On November 24, 2017, the Moscow State Academic Operetta Theater will celebrate its 90th anniversary. Many bright, memorable pages have been written over the years by the creative team in the history of musical art. Operetta. How much of it is amazing in the stage possibilities and power of influence on the audience!
The beginning of the operetta era
But today we’ll not talk about the repertoire and artists of this amazing, fun genre. The main theme will be the State Academic Operetta Theater (Moscow). The State Archive retained the record, made on November 24, 1927, that the council of workers, peasants and army deputies of Moscow decided to preserve the operetta, offering to improve and bring it closer to the tasks of our time. No sooner said than done. From this day the era of the operetta theater began.
Acquaintance with the Operetta Theater
During its existence, the theater had to change addresses more than once. And in the war years he was evacuated from Moscow. Currently, the theater has a permanent residence on Bolshaya Dmitrovka.
We begin our acquaintance with the theater from the main entrance. Opening the doors, we find ourselves in a spacious hall with a poster for the current month’s repertoire and two ticket offices. For spectators who came for tickets to the operetta theater, a diagram of the hall is placed in the information box to the right of the entrance. It illustrates the colored sectors of the hall, as well as the cost of tickets, which depends on what day of the week the performance, day or evening session is given and, in fact, what kind of performance. In the niche to the left of the entrance is a diagram of the hall, where the numbers of armchairs and the names of the tiers in the hall are indicated. This information is useful to the viewer in choosing a place for the upcoming performance.
There are two operettas in the theater. The first, which is at the entrance, is divided into sectors for the convenience of serving spectators. On the second floor there is another wardrobe serving the public of this floor. There are toilet rooms, rest areas and buffets on both levels of the building. Photos of outstanding soloists of past years, artists of the music hall, ballet troupe and orchestras adorn the operetta theater. The layout of the hall, which is placed at the entrance, is a kind of guide for finding the sector and the place when the viewer enters the hall. Get to know her better.
Operetta theater hall
The capacity of the hall is 1,600 seats. The first floor consists of 20 rows of chairs, stalls and a Benoir lodge. On the dais is an amphitheater with seven rows of armchairs. True, the spectators of the last row of the amphitheater will not be lucky. They will have to find such a pose for contemplation of the performance so that the heads of the audience of the previous row do not interfere with looking at the stage. Well, such an amphitheater has an operetta theater. The layout of the hall leads further to the mezzanine and the lodges on the second floor. And on the third floor there is a balcony of the first tier and box. The fourth floor with balconies of the second tier is occupied by lighting equipment.
The hall design, with softly matching upholstery of armchairs in burgundy velvet covers, mesmerizes the cozy, in golden tones. The ceiling has a chic chandelier. Around it is a frame of graphic profiles of twelve foreign and Russian composers. Near the stage there is an orchestra pit.
Afterword
Not all performances go to live music. For example, the performance "Jane Air" goes under the lively sound of a harp and clarinet. But the musical "Anna Karenina" is a mix of phonograms and live orchestral sound. It is worth noting the beauty of mesmerizing 3D projections and the scenery on the stage for the performances that the operetta theater puts on. The layout of the hall, with which we began our acquaintance with the theater, told so many interesting things. And those spectators who will come to the next performance will look at the theater with different eyes. With those eyes with which the theater looks at the audience and gives pleasure to enjoy the musical performance and the game of talented performers.