(h). A few geneartions of St.Petersburg actors
were his students. Strong training techniques.
Teaching at the University for Humanities, acting,
directing.
THEATRE "BLACK RIVER"
Oleg Mendelson 555-2627 (h)
(Translate from Russian)
ISLAND THEATRE
Alexandr Bolonin 235-7127 (h)
Lenina St. 31 - 6 Fax: 234-0088
Theatre Ostrov was opened in January 28 in 1991
performed Invitation to the death penalty by novel
of Vladimir Nabokov. The second premier was Hamlet
by William Shakespeare was performe in December 3
in 1991. Now we rehearsaling the performance by
piece of A.Ostrovsky Without guilt are guilty. In
our group there are 12 actors.
Theatre Ostrov is co-operative of professionals
attached to dramatic art and united of wish in
superior contents of poetic of classical drama, to
to process regarding creative activity with
spectators, reabiliting eternal moral laws of
spirit and heart, living by humorouse life in
classical and avant-guard forms of modern theatre.
Language of the spirit and heart is international,
it hasn't borders and barriers. It always ready to
creative activity.
Sincerelly, Artistic Director Alexander Bolonin
"Hamlet", by William Shakespeare: The production
was mostly traditional, although there were some
unusual staging elements, including putting the
props table onstage and having all the minor court
characters played by one person. This production
also involved a lot of powerful sound effects and
music. The theater sat about 170, but had a fair
amount of vertical space, allowing for a set with
two levels.
(* * 1/2)
THEATRE "INTERSECTION"2
Michael Gruzdev 164-62-90 (h)
Dekabristov St. 34
Municipal theatre Intersection was founded in
August, 1991. Before that time it situated as
theatre-studio a lot of years.
Theatre regenerates deep traditions of really way
in a history of Russian and foreign arts as theatre
of intime drama.
The search of new contacts with spectators, new
means of expressive, and in the first time,
cobination of dramatic and musical arts,
philosophy-poetical understanding of material is
credo of the theatre. Every performance of the
theatre Intersection is experiment in sphere of
form, style and method of actor's exist on the
stage.
REPERTOIRE:
Performance Verona is Planet of Love by piece of
young moscow play-writer A.Shepenko is reflection
of theatre about love in the end of 20th century;
Love and Life of Edith Piaf is independent
masterpiece of the theatre by the songs and books
of French singer;
Freken Julee by Strindberg; Dedicated that Madam
from Sartar's Behind the Closed Doors, Issue by
Andrey Platonov, Antigona of Sophocles.
This plays are complete a really repertoire of
theatre.
The theatre continues the creative search in
selected way, prepearing the performance by novel
of K.Gamsun Misteries and performance Philosophy of
Love by works of Heminguay about love of beginning
of 20th century. Artistic Director M. Gruzdov.
CENTRE "CLASSIC" of ST.PETERESBURG
Evgeny Lukashkov (from file)+ review on Lermontov's
production.
THEATRE MASK Gorokhovaya St. 57a (Culture
Community College)
Theatre of Masks, movement workshop.
-This was an hour and a half comprehensive exercise
regemin. Starting off with simple yoga and martial
arts movement, the dancers graduated to more
difficult routines of dance, rhythm exercises,
mime, and isolation. The end of the workshop
included interactive mimes, much like some of the
non-verbal Theatre Sports games. From photos of
the performances, we gathered that the theatre is
oriented towards mime, dance, and clowning, making
use of big costumes, masks, puppets and makeup to
match the broad gestures. The shows seem full of
pageantry, and many are designed particularly for
children.
Twilight Dance, presented by the Movement
Laboratory, on the Theater of Rain Stage. The
piece was a movement piece, using no text, but only
lights, costumes, scenery, music, and movement.
Although some of the images in the piece were quite
beautiful, the piece as a whole was twice as long
and three times as slow as it should have been.
Any point was dragged out endlessly, and any image
was at first stunning, then understood, then
familiar, then overdone, then boring. By the end,
the somnabulistic pacing activly damaged the show's
content, not only by giving away whatever surprises
the end was intended to have, but also by working
as a cop-out---the slower the movement, the less
data communicated; the less data communicated, the
less people would notice how little was there.
THE FORMAL THEATRE Artistic Director Andrey
Moguchy 542-0694 (h)
"As with the other shows we have seen by the Formal
Theatre, Petersburg worked to fulfill the highest
aims of the avant-garde, creating a theatrical
vocabulary at once as new as our world and as old
as our existence, a chancy, exciting exploration of
the theatre of the future."
American actors, Russian-American Centre
The direction of the theater: An experiment.
Laboratory investigations. The result: A
performance---realized myth. The performance
exists once, and then dies...
...This is a miracle.
Repertoire
"The Bald Soprano" by Eugene Ionesco
"It is a play in which there is
everything---mysticism, eroticism, humour, and
madness. In short, everything but the bald
soprano."
-Andrei Moguchi, director
"Petersburg" improvisations from the novel by
Andrei Belii
"Out of nothing, out of poignant silence and
impentrable darkness, light flashes and vague
sounds are heard. Thus, the Word is created once
again, from nothing."
