Unexpected and little-known facts about the theater. Facts about the theater

Interesting Facts about the theater As you know, before, all roles were played by men (there were such rules). In Shakespeare's time, when a performance was delayed, they said: “Queen Elizabeth has not yet had time to shave.” Theater originated more than 5,000 years ago. The first signs of the emergence of theater were ritual ceremonies in ancient Egypt. In Pushkin's time, not the entire stalls of the theater were occupied by armchairs. They were only in the first few rows for especially noble and wealthy gentlemen. Behind these rows there was a standing area of ​​the stalls, tickets for which were much cheaper. This is where they usually found creative people Theater at UNESCO For a long time, in ancient Roman comedy it was forbidden to show Roman citizens in a funny way. That is why Roman comedy depicted Greeks and Greek life. And so it turned out that the Greeks and Romans showed touching unanimity: the Greeks laughed at themselves, the Romans also laughed at the Greeks. In the last years of her life, Tatyana Peltzer was already forgetting the words when she played in Lenkom performances. She once played Clara Zetkin in the play “Blue Horses on Red Grass,” where Oleg Yankovsky played Lenin. She went on stage and suddenly said: “Oh my God! My fathers! Well, I don’t remember anything.” Oleg Yankovsky was not taken aback and asked: “Klara, you probably want to say that the proletariat should unite?” Peltzer replied: “Yes, father, I want to!” And Yankovsky conducted the rest of the dialogue himself. In Sicily it still exists today puppet show , the performance lasts... a month! In ancient times there were also performances that lasted for a year! True, during the day the audience went about their usual business, as they do now, and in the evening they watched the continuation of the same play. Recent years Eight hundred years ago the same theme was being developed - the fight of the knight Roland with the Moors. In 16th century Italy, virtually all maids in theatrical productions their names were Columbina, Smeraldina or Franceschina. These were deliberately distorted female names, which were very popular in the country at that time. The women's costumes were either those of peasant women or the clothes of maids. The Japanese kabuki theater, where all roles, even female ones, are played by men, was founded by a woman. Her name was Okuni and she was a shrine attendant in the 17th century. She and other women then also performed all roles, including male ones. However, soon the country’s leadership did not like the immoral atmosphere that often reigned at such performances, and women in the kabuki theater were replaced by young men, and later by mature men. Nowadays, traditions are no longer so strong, and in some troupes female roles women began to perform again. The ancient Greek playwright Phrynichus once presented his play “The Taking of Miletus” in the theater - about the destruction of the Greek city by the Persians. She upset the audience so much that the whole theater burst into tears; As punishment, the authorities sentenced the poet to a fine of one thousand drachmas and banned the production of his play. The ancient Roman public loved bloody spectacles not only at gladiator fights, but also at ordinary replace him with a criminal sentenced to death and kill him right on stage. One of the most unusual symbols of puppet theater in the world is the clock on the facade of the Obraztsov Theater in Moscow. Every hour, the doors in the box houses around the clock dial open one by one and twelve animals appear to the music “Whether in the garden or in the vegetable garden.” All together the animals appear twice - at noon and at midnight. The expression “Finita la comedy” originated in the days ancient Rome. Then the actors ended all performances with this phrase. Dmitry Medvedev visited Omsk in February 2010. There was a poster on the route of his motorcade. children's performance entitled "Waiting for you" cheerful gnome", which the city authorities urgently dismantled. Philip of Macedon was killed in a local theater.

Ukrainian puppet theater is called nativity scene. At Christmas, the story of the birth of Christ was played out in nativity scenes. By the way, the word “den” itself means the cave where Jesus was born. In one of the Odessa cemeteries there is the grave of the actor M. N. Mitrofanov with the inscription on the slab: “Many times I happened to play dead people, but I never played them so skillfully.”

