The Mikhailovsky Opera and Ballet Theater in St. Petersburg occupies a prominent place among the musical theaters of Russia. It is located in the very "heart" of the city, at: Arts Square, 1. In the article we will look at the layout of the Mikhailovsky Theater (St. Petersburg) hall, find out what changes have occurred after the recent reconstruction and in what places, according to the audience, is the best the view is visible. Now let us briefly recall the history of the theater to the reader and consider its interior decoration.
Historical information
A theater was opened by decree of Emperor Nicholas I in the premises of the former residence of the son of Paul I, Prince Michael. Since then it has been called Mikhailovsky. The building was built on the square created by the great architect K. Rossi, so Alexander Bryullov had to try to ensure that the design of the theater building corresponded to the general ensemble. He succeeded to the fullest, so that the theater looks organically with the houses next to it. Outside, a very modest and unremarkable building delights visitors with inner luxury.
Petersburg saw the first performance back in 1833. At first they wanted to make him imperial so that only members of a great family and close guests watched the performances, but he was so fond of all the nobles that they began to come here from all over St. Petersburg for social gatherings.
Since then, the popularity of this site has not subsided. The famous Johann Strauss and Fedor Chaliapin, the magnificent conductors Samuil Samosud and Eduard Grikurov, the director Vsevolod Meyerhold and the choreographers Oleg Vinogradov and Fedor Lopukhov performed on these stages. Now the main choreographer of the theater is a guest star from Spain, Nacho Duato.
Interior Description
The Mikhailovsky Theater ( we will consider the layout of the hall below) does not have the largest hall for performances. It is able to accommodate only 890 opera and ballet lovers. It is decorated in light tones of walls and lodges, in combination with red velvet of chairs, curtains and draperies of the "royal lodge", located in the center of the hall opposite the stage.
In 1859, significant changes were made to the interior of the room: the auditorium was expanded, the lounges of the benoir and mezzanine floor were covered with rich stucco molding with figures of caryatids, beautiful plafonds were installed. The portal above the proscenium is also decorated with these sculptures. Engaged in the reconstruction of A. Cavos.
Hall layout
The Mikhailovsky Theater has the usual arrangement of seats in the hall, typical of most opera houses in the world. Bottom opposite the orchestra pit are the chairs of the stalls. Some theatergoers are not very happy with the location of these seats, since the gentle rise of the floor in the stalls is very slight. The seats are almost on the same level. The first ten rows are even. From the 11th to the 14th rows of the stalls have a rounded shape.
The rest of the chairs are in the boxes. Their first row - the Benoir - is at the level of the stalls. This is the very first floor of the box. Chairs are in two rows, four in each. The diagram of the Mikhailovsky Theater Hall shows that on the left and on the right are 7 benoire lodges. In the center there are places in a semicircle in three rows.
Lodges A and B are placed on two sides of the stage. There can be 8 people: four in front and four in the second row. The audience there is sitting almost above the stage and the performance is watching, as it were, from above.
The next floor is occupied by mezzanine lodges. Spectators are placed similarly, with four people each. Two chairs in front, near the railing and two in the back. In the center, two rows of chairs to the left and right adjoin the central “royal” bed. It is beautifully decorated with draperies and also the most convenient for viewing performances.
The next three floors have a similar structure on the scheme of the hall of the Mikhailovsky Theater. These are the first, second and third tiers. There are lodges and rows of chairs for spectators in the center on each floor. Let's now see what changes in the location of seats in the auditorium have occurred after the recent reconstruction, get acquainted with the innovations.
New hall layout
The Mikhailovsky Theater for the new season prepared for art lovers a redevelopment of seats in the auditorium. Completely there was a replacement of seats in the stalls, Benoir and mezzanine. New models are much more comfortable than previous ones. They have comfortable armrests, high soft backs and even a footrest. Also changed the location of the seats in the stalls. If earlier in the middle there was a passage to the left and right rows of the stalls, now it is completely removed, having shifted all the seats to the central part of the theater. Passages are cleared from two sides. This is done to better perceive the performance. Also, the authors of the project of the updated scheme of the auditorium of the Mikhailovsky Theater considered that this would open to the eyes of visitors a beautiful stucco molding of the benoire beds, which was previously closed by people sitting nearby.
Another change will affect the second-row seats in the benches and mezzanine boxes. If earlier the seats were the same size both in front and in the back, and the spectators of the second row had to peek out from behind the neighbor’s shoulder in front, now the seats of the second row will be much higher. And so that the audience was comfortable sitting on the high seats, they have footrests.
All changes are thought out to the smallest detail, so that next season the audience will be much more comfortable and sit down and see what is happening on stage.
Top places
In the Mikhailovsky Theater, the seating arrangement is classical, and as in all similar opera houses, there are places with better visibility and audibility, and there are seats in which it is not too comfortable to perceive the action taking place on the stage. It is clearly visible in the first and second row of the stalls.
Spectators praise the side lounges of the Benoir. Everything is clearly visible and audible in the front row of the middle of the Benoir. Well, of course, we are not talking about the "royal" box, because it is already clear that these are the best places. In the first rows of the mezzanine floor, audibility is good, but, according to viewers, binoculars will be needed, since visibility is not clear.
Bad places
Fans of opera and ballet about some places in the theater speak negatively. So, it is believed that in places of Benoir, the so-called sidewalls, where there is a sharp rounding of the hall, sitting uncomfortable. The scene is poorly visible, so you can only listen.
In the back rows of the stalls, visibility also suffers due to a slight rise. It is necessary to peek over the neighbor’s shoulder in front. In Boxes A and B, viewers watch the performance from above above the heads of the artists, some movements are not visible.
With the new scheme of the hall of the Mikhailovsky Theater in St. Petersburg, with good places and not so much now you are acquainted. It remains only to buy a ticket and enjoy the beautiful art of the best artists of the country.