-Nevsky Times, Dec. 24, 1991
"Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" by Tom
Stoppard
"In a dark, square room, not divided into a stage
and an audience, "world-theater" is being born. An
integral and self-sufficient world... reflecting
what the "view of the epoch" is unable to see."
-Petersburg Night, April, 1992
"Two Sisters", a game with the classics
Winner of the "Best Director" Award at the St.
Petersburg Studio Theater Festival, 1992.
"Fool For Love" by Sam Shepard
Jointly produced with the Russian-American Theater
"Mythology tells us that incest, seemingly so
abominable for mortals, is freely permitted to the
gods, and from history one may learn that it was a
sacred rule obeyed by kings. So it constitutes a
privelege, inaccessible to common people."
-Sigmund Freud
Street performances
The theater stages one-time actions performed in
different settings, making use of pyrotechnics,
light and sound effects, vehicles, and mechanical
devices. The theater works to speak in a clear
language of spontaneously flowing visual forms.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN HOSTING THE FORMAL
THEATER, PLEASE CONTACT FOR FULL TOURING
INFORMATION: Russian-American Centre, Office 131,
Baltic House International Centre, St. Petersburg
197198, Russia. Telephone: (812) 232-8576.
"Petersburg" by Andrey Belii at Formal Theatre-This
piece was devoted to conveying the chaos, paranoia,
and fantasy of the city. It did this through
unusual staging, with many simultaneous events,
colorful, almost archetypal characters, a constant
piano accompaniment, using both normal piano pieces
and "noise" to pace and mediate, and two
performance spaces--most of the show was inside the
theatre, in a pit-like set, strewn with urban
debris, but the show actually began in a most
unexpected way--while we waited outside, on the
staircase winding around the theater, with flaming
matches and obscure passage readings. Now drawn
into the play, we witness, the protagonist weave in
and out of a variety of frightening, confusing,
alienating, delightful, and above all absurd
situations, in a desperate attempt to find some
rhyme or reason in the rush of events and attacks
around him. Many actors who had appeared in other
Formal Theatre works performed in this show, along
with some we had not seen before, and the acting
worked to the same end as in the Formal Theatre's
Two Sisters, a humanizing element in the
intellectual broth. As with the other shows we
have seen by the Formal Theatre, Petersburg worked
to fulfill the highest aims of the avant-garde,
creating a theatrical vocabulary at once as new as
our world and as old as our existence, a chancy,
exciting exploration of the theatre of the future.
(* * * * */2)
"Two Sisters" (rehearsal), directed by Andre
Mogoochiy, at the Formal Theatre-This seemed to be
an intriguing post-modern work, using elements of
Bergman, Chekhov, Beckett, and Sophocles, among
others. Although the tech was minimal, it was all
the more effective for its starkness. Despite the
jumpy, exotic, non-realistic script, the acting
stressed honesty and emotion, grounding and
humanizing the play's literary jump-cuts. The
directing seemed to stress that humanistic
quality--although there were many notes, the
director was more inclined to clean up entrances
and exits than demanding a set series of emotions,
preferring to let the actors find the emotions in
themselves.
(* * * *)
"Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead", by Tom
Stoppard, directed by Andrey Mogushy at the Formal
Theater: The show was presented at a small theater,
with about 25-30 seats, creating a very intimate
experience. The small theater also allowed the
performers to use many unusual lighting and sound
effects which could only be perceived in a small
space. Despite the wordiness of the script, the
skillful use of sound, movement, and voice, as well
as an impressive, though minimal, set, helped to
communicate the basic experience of the play. The
acting was outstanding, in part because the Formal
Theater's philosophy is built around creating the
perfect environment for natural acting.
(* * * 1/2)
PRESS:
Today you may be absolutely sure of one thing: if
you still have this idea of a theatre being a place
where some wonderful and sublime people ,
wonderfully elevated over the every-day reality ,
are creating their wonderful world of art in a
space filled with god-like senasations, you've got
an absolutely wrong idea. A theatre that wants to
survive ( since we are now speaking about those
off-theatres which were recently known as studios),
such a theatre must needs be incrusted into other
structures of reality called "the current moment".
It is very difficult in such a situation to give
recommendations as to who should follow whom and on
what essential principles. Of course, it cannot be
doubted that people of art have enough good taste
and good sense to guarantee they will not overstep
the line separating the servants of Melpomena from
those who are serving a completely different
divinity.
WALKING BAREFOOT ON A PARQUET-FLOOR TOWARD THE
UNIVERSE.
Andrei Belii's "Petersburg" directed by Andrei
Moguchii.
That's right. I was of the same opinion :"Making a
show based on this complicated prose... And a
theatre you might well call avant-guard... and to
do this in the midst of today's confusion and
poverty..." So, in short, I felt rather angry and
critical when I came to the show. It was staged in
the Art School named after Mukhina, whose wonderful
interiors should complete and form the atmosphere
of the performance according to the Director's
design.
Some objects we saw seemed foreign to the gorgeous
interiors, like bunk-beds, others fitted them
perfectly, like a grand piano, some just lived
their own life, like a beautiful antic wardrobe in
which the actors would settle as in a niche.
Even some unexpected costume details, for instance
bare feet concluding an elaborate dress, did not
seem an exaggeration in the confusing atmosphere.
