Bolshoi Theatre

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The Bolshoi Theatre (Template:Lang-rus) is a historic opera house in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Before the October Revolution it was a part of the Imperial Theatres of the Russian Empire along with Maly Theatre (Small Theatre) in Moscow and a few theatres in Saint Petersburg (Hermitage Theatre, Bolshoi (Kamenny) Theatre, later Mariinsky Theatre and others).

The Bolshoi Ballet and Bolshoi Opera are among the oldest and best known ballet and opera companies in the world. It is by far the world's biggest ballet company, with more than 200 dancers.<ref name="GDN">Template:Cite web</ref> The theatre is the parent company of The Bolshoi Ballet Academy, a leading school of ballet. It has a branch at the Bolshoi Theater School in Joinville, Brazil.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The main building of the theatre, rebuilt and renovated several times during its history, is a landmark of Moscow and Russia (its iconic neoclassical façade is depicted on the Russian 100-ruble banknote). On 28 October 2011, the Bolshoi re-opened after an extensive six-year renovation.<ref name=bbc>"Bolshoi Theatre to reopen after major refit", BBC News on bbc.co.uk, 28 October 2011</ref> The official cost of the renovation is 21 billion rubles ($688 million). However, other Russian authorities and other people connected to it claimed much more public money was spent.<ref name="TMT">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="DSPG">Template:Cite news</ref> The renovation included restoring acoustics to the original quality (which had been lost during the Soviet era), as well as restoring the original imperial decor of the Bolshoi.<ref name=bbc/>

History

The old Bolshoi Theatre in the early 19th century
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Bolshoi Theatre in 1883 after reconstruction by Alberto Cavos
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Bolshoi Theatre in 1905
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Bolshoi Theatre in 1932
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The Bolshoi on a 1951 stamp
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Bolshoi Theatre in 2006 before the renovation

Origins

The company was founded on Template:OldStyleDate,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> when Catherine II granted Prince Peter Urusov a licence to organise theatrical performances, balls and other forms of entertainment.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Urusov set up the theatre in collaboration with English tightrope walker Michael Maddox.<ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref> Initially, it held performances in a private home, but it acquired the Petrovka Theatre and on 30 December 1780, it began producing plays and operas, thus establishing what would become the Bolshoi Theatre. Fire destroyed the Petrovka Theatre on 8 October 1805, and the New Arbat Imperial Theatre replaced it on 13 April 1808, however it also succumbed to fire during the French invasion of Moscow in 1812.Template:Fact

The first instance of the current theatre was built between 1821 and 1824, designed and supervised to completion by architect Joseph Bové based upon an initial competition-winning design created by Petersburg-based Russian architect Andrei Mikhailov that was deemed too costly to complete.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The new building opened on 18 January 1825 as the Bolshoi Petrovsky Theatre with a performance of the catalan Fernando Sor's ballet, Cendrillon. Initially, it presented only Russian works, but foreign composers entered the repertoire around 1840.<ref name="5ka.ru 2006 z031">Template:Cite web</ref>

Renovations in the 19th century

In 1843 a large-scale reconstruction of the theatre took place using a design by A. Nikitin, but a fire in 1853 caused extensive damage and so a further reconstruction was carried out, by Alberto Cavos, son of the opera composer Catterino Cavos.

20th century

On 7 December 1919 the house was renamed the State Academic Bolshoi Theatre. Only a few days later, however, on 12 December, there was an unsuccessful attempt to shut the institution entirely. Beethoven Hall opened on 18 February 1921. Ivan Rerberg directed further reconstruction of the theatre between 1921 and 1923. A bomb damaged the structure during World War II, but this was repaired.

New stage of 2002

A new stage for the Bolshoi Theatre, called the New Stage, went into service on 29 November 2002, constructed to the left of the theatre's historic main stage. Together with auxiliary buildings — a restored 17th-century building, two rehearsal halls, and artists' recreation rooms — it forms a single theatre complex, the Bolshoi Theatre of Russia. The new building is on a natural hill which it shared, until recently, blocks of old houses with communal apartments.<ref>The New Stage of Bolshoi Theatre Template:Webarchive, See You in Moscow</ref>

Major rebuilding and renovation (2005–2011)

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The curtain of the Bolshoi Theater

From July 2005 to October 2011 the theatre was closed for restoration. The building, whose architecture combines three different styles, was damaged and a quick renovation seemed to be necessary.

