The development of culture and a sense of beauty among the people should have priority in every city. Volgograd is no exception - the capital of the region, one of the most famous hero cities and just a remarkable tourist center. Musical Comedy Theater in Volgograd shows that amid the abundance of military and historical monuments there is always a place for fine theater art.
A bit of history
The Volgograd Musical Theater is one of the largest and oldest in the region, as well as throughout the Lower Volga. For more than 80 years of its existence, it has acquired a deep history and vivid prints of events. It has a huge weight in the formation of the city and country.
When the city was called Stalingrad, and culture suffered greatly in the post-revolutionary time, a project of a small operetta theater arose. At that time, the city was in the Lower Volga Theater Association, along with Astrakhan and Saratov. There were only off-site performances, and they were held in the summer on open air.
But this situation no longer suited the public, therefore, in 1931, the Lower Volga Regional Committee of the CPSU (b) agreed to the creation of the Second State Workers' Theater. A permanent troupe began to form. It opened in November 1932, the official start of activity was the display of the operetta “Servant” by N. Strelnikov.
War time
Originally called the Stalingrad Theater of Musical Comedy, it was located in the old Concordia building, which used to be another theater. A picturesque place overlooking the Tsaritsa River. But at the very beginning of World War II, the building was destroyed. The inventory was evacuated, so immediately after the Battle of Stalingrad the artists and the leadership returned to the city.
Left without a "shelter", they decided not to stop their favorite business. The people supported the initiative, and the workers of the tractor plant allocated the building of FZU in 1947. He was quickly refurbished, the stage and spectators set up and began to give performances. Creative mood was an excellent support of the spirit in the difficult post-war period.
In 1952, the future Musical Comedy Theater of Volgograd (Stalingrad) celebrated its 20th anniversary. On this occasion, a magnificent building was allocated on the Volga coast, overlooking a beautiful river landscape.
Rebirth
In the 90s, the theater stopped working for 5 years, it was repaired and put in order. The troupe continued to tour other venues and enjoyed great success. At that time, "musical comedy" was glorified and included in the top five theaters of the Soviet Union.
The development did not stop there. After repair, by a resolution of the city administration in 1995, the cultural center was called the Volgograd Musical Theater. This is not just a change of name, but the opportunity now to put in the walls of the institution not only comedies and operettas. The repertoire added the classics of opera and ballet. The increase in the genre range attracted the attention of even more theatergoers.
Ministers of the temple of art
Along with the immortal classics in the theater, contemporary works were staged, which later became cult. In the 70-80s, most of the performances were based on the works of new authors. And this was the brightest period in the life of the Volgograd Musical Comedy Theater. Especially for him, composers created: V. Basner - the play “A heroine is required”, O. Sandler - the production of “At Dawn”, as well as G. Gladkov, K. Listov, V. Semenov, etc. They repeatedly received all-Union awards, won competitions and broadcast on central television.
Many of the actors of the so-called golden time of the theater still shine. The most famous names of the older generation that are part of the current troupe:
- Tatyana Zhdanova;
- Igor Shumsky;
- Alla Goncharova;
- Igor Tretyakov;
- Lyudmila Putilovskaya;
- Roman Bailov;
- Mikhail Korolev;
- Lada Semenova and others.
They have toured on many occasions, and cities such as Moscow, Kiev, Kharkov, Tallinn, Chisinau, Baku, Tbilisi have always admired artists. In the Musical Comedy Theater of Volgograd there was a stand with newspapers, where enthusiastic reviews were published, but after repair it was removed.
The sensational premieres
What attracted the cultural center of art lovers if many of the performances were sold out? The answer is simple - the right leader. They worked under the leadership of Yu. G. Genin, who raised the theater to a new level. He demanded full return from the actors, so their vocal and choreographic data reached unprecedented heights. The scenery was also created luxurious.
Genin breathed novelty into the classics; there was a highlight in every performance. Thus, the production of Vienna Blood according to Johann Strauss became one of the best in the USSR and gathered full halls for several years.
The repertoire of the Musical Comedy Theater of Volgograd also included Giuseppe Verdi's opera La Traviata, which reinforced the institution's reputation. Managed to stage “The Marriage of Figaro” by V. A. Mozart and other works of the world fund of opera and ballet classics: “The Barber of Seville”, “Hanuma”, “Silva”. Many of them are still played. The feedback from Volgograd residents and guests of the city still makes it clear that the theater is alive and developing, which means that the cultural heritage is growing.
Theater today
The season 2017-2018 is 86th for the "Musical Comedy". Upcoming performances in the playbill of the Volgograd musical theater are:
- "Scarlet Sails" (musical) based on the story of Alexander Green;
- “Hello ... I'm your aunt!” (Musical comedy) - production of Oscar Feltsman;
- “Ordinary Miracle” (musical) - staged by Gennady Gladkov;
- "The Merry Widow" (operetta) - the work of Ferenc Lehar;
- "Dubrovsky" (musical);
- "Baboon Riot" (musical comedy);
- American Love (musical);
- "Aladdin" (family musical) based on the famous oriental tale;
- "Hanuma" (musical comedy) the famous world production of Gia Kancheli;
- The Bat (operetta) by Johann Strauss;
A variety of themes and plots in the performances enables the public of any age and preference to find a work for themselves. All dates and ticket prices can be clarified on the official website of the theater and at the box office of the city. This is the layout of the hall of the Volgograd Musical Comedy Theater:
City and region property
The theater has more than 400 productions, with which more than 200 cities of Russia and the CIS countries have traveled. At international festivals, artists showed true skill, became multiple laureates. The current leaders of the creative team have honorary statuses. Chief Director Alexander Kutyavin, choirmaster L.A. Ponomarev and conductor Anatoly Smirnov awarded the titles of Honored Artists of Russia. Choreographer - maestro Sergey Varlamov, situation creator - artist I.V. Elistratova.
Under the strict guidance of professionals, talented actors reveal the deep messages of works that penetrate the soul of visitors. Not for nothing that the theater under the familiar name “music comedy” has been pleasing the viewer for so long and making the townspeople really proud of their work.
Address of the Musical Comedy Theater: Volgograd, ul. Marshal Chuykov 4.