Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theater

The theater building is the largest theater building in Russia ^[2] . It is located on the main square of Novosibirsk . After reconstruction in 2005, the Novosibirsk Theater is the most modernly equipped in Russia.

The building consists of six volumes: a building in which the cash room and lobby are located on the first floor, and a concert hall on the second and third floors, the cylindrical volume of the auditorium (with ring foyers); a stage block with a stage 30 m deep and grate 29.5 m high. Side wings adjoin the stage, which houses the sidelines of the stage, administrative rooms, rehearsal rooms, dressing and decoration workshops. A half-cylinder of the scenery warehouse adjoins the stage box at the back. The main structure of the building is a large dome with a diameter of 60 m and a height of 35 m, a unique structure, without buttresses, trusses or columns, supporting itself. The average thickness of the dome is 8 cm, and its ratio of thickness to radius is less than that of a chicken egg.

The large hall seats 1774 spectators ^[3] .

The total area of ​​the premises is 40,663 m² ^[4] , the volume of the building is 294,340 m³ .

Design

In July 1928, the Committee for Assistance in the Construction of the Bolshoi Theater of Siberia (Komsod) was created at the Siberian Executive Committee, headed by I. G. Zaitsev, deputy chairman of the regional executive committee and V. D. Vegman , one of the founders of the Siberian State Opera Committee. The Komsodist developed a construction program, believing that the theater was “the most affordable instrument for propagating the ideas of socialism”, the committee stated that “the modern theater is a bourgeois heritage with all the signs of a bourgeois character, it is an theater of an intimate nature, with its usual division of seats for convenience: lodges , ground floor, balcony, galleries. <...> The modern theater is not suitable for mass productions and is not designed for the mass audience ” ^[5] .

Initially, it was about building a separate building for the opera and drama theaters and the future Siberian Conservatory, but later it was decided to build a large cultural center of Siberian scale called the House of Science and Culture (DNiK). According to the program, it was supposed to consist of several buildings, united by a unity of architectural design. This complex included: a theater with a capacity of 2100 people, it is also the place of work of regional congresses and conferences, a research institute with laboratories and conference rooms, a regional museum of production forces of Siberia with research rooms, an art gallery. Then the central library for 400 thousand volumes, a radio center, a radio studio, and a conference hall for 400 people were added to the program. The volume of the building was to reach 150,000 m³ ^[6] .

The design was entrusted to the famous Moscow architect A.Z. Grinberg , a member of ASNOV , who, in turn, invited to participate in the project of the theater architect T. Ya. Bardt and the main artist of the Bolshoi Theater M. I. Kurilko . They developed and patented an original system of scenography and forms of scenic actions TEOMASS. In accordance with this system of “panoramic planetary theater”, which formed the basis of the architectural shaping of DNiK, the auditorium was arranged in the form of an amphitheater with 2600 seats, under the stands of which a tunnel was arranged in which scenery could be moved on moving wagons. A similar ring of wagons (of smaller diameter) was arranged behind the stage around the scenery warehouse. The rings intersected on stage and crashed into a turntable. The scenery was also supposed to be quickly removed to the developed side scenes. On special ramps, a wagon, truck or even a light tank could enter the stage. A stall with 600 seats, if necessary, could be moved to the stage, and in its place there was a lifting and lowering arena, transforming for circus performances, sports and water pantomimes. In addition, it was anticipated that festive demonstrations would take place through the auditorium. It was supposed to project films onto the surface of the dome, for which engineer Minervin designed a special projector ^[2] . Architect V. S. Maslennikov took part in the design of the building facades ^[7] .

Such an architectural concept followed the principles of " Theater October " formulated by Meyerhold ^[8] .

The appearance of the theater was characteristic of modernist architecture of the late 1920s: the lack of decorative elements, the purity and severity of forms, the naked and clear severity of designs, tape glazing and balconies, light visors above the entrance, a smooth dome. Its design is unique, designed by engineer B. F. Materi under the guidance of prof. P.L. Pasternak . The dome rests freely on a circular random beam connecting the internal pillars of the radially located frames of the corridors surrounding the dome; for 30 meters a stage box crashes into it. The diameter of the dome is about 60 meters, the thickness is 8 centimeters. It was the largest dome of its kind in the world ^[9] . The ratio of the thickness of the dome to its diameter is 1/750 (the ratio of the thickness of the shell of a chicken egg to a diameter of 1/250) ^[10] .