At one particular moment you might be surprized by
the actors talking not only in whisper but all
together, so different pairs are engaged
simultaneously in a very intense dialogue standing
in opposite corners of the stage, which is meantime
criss-crossed by the actors performing some
mysterious movements, while you can't catch a word
of what is being said.
But if you think I object strongly to the show, you
are mistaken. It has something that reconciliates
you with the crazy idea of pouring the contents
out of one form (brilliant prose) into the other
(theatre show), when the contents are just
determined by the original form. This "something",
strange as it may sound, is the Director's
determination of creating his own logic and
theatrical plot on the level of emotions, symbols
and associations instead of following the logic of
relationships offered by the author. In a way the
Director has succeeded in producing an effect of
entering the world of Andrei Belii's "Petersburg",
a strained, shattered, perverted world, chillingly
fragile, vague and poignant. If anyone could
achieve a more powerful effect following the way
traced by the Director, so much the better. I
believe Andrei Moguchii did a great job.
The performance has an interesting rhythm, of which
pauses are sometimes the most significant part. Or
sometimes the least significant. The one thing that
one could really object to is the Oriental music
piece with sitarahs and percussion - a really nice
piece but definitely out of place in the
performance. Another objectionable moment is the
cigarette smoke coming in wisps right into one's
nose (the audience forms a semi-circle along the
walls and across the hall). The spectators might
have a coughing fit which was presumably not
included in the Director's plan.
There is another peculiar phenomenon worth noting.
During the show I was present at, a young man armed
with the camera would wander among the actors all
the time, approaching it to their noses or making
a" blow-up" of their legs. Well, that's the weak
point of Andrei's production: this young man formed
a natural part of the confusion, though it turned
out later that he was just a professional
camera-man filming the show. Andrei Moguchii's
failure lays in the fact that his successful
casting, with the actors' individualities happily,
if unexpectedly coinciding with the characters,
does not prove to be a substitution of the inner
life, absent from the Director's designs. No live
relations are formed, therefore everything is
possible, be it a camera-man on the stage or any
kind of improvisation. From this point of view the
performance directed by Andrei Moguchii is an
imperfect if daring exercise on the Master's theme.
Aliona Kravtsova
"Chas Pik", N 3, January 20, 1992 St.Petersburg
TERRA MOBILE mime-dance theater group.
Artistic Director Vadim Meecheenko 272-1316 (h),
actor-managing director Nikolay Kurushin 530-1291
(h)
The unique theater company Terra Mobile was
created eight years ago somewhere in the land of
St. Petersburg by Vadim Mikheenko who is it's
artistic director. Although their name has no
Russian equivalent, it brings to mind an
association with something that is eternal and
changeable at the same time. Born from a
combination of break-dance aesthetics and street
theater, their theatrical form is wordless using
experimental dance as a means of expression to
create a powerful connection with the audience.
Their performances come not only with a unique
powerful dance imagery but with an ecclectic style
of clownary, mimebreak-dance, and plastic
improvisation. Their forms of acting create their
own genre of "life collage" combining different
layers of form, mood, imagery, and everything
possible that life throws at you. The grotesque,
the erotic, comedy, and the playing with the
audience all compile their arsenal. Loaded with
fantasy, intensity, melancholy, and deep thought,
it is difficult to capture the principles that
create the artistic foundation of Terra Mobile.
"In every veritable phenomena of Art there is
something inexplicable, mystical that raises us
above the vulgarity of life. And that love has
found its reflection in the performance of Terra
Mobile...mystical, beyond human understanding and
tragic. The imperceptibility of the tragic is in
every movement of the actors. That this is
difficult to express in words- the vivid and
complicated movement of the soul, the tangle of the
characters' emotions - is expressed in their
plasticity."
"Teatralnaya zhizn" No. 6, March
'91
Physically precise technique merges
harmonically with emotional imagery, lyrical
acrobatic movement merges with physical
"masterlines" which is only the physical
manifestation of an artistic philosophy which the
creator and director of Terra Mobile V. Mikheenko
describes:
"We believe that the creativity of the human
being is self-returning. Artist does not exist
without spectator, spectator does not exist without
artist. We exist by combining these two roles. We
are actors and spectators, spectators and actors at
the same time. Perhaps this is the essence of our
solitude...and our constant desire for
communication...and our constant desire for
solitude. The actor does not create the image- he
creates the particular life of the particular
individual. The image is born by the spectator.
By this, we believe the audience is a part of our
creativity. To create... think about this word -
to
c r e a t e. By our performance we want to prove
to you that the real creators are you. We don't
want to show you fairy-tales, we don't want to lie
to you, we don't know how it "needs to be", how it
"should be". You know how it "needs to be" and how
it "should be". Isn't the illusion of art and
theatre's power over each individual born out of
his constant search for truth?
The wine before we drink it does not exist,
and after we have drunk it, it is gone.
What a fleeting moment to taste.
But we are still trying to
achieve it......
Gogol's Coat, directed by Vadim Mikheenko - This
company tries to convey meaning through movement,
primarily mime and dance, rather than dialogue,
hence Gogol's Coat was entirely non-verbal.