Repairs were initially estimated at 15 billion rubles ($610 million) but engineers found that more than 75% of the structure was unstable,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to The Moscow Times, the true cost may have been double that,<ref name="TMT" /> and Der Spiegel quotes a figure of $1.1 billion.<ref name="DSPG" /> The rebuilding and renovation was funded entirely by the federal government.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

During the long period of reconstruction, the company continued to mount productions, with performances held on the New Stage and on the stage of the Great Kremlin Palace.

The renovation included restoring acoustics to the original quality (which had been lost during the Soviet era), as well as restoring the original imperial decor of the Bolshoi.<ref name=bbc/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After the renovation, the theater has a maximum capacity of 1,740 seats.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Finally, on 28 October 2011, the Bolshoi Theatre re-opened with a concert featuring international artists and the ballet and opera companies.<ref name="bbc"/> The first staged opera, Ruslan and Lyudmila, followed soon after.

Notable premieres

The Bolshoi has been the site of many historic premieres, including:

Other notable facts

Ballet and opera

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Performance in the Bolshoi Theatre (1856)
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Alexander III of Russia and his family at the Bolshoi, 1883

The Bolshoi is a repertory theatre, meaning that it draws from a list of productions, any one of which may be performed on a given evening. Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, there have been a few attempts to reduce the theatre's traditional dependence on large state subsidies.Template:Fact The Bolshoi has been associated from its beginnings with ballet. Tchaikovsky's ballet Swan Lake premiered at the theatre on 4 March 1877.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The chief ballet conductor from 1923 to 1963 was Yuri Fayer.Template:Fact

After the death of Joseph Stalin, the company toured internationally and became an important source of cultural prestige, as well as foreign currency earnings. As a result, the "Bolshoi Ballet" became a well-known name in the West.Template:Fact

However, the Bolshoi suffered from losses through a series of defections of its dancers. The first occurrence was on 23 August 1979, with Alexander Godunov;<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> followed by Leonid Kozlov and Valentina Kozlova on 16 September 1979; and other cases in the following years. Bolshoi continues to tour regularly with opera and ballet productions in the post-Soviet era.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Until the mid-1990s, most foreign operas were sung in Russian, but Italian and other languages have been heard more frequently on the Bolshoi stage in recent years.Template:Fact

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Orchestra

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Orchestra of the Bolshoi Theater in the workplace

Music director and chief conductor Vassily Sinaisky quit abruptly at the start of December 2013, after a 41-month tenure, citing the need to avoid conflict. General director Vladimir Urin accepted his resignation, and selected Tugan Sokhiev as replacement. Sokhiev's four-year contract, settled on 20 January 2014, and became effective immediately. Sokhiev left his position in connection with the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.<ref>"Pressed on Ukraine war, Bolshoi conductor Tugan Sokhiev resigns", Al Jazeera, 6 March 2022</ref> In December 2023, Valery Gergiev was appointed artistic director of the company, with immediate effect, with an initial contract of 5 years.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Chief conductors and music directors

Cultural status

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The quadriga was sculpted by Peter Clodt von Jürgensburg.

The Bolshoi Theatre attracts large numbers of tourists. As a result, prices can be much higher than in other Russian theatres.Template:Fact

Controversies

  • The rebuilding and renovation cost was $1.1 billion,<ref name="DSPG" /> sixteen times the initial estimate. In 2009 prosecutors alleged the lead contractor was paid three times for the same work.<ref name="GDN" />
  • Anastasia Volochkova, a former Bolshoi prima ballerina, has said she sees the theatre "as a big brothel" because, she has claimed, ballerinas are invited to parties by theatre administrators and refused roles if they do not accept.<ref name="GDN" /><ref name="DSPG" />
  • On 17 January 2013, Sergei Filin, the Bolshoi's ballet director, was attacked with sulfuric acid and as a result lost much of his eyesight.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A male dancer was later charged with the crime.
  • In the area of box office, a theatre insider told the German publication Der Spiegel that tickets are often sold to mafia dealers, who in turn sell them on the black market for double the face value.<ref name="DSPG" />
  • Performance quality has been criticized by the former music director Alexander Vedernikov (2001-2009). He has claimed the Bolshoi Theatre was putting "bureaucratic interests before artistic ones."<ref name="GDN" />
  • July 8, 2017, three days before the premiere, the Bolshoi Theatre called off the premiere of a ballet about legendary dancer Rudolf Nureyev. The Director General Vladimir Urin claimed it was due to the bad quality of the dancing, however the principal dancer Maria Alexandrova claimed it was the first sign of a 'new era' of censorship.<ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:Cbignore</ref> It was the first time a show has been pulled in such a way since the collapse of the Soviet Union (where such censorship persisted), sparking rumours about the motivation behind it.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

See also

References

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Footnotes

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