On May 15, 1931, the People's Commissariat of Education approved the construction of the theater with a declared value of 5-6 million rubles ^[6] .

Construction

May 22, 1931 the laying of the building took place. Already in September, the construction of the lobby frame and the installation of the foundations of the supports of the auditorium and wings were completed. By April 1933, about a third of the planned construction work was completed. A reinforced concrete frame of the lobby, lobby and the auditorium was built. In the lobby, the brickwork was ending, work was underway on the arrangement of the arch of the stage portal. For the rear drum of the scenery warehouse, only the foundation was built ^[11] . In the summer and autumn of 1933, the formwork was erected and the unique dome was concreted, and in May 1934 the formwork was removed ^[12] . By November 1933, the main volumes and structures of the building were erected: the lobby, an auditorium with lobbies, a stage box, stage pockets. It was assumed that in the fall of 1934, DNiK will receive delegates to the Congress of Soviets of Western Siberia. By this time, it was supposed to finish the interior decoration of the amphitheater, the lobby with wardrobes and the lobby of the 2nd floor ^[6] .

At this time in Moscow , the results of the second round of the competition for the construction of the Palace of Soviets were summed up, after which there was a sharp change in the stylistic preferences of Soviet architects. Constructivism and other currents of " Modern Architecture " were banned; In Moscow and Novosibirsk, meetings were held on changing the stylistics of DNiK ^[13] . The project was subjected to expert reviews of academicians of architecture I. V. Zholtovsky , G. P. Goltz and S. E. Chernyshev , A. V. Schusev ^[13] . On June 5, 1933, the Construction Assistance Committee of DNiK announced an open competition for "drawing up a project for the processing of the facades of the theater under construction in Novosibirsk," the final results of which were never announced. In April 1934, the secretary of the regional committee of the CPSU (b) R. I. Eikhe approved for further development one of the competitive options for the group of B. A. Gordeev , the further development was entrusted to the 2nd workshop of the Moscow City Council , headed by A. V. Schusev. The design is supervised by V.S. Birkenberg and A.V. Kurovsky ; in Novosibirsk, under the guidance of B. A. Gordeev, the development of working documentation was conducted. To work on the interiors invited E. E. Lansere ^[6] .

In August 1935, the People's Commissariat for Education decided to abandon the system of “panoramic planetary theater” and build DNiK as a regular opera house. The engineer G.M. Dankman developed a reconstruction scheme, according to which the volume of the hall was reduced, an acoustic suspended ceiling was hidden, hiding the volume of the dome, almost all the mechanization of the TEOMASS system was removed.

The layout of the Novosibirsk theater and its project were put up in 1937. in the Soviet pavilion at the World Exhibition in Paris , where he was awarded the highest award - Grand Prix. In 1938, the model was demonstrated at the All-Union Construction Exhibition in Moscow ^[6] .

In 1937, a "group of enemies of the people" was discovered at a construction site. Almost all construction managers who started it were repressed and died ^[10] . Next, the engineer N.K. Obukhov was appointed head of the construction of the theater. [one]

By the end of 1940, construction was almost completed, equipment was being installed. January 25, 1941 in a large hall in front of a closed curtain (work on the stage has not yet been completed), the Radio Committee Orchestra performed Tchaikovsky ’s opera Iolanta in a concert version. The official opening of the theater was scheduled for August 1, 1941 ^[14] .

During the Great Patriotic War , the building housed exhibits of many museums evacuated from the European part of the USSR, including the Tretyakov Gallery and the Pushkin Museum. Pushkin , Ethnographic Museum , palaces and museums of Pushkin and Pavlovsk , Smolensk Art Gallery , museums of Novgorod , Sevastopol , Tver , the state collection of violins from the Bolshoi Theater. On the squares of the theater kept its funds or worked 22 institutions. The theater was opened on May 12, 1945 .

Reconstruction

The idea of ​​creating an opera house in Siberia arose after the October Socialist Revolution . On November 1, 1920, in Omsk the opera “ Prince Igor ” opened with the opera “The Prince Igor ” by the A.P. Borodin opera - the largest provincial theater of the country at that time with a staff of 522 people (140 - opera, 117 - drama, 70 - symphony Orchestra, 185 - administrative and administrative apparatus). August 30, 1921 Sibrevkom decided to transfer the theater to Novonikolaevsk , it was renamed the "Siberian State Theater of Musical Drama" ( Sibgosopera ) ^[2] . It was assumed that the Sibgosopera would perform in the newly built House of Science and Culture, so since 1932 the Red Torch Theater was located in its building, and the Sibgosopera was sent on a long tour. After the 1934 season , the Sibgosopera was dissolved.