Throughout the show, most emotion is conveyed
through movement, with some use of distorted and
exaggerated facial expression. The actor's ability
to execute the rigorous choreography was amazing.
Philosophically, the troupe does not adhere to the
Stanislavsky method--the actors do not attempt to
feel the characters emotions, but instead attempt
to convey them through movement and symbolic
staging. In Gogol's Coat, a lengthy, avant garde
elaboration of Gogol's short story, "The Overcoat",
they made manifest many ideas that the story hinted
at, and then some. The symbols came in rapid
succession, sometimes indistinct and not fully
developed, but often portraying precisely the
frigidity, sterility, artificiality, hypocracy, and
shallowness of life and society. The accompanying
music was very important in setting the tone, and
ranging from Barber's Adagio for Strings to
techno-beat, although more could have been done
with the lighting design. Terra Mobile are
vagabond street performers at heart (and in
practice), and their taking the street to the
theatre, hand vice-versa, makes for a fresh and
exciting show. (* * * *)
Private Lifes, directed by Vadim Mikheenko-This
sarcastically-titled production sought to portray
the lack of privacy, both in theatre and Soviet
life, and evolved via very personal images,
sometimes very funny, sometimes transcendental,
other times incomprehensible. Introduced with the
actors posed as ushers, the show begins with comic
buffoonery and develops into a thickly veiled
allegory of society's suffocation of innocent love.
Because the direction was minimal, the show was
stylistically disingenuous and lacked cohesiveness.
In some actors, particularly the men, the emotional
content of the play was explicit, but others relied
primarily on form to suggest the intellectual and
emotional information. Even more than in Gogol's
Coat, the plot was obscured by symbols beyond the
grasp of the audience. (* * 1/2)
JUPITER THEATRE
Vladimir Malyshitsky, artistic director 244-7908
(h)
Dreams of Eugenya, presented by the Jupiter Theatre
Company, directed by MALISHITSKY -This powerful
piece dealt with a sick family getting sicker, and
a sick country getting sicker, through the dreams
and hallucinations of Eugena, a woman rapidly
losing her mind. The line is constantly blurring
between her nightmarish visions of a cannibalistic
family and a claustrophobic world, and the "real"
world, in which her family tries to help her even
as they deny that it is they who are killing
her--there are no guarantees of which you are
seeing. This expressionistic principle, in which
the audience's perspective is the same as Eugena's,
was also assisted by the staging--the closeness of
the actors in the theatre-in-the-round, and the
establishment a world outside of the small room of
the theatre, all conveyed a sense of being locked
in, trapped with a gang of lunatics, just as Eugena
feels herself to be. One of the few pieces we have
seen dealing with the current problems of Russia,
as opposed to the historical, this was a disturbing
and powerful piece, a nightmare of too-closeness.
(* * * 1/2)
I Am the Same...I Am One..., presented by the
Jupiter Theatre Group, directed by Malishitsky - A
strong work, but a decidedly mixed viewing
experience. The play itself was strong, not only
in its acting, but also in its willingness to
explore political themes, shunned by too many
theatres, without losing the human ground,
forgotten by too many theatres. By exploring the
life of an actor before, during, and after the
Bolshevik Revolution, they achieved an effect
similar to what was sometimes done in Dreams of
Eugenya, making political opinions complex and
human. However, the play was hard to enjoy, due to
the physical conditions of the theatre. The
overcrowding of the small theatre, the stuffiness
caused by the fact that all doors and windows were
closed, the lights which were sometimes directly in
the eyes of members of the audience, and the lack
of an intermission in a show which was over two
hours left one in the peculiar position of
simultaneously being taken with the performance and
wishing it would end quickly. (* * *)
II-2
HOW THEY TEACH THEATRE
Traditional and Outside-State-System methods
TRADITINAL SCHOOL:
THEATRE UNDER THE ROOTH. Obukhovskoy Oborony Pr.
105 tel. 568-2145. Artistic Director, Vladimir
Funtusov, State Institute of Culture, Theatre
Directing Division.
System of Stanislavsky in the training:
This is the practic course of trening for the
artist psychology technic. 8 - 16 rehearsals which
introduses student with basic elements of the
Stanislavsky's system and gives the primary skells
of artistic play. Also during the learning the
mechanism of formation of stage action shows opened
by Stanislavsky and is base of method of acting
analysis of piece and character.
Lessons include the plays-exercises, alone and
...... sketches.
The course can bild by the different levels of
complex beganning from the primary indrodusing (8 -
16 lessons) and finishing to level of promotion of
actor's expert (more lessons). The middle variouse
- practical trenage - also needs more lessons.
Initial stage for multy-cultural productions should
be started with stading basic acting technics.
Phycko-technics is the best trening to start with.
- Introduction: Basics of Stanislavsky's system
- Fisical freedom, ways to free youbody
- Imagination: innor vision, innor speech
- Stanislavsky's magic "if"
- Given subcopsternces
- Task and goal
- Mechanics of stage action
- Stage task: goal, action, accomodation
- Science of truth and belivebility
- Stage naivity (animals, subjects, circus, etc.)
- Stage communication, iter-dependence
- One-man and two-men sketch
- Stage event. Evaluation.
