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.jpg) Mariinsky Theatre, August 2022 | |
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| Address | 1 Theatre Square Saint Petersburg Russia |
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| Coordinates | 59°55′32″N30°17′46″E / 59.92556°N 30.29611°E /59.92556; 30.29611 |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 2 October 1860 |
| Years active | 1860–present |
| Architect | Alberto Cavos |
| Tenants | |
| Mariinsky Ballet Mariinsky Opera Mariinsky Orchestra | |
| Website | |
| www | |
TheMariinsky Theatre (Russian:Мариинский театр,romanized:Mariinskiy teatr, also transcribed asMaryinsky orMariyinsky) is a historicopera house inSaint Petersburg,Russia. Opened in 1860, it became the preeminent music theatre of late 19th-century Russia, where many of the stage masterpieces ofTchaikovsky,Mussorgsky, andRimsky-Korsakov received their premieres. Through most of the Soviet era, it was known as theKirov Theatre. Today, the Mariinsky Theatre is home to theMariinsky Ballet, Mariinsky Opera andMariinsky Orchestra. SinceYuri Temirkanov's retirement in 1988, the conductorValery Gergiev has served as the theatre's general director.
The theatre is named afterEmpress Maria Alexandrovna, wife ofTsar Alexander II. There is a bust of the Empress in the main entrance foyer. The theatre's name has changed throughout its history, reflecting the political climate of the time:
Note: The acronym "GATOB" (Gosudarstvennïy Akademicheskiy Teatr Operï i Baleta) is often encountered in historical accounts.
The theatre building is commonly called theMariinsky Theatre. The companies that operate within it have for brand recognition purposes retained theKirov name, acquired during theSoviet era to commemorate the assassinatedLeningradCommunist Party leaderSergey Kirov (1886–1934).
The Imperial drama, opera andballet troupe in Saint Petersburg was established in 1783,[1] at the behest ofCatherine the Great, although an Italian ballet troupe had performed at the Russian court since the early 18th century.
A permanent theatre building for the new company of opera and ballet artists was designed byAntonio Rinaldi and opened in 1783.[1] Known as theImperial Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre, the structure was situated on Carousel Square, which was renamed Theatre Square in honour of the building.[1] Both names – "Kamenny" (Russian word for "stone") and "Bolshoi" (Russian word for "big") – were coined to distinguish it from the wooden Little Theatre. In 1836, the Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre was renovated to a design byAlbert Cavos (son ofCatterino Cavos, an opera composer), and served as the principal theatre of theImperial Ballet and opera.[1]
On 29 January 1849, the Equestriancircus (Конный цирк) opened on Theatre Square. This was also the work of the architect Cavos. The building was designed to double as a theatre.[2]
The Imperial Mariinsky Theatre and its predecessor, the Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre, hosted the premieres of many of the operas ofMikhail Glinka,Modest Mussorgsky, andPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. At the behest of the theatre directorIvan Vsevolozhsky, both theImperial Ballet (ballet arrived at the Mariinsky theater in 1870) and theImperial Opera were relocated to the Mariinsky Theatre in 1886, as the Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre was considered unsafe.
Other world premieres given at the house includedMussorgsky's operaBoris Godunov in 1874,Tchaikovsky's operasThe Queen of Spades in 1890 andIolanta in 1892, the revised version ofProkofiev's balletRomeo and Juliet in 1940, andKhachaturian's balletSpartacus in 1956. Other notable productions includedRimsky-Korsakov's operaThe Golden Cockerel in 1909 and Prokofiev's balletCinderella in 1946 (withNatalya Dudinskaya).[3]
The imperial and Soviet theater was the home of numerous impresarios, conductors, and musicians.
Conductors:Mikhail Zhukov (1932–35), Israel Chudnovsky and others.
Ballet: Theballet school of the Mariinsky Theatre spawned the careers of artistsMathilde Kschessinskaya,Olga Preobrajenskaya,Anna Pavlova,Tamara Karsavina,Vaslav Nijinsky, andGeorge Balanchine, students of theImperial Ballet School and style, and, under and after the teachings ofAgrippina Vaganova, artistsMarina Semyonova,Galina Ulanova,Rudolf Nureyev,Natalia Makarova,Mikhail Baryshnikov,Irina Kolpakova,Galina Mezentseva,Altynai Asylmuratova, as well as more recent dancers of renownUlyana Lopatkina,Diana Vishneva, andSvetlana Zakharova, students of the school as now named, theVaganova Academy of Russian Ballet.
Guest Soloist: Reza Fekri[4][5]
UnderYuri Temirkanov, Principal Conductor from 1976 to 1988, the Opera Company continued to stage innovative productions of both modern and classic Russian operas.
In April 2022, resident conductor Gavriel Heine, a protégé of Gergiev, resigned from the theater in part because of the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[6]
The nearby Mariinsky Theatre Concert Hall, designed by French architect, Xavier Fabre, opened in spring 2007.
The Canadian firmDiamond and Schmitt Architects, along with its local partner KB ViPS Architects, designed a new building, then to be namedThe Second Stage, with 1,830 seats, which would complement the existing Mariinsky.[7] Construction began in 2003, following a different design by French architect Jean Nouvel that was halted at the sub-basement level. The new design team took over in 2009. The completion of Mariinsky II was predicted to result in Saint Petersburg's equivalent ofNew York City'sLincoln Center.
Construction was completed in May 2013, at a price of 500 million euros.[8][9]
In 2009, the Mariinsky Theatre launched its own record label, managed by the same team that run the LSO Live label in London.
Among the titles that have been released are:
Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No 3 / Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini performed by Denis Matsuev, conducted by Valery GergievMariinsky Label Website
Shchedrin:The Enchanted Wanderer conducted by Valery GergievMariinsky Label Website
Shostakovich:The Nose conducted by Valery GergievMariinsky Label Website
Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos 1 & 15 conducted by Valery GergievMariinsky Label Website
Stravinsky:Oedipus Rex /Les Noces conducted by Valery GergievMariinsky Label Website
Tchaikovsky:1812,Moscow Cantata,Marche Slave conducted by Valery GergievMariinsky Label Website
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