On January 15, 1939, the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR adopted a resolution on the creation of an opera and ballet troupe in Novosibirsk, the basis of which was composed of artists from Chelyabinsk . The director of the theater had already planned on January 1, 1940, to stage the first performance on the main stage, but the construction was postponed again, and the Novosibirsk Regional Opera and Ballet Theater spent the first year touring in Tomsk and Irkutsk , and began working in Novosibirsk in April 1940, not having your own home and speaking at different venues. They began to form the troupe again during the war in 1944 (rehearsals began in September) ^[10] .

On May 12, 1945, the Novosibirsk State Opera and Ballet Theater opened with the opera by M. I. Glinka “ Ivan Susanin ” directed by N. G. Frid in the sets of K. F. Yuon . The title "academic" was awarded in 1963.

Principal Conductors

• Leo Ginzburg (1944-1945, at the stage of formation of the collective ^[15] )
• Isidore Zack (1945-1949)
• Mikhail Shteyman (May-June 1949)
• Mikhail Bukhbinder (1940-1968)
• Isidore Zack (1968-1986)
• Boris Gruzin (1986-1989)
• Alexey Lyudmilin (1989-2001)
• Sergey Kalagin (2001-2004)
• Theodore Currentzis (2004-2011)
• Ainars Rubikis (2012—2015)
• Dmitry Yurovsky (since 2015) ^[16]

Chief Directors

• Savely Malyavin (1947-1951)
• Roman Tikhomirov (1952-1956)
• Margarita Ozhigova (1956-1958)
• Lev Mikhailov (1959-1960)
• Emil Pasynkov (1960-1970)
• Vagan Bagratuni (1974-1988)
• Elena Negrescu (1996-1998)
• Alexey Stepanyuk (2003-2005)
• Vyacheslav Starodubtsev (2017 - present)

Artists and musicians of different years

In alphabet order:

• Arkanov, Veniamin Pavlovich (1944-1959),
• Vasilevskaya, Larisa Nikolaevna (1969-1994), ballet dancer, People's Artist of the RSFSR .
• Vasiliev, Vladimir Ilyich , (02/01/1944 - 01/12/2015) soloist, lyrical tenor. Honored Artist of Russia (1991).
• Wiedemann, Oleg Alexandrovich , soloist. Dramatic tenor. Honored Artist of Russia. (Since 1998).
• Dzhioeva, Veronika Romanovna (soprano), People's Artist of the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania (since 2006).
• Valery Grigorievich Egudin ( 1937 - 2007 ) - Soviet Russian opera singer , theater director , teacher . People's Artist of the USSR ( 1983 ). Zimina, Tatyana Anatolyevna (1947-1969), ballet dancer, People's Artist of the RSFSR .
• Kaydani, Flora Ganievna (1964-1981), ballet dancer, People's Artist of the RSFSR .
• Komov, Yuri Nikolaevich , soloist of the opera. Tenor. Honored Artist of Russia.
• Kulaeva, Agunda Elkanovna (mezzo-soprano), guest soloist.
• Markov, Igor Alexandrovich , ballet dancer (1988-1989).
• Movsesyan, Karen Harutyunovich , soloist of the opera. Baritone. Laureate of international competitions.
• Poplavskaya, Marina Vladimirovna (2004-2005), soloist of the opera. Soprano. Laureate of international competitions.
• Prudnik, Alexander Afanasevich (1971-2002), soloist of the opera (bass-baritone), People's Artist of the RSFSR.
• Roman Polkovnikov , leading ballet soloist (2011).
• Router, Valery Dmitrievich . Conductor.
• Sizeneva, Lidia Isidorovna (1979 - 1999), leading soloist of the opera (soprano), People's Artist of the PMR
• Urbanovich, Vladimir Nikolaevich , soloist of the opera (baritone), People's Artist of the RSFSR.
• Ushakov, Nikolai Ivanovich , soloist. Baritone. (1956-1960)
• Chernov, Valentin Ivanovich , conductor (1947-1951).
• Myasnikova, Lidia Vasilievna , soloist (1945-1982). Mezzo Soprano, People's Artist of the USSR