- Logic and continueity of action
- Role's approach
Summary: This class could be developed on three
differnt levels:
1. Practical applications
2. Training
3. Role\character development
Educational model is based on four-five years cycle
under the same Master-Teacher. Area of
concentration is celected before entrance exams and
practically can't be change.
TEATR IMENI KUKOL
Dreams of Korol, presented by the Theatre of Im.
Kukol, on the Theater of Rain Stage: The Theatre of
Im. Kukol is also a movement-based theater, often
using similar techniques to the Movement
Laboratory. However, the Theater of Im. Kukol is
anything but boring. In keeping with its title,
"Dreams of Korol" was appropriately
free-associational in its composition, at turns
beautiful, stark, sexy, funny, and brilliant.
Although the piece lacked a strong throughline to
hold the fragments together, every piece was a
wonder, whether it was the hilarious scene with a
row of women trying to act as audience to a
pretentious ballet dancer, two women's arresting
grinding to the music of Screamin' Jay Hawkins, or
the stark and simple beauty of a dance between a
man and a woman, illuminated by a single white
light from overhead.
RAT * Summer '92
THEATRE OFF 233-9998 Artistic Director Alexey
Merkushev, Manager Vadim Gololobov
The OFF theatre exists since June, 1990 and led by
Alexey Merkushev. The creative manner of this
group does not stay within the limits of particular
genre and is inspired by experience of European
theatres, by Japanese traditional dance Buto.
One can see OFF not only on the stage, but also on
squares, streets, enterorises. Musicians,
sculptors, artists willingly participate in OFF
performances. There is a regular perform- group
(artists of SVOJI group), and any exposition can
lead to an improvisation.
Our work is a sequence of symbols 'seen' in dreams
or dug up life and shown in grotesque form.
We really don't act the parts, don't try to explain
anythng, don't force our ideas upon anybody and we
do not 'mirror' life.
What we believe to be very important is
- the past, to which we go back in our
recillections,
- sensation of the day passed and the time we leave
behind,
- the memory of our childhood and our constant
search for it.
Words are slander, silence is falsehood. What we
think a way out of the bounds of words and silence
is movement, dance. A dance born by darkness, fell
by heart creates images.
Keeping balance between silence and sound, on the
brink of dream, we come to where rhythm and
breathing are, to movement which creates itself.
ALTERNATIVE DANCE GROUPS
ST.PETERSBURG MALE BALLET
The company was established in 1992 and in the
Dyagilev Seasons International Festival was called
a sensation and a revolution in the Russian ballet.
The Artistic director and leading dancer Valery
Mikhailovsky was known for Boris Eifman's ballets
such as "The Idiot", "The Boomerang", "Master and
Margarita" and "Figaro's Wedding".
Dance June 1993
And concerning the male figure in ballet,
St.Petersburg's most striking conceptial
breakthroughmay be the recent birth, last October,
of the six-man Troupe of Male Dancers of Valery
Mikhalovsky. The company performs classical
concert numbers, such as Anton Dolin's Pas de
Quatre or Petipa's pas de six from Esmeralda, in
full drag and on pointe.
The classics are not all that Mikhailovsky's
dancers do. In the Image and Likeness of... This
is a grave affair in which a son of God comes down
to earth in white tights and top to comfort
anguished and isolated human (male) beings.
The Moscow Tribune April 24, 1993
MEN DANCE BETTER THAN WOMEN?
...This all male company has a different approach
from other all male dance groups; they dance
classical pieces, written for men and women, but
have men dancing the female roles. This has never
been done before. So some of the company will don
tutus or flimsy skirts to perform Saint-Saen's The
Dying Swan or Caesar Puni's Pas de Quatre.
But the first half of the performance will be men
dressed as men, dancing original Mikhailovky
choreography to the music of Peter Gabriel with a
libretto based on a poem by William Blake.
"We try to revive the pure classical style,"
Mikhailevsky commented, "and we're not trying to
scandalise the audience." He drew parallels
between his company's work and midieval mystery
plays or traditional Japanese theatre.
The company uses no scenery in the performance; the artistic
decor is by lighting and costume. The company consists of ten
dancers in the cast and 3-5 persons in support and management.
Performance duration (two parts) - 90 min. The company's fee
per one performance $3.000 - 6.000 depending on the country,
conditions and duration of tour.
NOBODY KNOWS WOMEN BETTER THAN MEN
Last fall a brilliant dancer Valery Mikhailovky
left stage. The star dancer of the Boris Eifman
Company retired on the day when he was 38 and his
artistic carreer therequired 20 years. Suddenly
his name is on the posters again: Valery
Mikhailovsky Dance Company. Has he taken the risk
to start his own "business"? "The Company of
Dancers" - who is that?
-That is six persons, me including. All of them,
exept one, are formerly from the Eifman Company...
The idea to create a male ballet was born from the
sense of protest.
-Protest against what?
-Against speculations. Speculations on the
interest to the classics.
Evening Petersburg, October 12, 1992
NO TRANSVERTISM. JUST BOYS ON POINTS...