• In the Roman theater, a curtain appears that does not rise upward and does not diverge to the sides, as it does now, but falls into a special slot in the floor. There is a so-called theater of cruelty. But don't think that they show torture and abuse. In it, the whole performance is simply shown with gestures and inarticulate sounds. The Roman playwright Livius Andronicus himself played the main roles in his tragedies. When one day he lost his voice, he began to entrust the singing of all the songs to a special boy standing behind him, and he himself only opened his mouth. This is the first recorded use of a phonogram in history. Italian comedian Bianconelli decided to perform a funny pantomime in front of the audience with a large bottle in his hand. According to one version, after his failure, the word “fiasco” (in Italian - “bottle”) acquired the meaning of “acting failure”, and then “failure, failure” in general. The Roman pantomime featured hetaeras wearing transparent tunics, which they took off as they went along. Emperor Justinian married one of these dancers, Theodora.
• Interesting facts from the history of the theater theatrical arts. Then one of the opportunities to convey the desired mood to the viewer was the theater curtain.
• Currently, there are several types of curtains: intermission-sliding, lift-and-fall, Italian, Austrian, Venetian, Roman, French, Brecht curtain, Wagner curtain, Kabuki curtain, Polichinelle curtain, walk-through curtain, folding curtain.
• In historical and opera houses, the main curtain is often decorated with an embroidered or painted emblem of the theater or the coat of arms of the city.
• Special canvases were even prepared for many performances. For example, for Lermontov’s play “Masquerade” the artist A. Golovin created as many as 10 theatrical curtains, changing as the plot progressed.
• Row modern theaters, for example, “Satyricon”, work without a curtain.

• In Japan in traditional theater salt is sprinkled on the stage before each performance to protect actors from evil spirits.
• It is believed that the best omen is to find a nail on the stage. This promises that the actor will soon be offered a role. Many artists even take the nails they find with them, believing that this way they will always be in demand. Luciano Pavarotti went to all his concerts with a large iron nail given to him by his mother.
• Worst sign– drop the text of the play during rehearsal. According to this sign, the artist will not succeed in the role, or he will forget the test, or the performance will fail. To avoid this, it was necessary to immediately sit down on it, and it did not matter where it fell, in the mud or in the water. After sitting for a short time, the script must be picked up, and only after such procedures it was possible to stand up.
• Every theater has its own beliefs. For example, at the Moscow Art Theater and the Vakhtangov Theater you are not allowed to bite sunflower seeds behind the stage or whistle. All these are bad signs.
• The dressing room is for actors sacred place. You need to enter here only with your left foot (and onto the stage with your right foot). It’s better not to hang anything on the door: pictures take away your luck. You should not spill the contents of your makeup box and you should not look in the mirror over your colleague’s shoulder. The number of the artist’s personal room is also important - in many theaters there is no dressing room number 13, since this number is considered “unlucky”.
• There is a kind of rating of “unlucky” and “happy” plays. Songs from Macbeth should not be sung, so as not to inadvertently evoke evil spirits. In addition, the works of Bulgakov and Gogol allegedly carry bad energy. But the one who plays in “Cinderella”, as a rule, will have further success in his career.
• In a puppet theater, dolls must be placed face down, towards the table. There is a belief that otherwise through the reflection theatrical light a poltergeist may take possession of their eyes.
• It is bad luck to use your own jewelry in the theater, as well as real banknotes on stage. They say it will lead to bankruptcy.
• Bad omen it is considered to see a red-haired spectator in the first row... And a bunch of other unlucky signs
• It is believed that an artist cannot be wished good luck, one must say: “No fluff or feather.”
  
  But not everything is so scary; the actors also have happy signs.

• IN English language The term “piracy” in the meaning of “copyright infringement” has been known since 1603. Good plays have always been few and far between, and they were hunted by competing theater companies or publishers, so full text the author trusted the play himself to an honest man in the troupe - to the prompter. However, it was then that the pirated text of the play “Hamlet” was published.
• The word "fiasco" means "bottle" in Italian. After the act of the unlucky comedian Bianconelli, who at one time decided to amaze the audience with a cheerful pantomime with a huge bottle on his head, the word became synonymous with the concept of “acting failure.” Subsequently, the phrase acquired a common meaning, denoting “collapse”, “defeat” not only within acting, but in principle.
• Since the times of Ancient Rome, the accessory of clowns was a rattle made from a bull's bladder, into which peas were poured. In the medieval theater, jesters beat other actors and even spectators with such a rattle. When the tradition reached Rus', our buffoons began to additionally decorate themselves with pea straw, hence the expression “pea buffoon” became entrenched in the language.
• “Finita la comedy” is a well-known phraseological unit, literally translated from Italian “the comedy is over.” This is one of the most famous phrases around the world. It is believed that it has existed since the times of ancient Rome. This expression ended all performances. According to another version, her appearance is associated with Leoncavallo’s opera “Pagliacci”.

