Penza Drama Theater - historical pride of the country

In the heart of the city of Penza is the Penza Regional Drama Theater named after A.V. Lunacharskogo - an amazing architectural building with an area of about 17 thousand square meters, designed and built to the latest standards of world requirements. The main and small halls (for 1100 and for 100 spectators), the orchestra pit, the most actual sound and lighting equipment, actors' apartments, the newest and spacious warehouse for decorations and a cozy hotel for non-resident artists - all this is about him.

History of the theater

The Penza Drama Theater attracts a lot of attention to itself, the history of which is filled with many events. It can not be described in one article. As one of the oldest cultural places in Russia, the Penza Drama Theater has a long, controversial and rather interesting history. So let's consider the largest and most significant facts of the theater development.

Penza Drama Theater showed the first performance on the stage in front of the hall, designed for a hundred seats, in November, 1793. It was a controversial piece of the comic genre, written by Catherine II herself, "The Deceiver." The initiator of the creation was the vice-governor of Penza, Ivan Mikhailovich Dolgorukov, who, after the performance, arranged an evening for all guests. The main actors at that time were representatives of the upper classes: nobles and officials. In 1796, the composition of the stage group included cadre actors.

103 years later the creation of A.N. Ostrovsky "Poverty is not a vice" opens the debut basic theatrical season of the Penza Folk Theater. By the beginning of the 20th century, two scenes arose: summer (the so-called theater, located on the site of the Upper Gulani Square) and winter (located in the theater building). In early productions, members of the previously assembled society of the drama circle named after VG Belinsky played. Later, by 1905, almost the whole staff of the theater consisted of highly professional artists.

Building construction

In 1911 the city Duma of Penza announces a competition for the development and erection of the theater's people's house. The provincial architect AE Yakovlev wins the championship, but the construction stops because of the imperialist war, which began in 1914. AG Kuznetsov, a local merchant, came to the aid of the Duma and lent a considerable sum. Even later, after the celebration of the jubilee of VG Belinsky, the summer theater burns down. Opens the People's House named after Emperor Alexander II, and the auditorium appropriates a drama circle named after V.G. Belinsky.

Unfavorable times for performances

Then comes turbid time. The Penza Drama Theater finds the February Revolution, the war with Poland, the formation of the USSR, the Second World War. Nevertheless, the management and artists of the theater tried in every possible way to contribute to preserving the ethical and moral spirit of the people with a number of productions on military-patriotic themes. In the postwar period, viewers had to adapt to young and talented, but new actors, directors with great creative potential, as well as to unfamiliar works of classical drama. For example, "Uncle Vanya" AP. Chekhov, Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" and to many others.

Restoration of the building

The first restoration of the building was carried out in 1963 to the 300th anniversary of the city of Penza. The theater was already experiencing a new creative upsurge already in the 90s of the twentieth century. At the head of the ship was Honored Artist of the Russian Federation Ogarev Viktor Vladimirovich. But it was not without catastrophic accident. In January 2008, the fire virtually destroyed the Penza Drama Theater without any rest, after which the building had to be demolished. Later, a tender was announced for the modern image of the theater, as a result of which, by the greatest number of votes, the creative workshop under the direction of AA was chosen as the winner. Breusov. The building in the style of neoclassicism was opened in March 2010 by staging the comedy "The Inspector General" by N. Gogol. A couple of weeks later, a small stage was opened, which began its new path from the play "Do not Leave Me" by A. Dudarev.

Currently, the theater has a troupe, which includes one national and seven honored artists of the Russian Federation. These people are famous for the Penza Drama Theater. The repertoire of the theater is quite different. It has more than 35 performances of various genres, ranging from the musical tale "Mukha-Tsokotukha" and up to experimental comedies and theatrical talk shows.

From the middle of 2010 the artistic director is the Honored Artist of Russia Sergey Vladimirovich Kazakov.