Chas Pik October 19,1992
THEATRE DESIGN
THE THEATRE
LIBRARY OF ST.PETERSBURG
COSTUME DESIGN COLLECTION
The Theatre Library in St.Petersburg is an
institution which has existed for 240 years since
it's founding in 1752 as the Imperial Theatre
Library, an adjunct to the system of Imperial
Theaters operated under the Tsars. Since 1861 it
has been housed at mansion behind the Pushkin
Theatre, next to the Museum of Theatre And Music.
At one time located in just a few rooms of the old
(1861) offices of the Imperial Theaters, it now has
expanded to include the entire building, and is
still pressed for space.
The collection of costume renderings is
considerable, including sketches and paintings from
around 1600 to the present. According to Anna
Abramovna, the curator of the design collection,
the greatest quantity and quality of renderings are
from the founding of the library in 1752 to the end
of the Imperial era in 1917. During this time all
designers working for the Imperial Theaters were
required to submit their designs to the library for
the historical record. After the 1917 Revolution
renderings were the property of the designers or
their individual theaters, and so the collection
only grew through voluntary donations. Recently
the library has made a real effort to solicit
donations from 20th Century designers, and so the
collection of designs since the Sixties is also
very well represented. Although the majority of
designs are for Russian plays, ballets and operas,
there is a good collection of 16th-17th Century
French Ballet and Masque designs and an assortment
of other designs as well.
Most of these works have never been on display, and
few are included in publications outside Russia.
The director of the library, and the head librarian
desire that this magnificent collection be better
known, both inside and outside the CIS, but the
library lacks the funds to organize and mount an
international exhibition. The librarians are
hoping to find a museum, or group of museums, in
the US that would be willing to sponsor such an
exhibit, and to that end have gathered together a
collection of works from 1907-1916, including
designs from Bakst, Benois, Anisfeld, Zandine, and
Golovine, which they call The Silver Age. This
collection includes a large number of designs for
Diagalev ballets: Pappions (1912), Le Carnaval
(1911), Islamey (1912), Sadko ("The Kingdom Under
The Sea" 1911), Le Pavillon d'Armide (1907),
Petroushka (1911), Iota Aragonesa (1916), Une Nuit
d'Egypte ("Cleopatre" 1909), as well as designs by
Golovine for Gluck's opera Orpheus and Eurydice.
While visiting St.Petersburg in July of 1992 as a representative of the Russian
American Theatre (a project to promote theatre exchange between the US and CIS, jointly
sponsored by the Committee on Culture of the City of St.Petersburg and The University
of Alaska Fairbanks) I was asked by the RAT to take notes on, and photograph a sampling
of the Theatre Library's costume design holdings in order to make their collection
known to US cultural and educational institutions.
GUEST SHOWS:
_OUR DATA FOR TERRA MOBILE
SHOWS
"GOGOL'S COAT" AND "PRIVATE LIFE"
SPACE (Stage space):
1. Because our actors work in bare feet, the stage
must have some kind of cover (parquet, stretched
cloth, etc.)
2.Size of stage is not important.
B. Hall space
1. We prefer to work in halls seating 200-700.
2. Parts of our show take place on the stage floor,
by actors crawling. Therefore, it is important
that the audience seats be arranged in such a way
that any action occuring on the stage floor is
clearly visible.
3.Our shows are also suitable for outdoor
performances, in parks, gardens, etc.
C. Time
1. We require at least four hours to rehearse in
any new space. During this time, it must have all
the technical equipment and properties listed
below.
PROPERTIES
A."Private Life" required properties
1. Six (6) identical light chairs, with hard seats.
2. Three (3) "expendable chairs", which will be
hurled around in the course of the play. They may
be breakaway chairs, or simply chairs which will
not be broken by being thrown across the stage.
3. Two (2) buckets.
4. One (1) mop.
5. One (1) table.
B. "Gogol's Coat" required properties: Seven (7)
identical light chairs.
TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS
A. Lights
1. Fourteen (14) 500 wt. lights.
2. One (1) 1 kwt. light.
B. Sound
1. Three (3) tape recorders.
2. One (1) set of head phones.
3. Amplification system.
4. Speakers for amplification system.
5. Control board for amplification system.
6. One (1) working microphone (for rehearsals; not
required during performance).
LENGTH
A."Private Life": Ninety (90) minutes.
B. "Gogol's Coat": Ninety (90) minutes.
C. Both shows are performed without intermission.
COST: $2500 per performance
St. Petersburg Association of Dramatic Artists
"Morphine" Michael
Bulgakov
One man show by Georgi Nilov
Director Seymion Freedland
Bulgakov, in his short story "Morphine" analyzes the process of disintegration of human
individuality. There are several levels of drug effects on a human - physical and
psychological and the story is based on the diary of Dr. Polikov, in which he described
his own drug addiction.
Creators of the show wanted to find stage expression of Bulkakov's story using methods
of "poor Theatre" (Peter Brook's definition of "actor's theatre").
Actor Georgi Nilov graduated from St. Petersburg theatre school in 1984 (Master Teacher
Don Metchik, U.S.A.). At the present time he is working on a one man show based on
Orwell's novel 1984.
________________________________________________________________
__________
"THE STORY OF THE
BUBBLES"(CINDERELLA)
This work by International Puppet Theatre Interstudio is
based in St. Petersburg, Russia.