Ballets

Opera

Children's performances

• Dr. Aibolit
• The Story of Kai and Gerda (The Snow Queen)
• New Year's Mail
• Prince and the Pauper
• The Steadfast Tin Soldier
• Tale of the priest and his worker Balda
• Terem Teremok
• Three pigs

On December 9, 2010, the director of the NGATOB Ruslan Yurievich Efremov was found dead in the room of the Victoria Hotel Minsk . Efremov traveled to Minsk to a forum of heads of musical theaters. According to a representative of the Minsk prosecutor’s office, Sergei Balyshev, he was found hanged. The deputy director of the theater Andrei Lazarev said that the cause of death is heart failure. ^[17]

In 2015, the Metropolitan of Novosibirsk and Berdsk Tikhon, at the request of the Orthodox public, turned to the prosecutor's office with a statement that the production of the opera “ Tannhäuser ” directed by Timofey Kulyabin blasphemously depicts religious symbols and thereby offends the feelings of believers ^[18] . Oleg Tabakov ^[19] , Valery Fokin ^[20] , Galina Volchek ^[21] , Andrey Moguchy ^[22] , Alexander Kalyagin ^[23] , Mark Zakharov ^[21] and many other famous cultural figures spoke out against such proceedings in court. Some of them emphasized that such a practice could be the first step towards the revival of censorship in Russian theater ^{[23] [24]} .

Theater director Boris Mezdrich and director of the play Timofei Kulyabin were summoned to court as defendants in the case of an administrative offense. The court did not find a subject for consideration ^[25] , the religious experts Vladimir Vinokurov and Boris Falikov involved in the trial did not see in the statement an insult to the feelings of believers ^{[21] [26]} . The prosecutor's office appealed the decision of the court ^[27] . Meanwhile, at the request of Mezdrich and with the consent of the production team, a poster depicting Jesus Christ was excluded from him and became the subject of particular discontent among the representatives of the church ^[28] .

Metropolitan Tikhon demanded to exclude the statement from the repertoire ^[29] . On March 13, a public hearing was held at the Ministry of Culture of Russia , which was attended by members of the Ministry’s Public Council, representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church, experts, theater director Boris Mezdrich, and culture minister Vladimir Medinsky ^[30] . При обсуждении Николай Бурляев , Егор Холмогоров , Павел Пожигайло , Капитолина Кокшенёва и другие высказали мнение, что свобода литературного и художественного творчества является базовым принципом, на котором они строят свою работу, однако эта свобода не является абсолютной и должна ограничиваться морально-нравственными нормами общества, а потому следует избегать постановок, способных спровоцировать раскол в российском многонациональном и многоконфессиональном обществе. По окончании слушаний министерство инициировало проверку финансово-хозяйственной деятельности Новосибирского оперного театра ^[31] . 29 марта приказом министра культуры Владимира Мединского на должность генерального директора театра был назначен Владимир Кехман , один из представителей театральной общественности, выступавший на стороне противников постановки и заявивший: «Я как человек верующий, крещёный, православный, как еврей воспринимаю это как оскорбление» ^[32] .

2 мая 2016 года митрополит Тихон провёл обряд освящения здания театра. В свою очередь, Владимир Кехман передал ему 100-летний колокол, хранившийся в фонде театра ^[33] .

• Невзгодин И. В. Архитектура Новосибирска. — Новосибирск: СО РАН, 2005. — С. 128—137. — 204 с. — ISBN 5-7692-0736-1 .

• Новосибирский государственный театр оперы и балета. Проектирование и строительство
• Кинохроника строительства театра
• Фоторепортаж об экскурсии по театру
• Указатель литературы, 1945—2005
• Виртуальный тур по театру и прилегающей территории
• Здание театра оперы и балета на карте Новосибирска
• История проектирования Новосибирского театра оперы и балета
• История строительства новосибирского оперного театра балета (НГАТОиБ) 1932—1945
• Самое большое театральное здание России. Photoreport
• НГАТОиБ. Закулисье. Photoreport
• Фоторепортажи: балеты, оперы, концерты 2010—2014 г.г. (150 статей, 30000 фото )
• Основание Новосибирского театра оперы и балета