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THEATER
Further down the St. Petersburg cultural hierarchy
lies theater. The theater has probably suffered more
in recent years than ballet, opera, and classical
music since the language barrier keeps it from being
inundated by foreign tourists as well as from
extensive touring abroad. On the other hand, these
factors make it easier and cheaper to acquire
tickets. The exception is when a Moscow troupe stops
in St. Petersburg on tour that tickets can be more
expensive.
The Russian theater experience is rather different
from what you would expect anywhere in the West.
Badly in need of finance, theaters are both
unattractive and uncomfortable. Despite this, actors
give it their best and audiences appreciate it. In
fact they appreciate it so much that long after the
actors have wiped off their makeup and gone home,
they're likely to still be on their feet applauding
and calling encore. Other expressions of love include
flowers, poetry (thankfully written not recited) and
even bottles of champagne as gifts.
For information on performances check the fifteen-day
repertoires sold and displayed at theater booths. As
a rule, plays start at 19:00 on weekdays and at 18:00
on weekends.
The Bolshoi Drama Theater, or BDT, is the Mariinsky
without tu-tus: strictly classical performances of
their standard repertoire. Naberezhnaya Reki Fontanki
65. Metro: Sennaya Ploshchad or Gostiny Dvor and a 15
minute walk. Tel: 310 0401.
The Maly Drama Theater has a more contemporary
repertoire, including Claustrophobia and Gaudemaus
and two heavy-handed inspections of Sovietism by
Fyodor Abramov, Brothers and Sisters () and House ().
People with strong endurance and derrires of steel
may be interested in an eight-hour adaptation of
Dostoevsky's The Possessed (). Ulitsa Rubinshteina
18. Metro: Vladimirskaya/Dostoevskaya. Tel: 113 2028.
Alexandrinsky Theater is located behind Ekaterinsky
Park. Mostly classical performances. Ploshchad
Ostrovskogo 2. Metro: Gostiny Dvor. Tel: 312 1545.
Kommissarzevskaya Theater is characterised by
colorful costumes and original directing by Pazi, who
won an international prize for directing The Lovers'
Suicide on the Island of Skynet, based on a Japanese
stageplay by Tikamatsu. He also staged Goodbye,
Clown, based on Fellini's La Strada. Both plays are
quite interesting and somewhat unusual for this part
of the world. Italyanskaya Ulitsa 19. Metro: Gostiny
Dvor. Tel: 311 3102.
Molodezni Theater on the Fonatanka is known for an
interesting repertoire. The most well attended
productions are Tango and the new and controversial
Marquissa de Sade. Nabereznaya Fontanki 114. Metro:
Pushkinskaya. Tel: 316 6870.
Baltiisky Dom, a large Stalin-style building, has two
stages; the Bolshoi Zal which is often used for
concerts or visiting troupes, and the Maly Zal, which
hosts performances by creative but lesser-known local
talent. Alexandrovsky Park 4. Metro: Gorkovskaya.
Tel: 232 6244, 232 3539.
Buff, a theater complex with three performance areas,
hosts variety acts and semi-improvisational comedy
with audience participation. Narodnaya Ulitsa 1.
Metro: Lomonosovskaya, and just over the Volodarsky
Bridge. Tel: 263 6767.
Priyut Komendianta A small basement theater popular
with local theatrical types, it features a
contemporary repertoire. Malaya Morskaya Ulitsa 16.
Metro: Nevsky Prospekt. Tel: 312 5352.
The Theater on Liteiny Some European classics are
staged in this chamber theater. Liteiny Prospekt 51.
Metro: Liteiny Prospekt. Tel: 273 5335.
Open Theater (former Lensovet Theater) has The Face
by Ingmar Bergman and the hilarious The Hussar from
the KGB by Ratzer in their rep. Vladimirsky Prospekt
12. Metro: Vladimirskaya. Tel: 113 2191.
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