The Director of the studio is Mikhail Khoussed, who is the
Director of the St.Petersburg State Puppet Theatre and also is
the President of the League of Russian Puppeteers.
The fifty minute presentation is actually performed, under
Khoussed's direction, by Natalia Khoussed, his wife. and
Vladimir Kuznetsov, both of whom are professional puppeteers.
They also teach students of puppetry in Russia.
There is no spoken text, however the classical musical
background supports and enhances the traditional movements of
the exquisite, hand-crafted marionettes and set.
Physical space for this production can be very flexible.
a. Space for an audience anywhere from 150 to 200, but no
larger.
b. Entire time for the production including set-up for the
portable stage, set and performance would be 1/2 to 2 hours
c. Personnel includes:
1 actress/ 1 actor for performance
1 technician for both music and lights
d. Lights do need a 220 volt current with a suitable
adaptor
e. The production can be shown anywhere-meaning any room
with or without a conventional stage setting.
This production is suitable for audiences of all ages.
*Video, photos, additional materials are available.
SUPERXMAS'93
An American Christmas in Russia
Father Frost-Dima Nikitin; Santa Claus-Daniel
Kleinfeld; Snigorichka-Ekaterina Zablotskaya;
Rudolph-Elizabeth Hillard; Petrushka-Pavel
Paikentsev; Grinch-Sven Holmberg; Baba Yaga-Alexey
Vacilyev
When Anatoly Antohin first began the RAT program,
he was already interested in some sort of
Russian-American Christmas presentation. It seemed
a fascinating opportunity, since Russia has only
recently been permitted its traditional Christmas
celebration, while America has always had the
celebration, but often without the tradition. And
so, he contacted Simeon Freidland, of the Company
of Dramatic Actors, a theatre company which does
numerous children's shows, to find out if Mr.
Freedenland was interested in collaborating on such
a project. He was not only willing, he was eager,
and the show "An American Christmas in Russia" was
born.
Freidland did not want the show to be a
heavy-handed, moralistic play, but rather a bright,
funny piece with the atmosphere of a game. He also
thought the best results would occur if Americans
and Russians collaborated from the very beginning,
the writing of the play, and so, RAT actors and
Russian writers came up with a cheerful mish-mash
of Russian traditional characters like Baba Yaga,
the old witch, Petrushka, the dim-witted policeman,
and Snigorichka, the snow girl, and American
neo-traditional characters, like Rudolph the
Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Grinch. The plot
revolves around a sort of Russian-American joint
venture, in which Baba Yaga and the Grinch decide
to jointly destroy the Christmas celebration in
America and the New Year's celebration in Russia by
kidinapping Santa Claus before he can deliver his
presents to American children and before he can go
to Russia to take on his identity as Father Frost.
Their sinister plans are foiled, however, by an
international task force which includes
Snigorichka, Petrushka, Rudolph, and the Grinch's
dog, a Soviet defector (played by a real-life
defector). At the conclusion of the show, the
actors will join the audience in the lobby of the
theater, where there will be games and dancing
around the Christmas/New Year's tree.
Though there have been some difficulties making
accurate costumes for characters unknown to Russian
designers, the biggest being trying to find a
single copy of How the Grinch Stole Christmas in
Russia (we finally had to ask Rachel Kleinfeld,
sister of one of the RAT actors, to bring it from
Alaska), everything is on course, and the rehearsal
process has begun. However, the show will not be
performed in St. Petersburg. Rather, on December
22, the RAT leaves for Minsk, Beloruss, and
beginning December 25, they will start work. And
what work it will be---they will be performing "An
American Christmas in Russia" three times a day,
for fifteen days straight. In addition, they will
also be performing "A Game of Chess" and "The
Actor's Nightmare". The performances will be
presented in a thousand-seat theater, for children
from all across Beloruss, including children from
the Chernyobol area. Despite this demanding
scedule, the RAT actors are eagerly gearing up for
the tour, and no one more than Sven Holmberg, who
has declared that he will do anything, including
learn his two pages of Russian text, in order to
fly from a harness over the heads of 1000 children.
Grinch steals Christmas in Minsk
article by Anton Antokhin
Political turmoil is no longer the only menace that Minsk, the capital of the C.I.S.
(former U.S.S.R.) and the new country of Byelorus had to deal with this Christmas
season. This year was the first Christmas in Minsk after 75 years of communist
ideology, and the Grinch was trying to spoil it.
For four weeks 30,000 the children booed and sneered at the Grinch and cheered Santa
Claus, in an international effort concieved to break the stereotypes and ideological
barriers to resurect the long-repressed concept of Christmas.
This unique concept was jointly concieved and performed by American-Russian Theatre, a
University of Alaska exchange program with headquaters in the city of St. Petersburg,
C.I.S. and Association of Dramatic Actors, one of the major productions houses for
children shows in Russia.
The hour-long show featured traditional Russian New Year's characters like Father
Frost, his granddaughter Snegurochka (Snowgirl), and enthusiatic but half-witted
Punch. They teamed up with Rudolf the Red-Nosed reindeer and the Grinch's dog to save
Christmas and New Year's from the Grinch, who befriended a Russian folk-tale bad guy
Baba Yaga. The original script, co-written with University of Alaska students in ART
program, emphacized cross-cultural understanding.
A whimsical bilingual atmosphere of wisecracks, original songs and music, dances, and
suspense, kept a 1,000 seat house captivated thoughtout the show, three times a day.
Every single ticket for the entire run of the show, over 50 performances, was sold out
weeks in advance.
One of the reasons for the phenomenal popularity of the program was its charity-minded
character and intent. The tickets cost 50 roubles each -- about 15 cents at the
official bank exchange rate. By comparison, a New-Year's show at the Kremlin in Moscow
was priced at about a dollar, a large sum in a country with an average salary of $15 a
month.
The festivities did not end with the on-stage triumph of good over evil. After the show
the children were treated to another hour of games, songs, and dancing in the foyer.
The US cast participated in the post-show program with a American and Byelorus songs
and games. For the first time in their life, Byelarus children stomped and clapped to
"If you're happy and you know it." Another first was christmas gifts from Santa -- a
button with his likeness and kids' favorite candy.
Indeed, it was not the financial compensation, about $20 for the grueling full-day more
than two-week schedule, that attracted the American students to participate in the
program. It was the chance to share a bit of Christmas heritage with the children, many
of whom have never encountered American folklore or an American in person.
"I honestly felt like I was spending my Christmas giving something," said Daniel
Kleinfeld, who hardly got out of his Santa Claus costume for over two weeks. "When I
went into the foyer and saw children running to dance with Santa Claus, I knew it was
more than worth it."
Another reason to be a part of the project was mainstage experience with a professional
children's theater, in a show that empoyed near-constant audience participation.
"I was surprised at how, once you let the children express themselves, they unleash a
torrent of energy," said Liz Hillard, who played the Red-Nosed reindeer for the
production. "Only the energy of the kids kept me smiling through 51 shows in 15 days...
I'd be willing to do it every Christmas."
The Christmas show's success was evident in Minsk's intellectual, artistic and
political circles as well. Both the state-operated TV station, with mobile production
van, cable TV, various radio stations, and newspapers covered the show. Byelarus TV
aired the show in its entirety nation-wide, to about 10 million people. The mayor of
Minsk and the president of Belarus, as well as most members of the parliament, attended
the show with their chidlren, side-by-side with groups from orphanages and large-family
associations.
The event generated so much interest and demand that another Christmas-oriented show
with a bilingual cast is certain to take place this year as well. American-Russian
Theatre will continue to serve its mission of widening student's professional and
personal experience as well as connecting the cultures through theater.
PR: October 10, 1993
Who is Who
in
"American Christmas in
Russia"
SuperXmas 1993:
Where? Russia, St.Petersburg, Baltic House Theatre
When? December 15 1993 - Jan. 10 1994
Russian Characters:
Father Frost or Santa Claus, Father Christmas, Papa
Noel, Santa Luchia, Aba Gena,
or by whatever name he is known
by children all over the world.
Snowgirl A true creation of love, a snow girl
that became (Snegurochka) alive because she was
loved.
Baba Yaga A force of evil personified in an old
and ugly woman.
Petia The hero of our tale, a boy who won
the hearts of both good and evil.
He is the Good Will
Games' icon for St.Petersburg in 1994
American Characters:
Rudolph One of Santa's reindeer. Most famous,
for leading the way on that stormiest
of nights and saving Christmas,
look out for his shiny red nose.
Grinch This mean creature, from Dr. Seus, has
no capacity for love because his
heart is too small. He came to fame
by trying to steal Christmas from the Whos
and now he is back, this time in St. Petersburg.
* These
characters played by professional actors and
children actors. In addition, there will be
caroling by the children's choir of the Tutti Music
school. Dance numbers will be perfomed by UNA
Children Centre and Raduga, a children's dance
group.
Russian American Theatre (RAT) 1993 wishes to
continue it's committment to children. Past
children's programing includes, "An American
Christmas in Russia" Minsk; participation in the
first International Toys and Games Festival; the
highly successful "Alice speaks Wonderland", the
first Arts School Program and the creation of
"Tweleve Months" an original musical with the Tutti
Music School of St. Petersburg. Our goal is to
continue this tradition.
As Americans, Christmas has always been a time for
sharing, a season when giving and caring rings
strong and clear. As artists we wish to share, the
best way we know how, through our music, dance and
celebration of humanity. We now turn to you and
ask for your generosity and holiday spirit.
Having seen the previous success in the faces of
the children, the parents and the performers, we
look ahead with new vigor. We call on your support
to keep the fire going and aiding in creating the
warmest of holidays this year in St. Petersburg.
"An American Christmas in Russia" is the first for
the city of St. Petersburg. It is the product of
several American and Russian actors, directors,
teachers and, yes, children. The production is
being developed in conjunction with RAT, UNA
Humanitarian Children's Center, St. Petersburg
Committee on Culture, Tutti Music School and
various individuals from the artistic community.
The opportunity of working with such an intergrated
production staff is no doubt challenging but most
certainly rewarding. The product is pure
American\Russian or should I say Russian\American.
To include such an influential organization as
yours would truly be welcomed. It is at these
critical times that we need leaders so others can
understand and follow. Your organization has
always taken the lead, pioneering new frontiers in
mutual understanding.