• The emergence of the expression “Marlezon Ballet” is also associated with the theater. The Marlezon (Merlezon) ballet of 16 acts was staged in March 1635. The plot of the ballet “about hunting blackbirds” was based on the favorite pastime of the monarch. The ballet was composed by Louis XIII himself, and he even personally performed two parts in the ballet performance. This action is also mentioned in Dumas’ novel “The Three Musketeers. The theme has received a new development in our time, after the release of the three-part musical film “D'Artagnan and the Three Musketeers” directed by Yungvald-Khilkevich, which contains a comedic episode that is not in the original novel. The initial half of the ballet is solemn, slow and sedate. But immediately after the master of ceremonies of the ball solemnly says: “The second part of the Marlezon ballet!”, he is knocked off his feet main character film, running to the queen to bring the pendants on time.Since then, the phrase “Marlezon Ballet” began to be used to characterize a boring, tedious event, and the expression “Second Part of the Marlezon Ballet” began to mean an unforeseen turn in a calm, familiar process; it is often pronounced with sarcasm, describing the unexpected chaos and turmoil.
• The now outdated expression “get up on buskins” also applies to the theater. Special shoes on a high platform - buskins - were used by actors when performing tragic roles; they visually increased the actor's height and made his gait more stately, as befitted the characters of tragedies. By wearing these shoes, a person physically rose above others. And if a person became arrogant, behaved arrogantly, then they said about him that he “got on buskins,” that is, he began to consider himself smarter in some ways, more significant than others, and stopped taking into account the opinions of others. They told him: “Don’t stand on buskins.”

More about the theater

It is difficult to imagine life without theater, which organically synthesizes literature and choreography, music and art. A whole team works on a theatrical product: actors, directors, producers, artists, workers.

The history of the theater begins from the time when our ancestors performed their ritual dances before hunting. Folk festivals gradually grew into professional productions, without which it would be unthinkable modern society any people.

Sydney Opera theatre- one of famous buildings peace. This is the main attraction of the country and a symbol of Australia.

• More than 100 million Australian dollars were spent on its construction, part of which was obtained through the state lottery.

• You have to spend a lot on electricity. The complex consumes as much as a city with 25,000 inhabitants.
• The theater building occupies 2.2 hectares and reaches a height of 67 meters (22-story building).
• The main hall seats 2679 guests.

• Every year it hosts 3,000 events, which are attended by 2 million people.
• Sydney's main attraction.
• The theater houses the world's largest organ. It consists of 10,154 small, medium and large pipes.

The Mariinsky Theater is one of the most famous theaters Russia and the world. The mysterious atmosphere of the building attracts unusual events, forming legends.

• The Mariinsky Theater building is only the third place in which the theater group. The first performance at the Mariinsky Theater is the opera “A Life for the Tsar” by M.I. Glinka took place in 1860.

• The name is immortalized in the name of the theater and in the curtain - exact copy the hem of her dress.
• In the 70s of the 20th century, employees discovered a broken crystal in the orchestra pit, which they immediately rushed to remove, which worsened the sound.

• The hallmark of the Mariinsky Theater is its 2.5-ton bronze three-tier chandelier, illuminated by 210 lamps and decorated with 23 thousand crystals.
• The theater uses the real 200-year-old Honor Bell for some performances.
• They say that the ghost of a grandmother in a red jacket, who worked there for a long time, lives in the theater.

Grand Theatre

The Bolshoi Theater is the pride and beauty of the capital. All travelers rush to attend performances there, even if they are only in Moscow for one day.

• “Petrovsky” was the name of the famous theater at first.

• There was a theater with the same name in St. Petersburg, but it has been closed since 1886.
• The building itself burned down three times. The modern building is the fourth time the facility has been rebuilt.
• His image can be seen on the 100-ruble banknote of 1997.
• 43 actors – original composition troupes.

• According to acoustic data, it was recognized as the best among theaters in the world in the 19th century.
• The stage saw more than eight hundred productions Bolshoi Theater. Among them is an unforgettable debut.
• If someone happens to visit this wonderful place, they will be able to see special varieties of tulips near the building: “Galina Ulanova” and “Bolshoi Theater”.

Since ancient times, Greece has been the birthplace of theaters, from which the culture of theatrical performances developed in other countries of the world. This type of culture is still popular today.

• Genres in ancient Greek theater there were two - satire and drama.
• The actors, as well as the spectators, have always been only men.
• Greek men were required to visit amphitheaters.
• If any citizen did not have money for this event, he was paid money from the state treasury.

• Theater performances took place long time- up to several hours, so the audience took food and soft pillows with them to make it comfortable to sit during theatrical sessions.
• Seats in theaters were reserved for spectators in advance. They tried not to leave their places, otherwise they could lose them. Long vessels served as a toilet.

The Mikhailovsky Theater has received the nickname of the cultural pearl of St. Petersburg. Splendor interior decoration it hides behind a strict facade in the style of classicism.

• The Mikhailovsky Theater is one of three imperial theaters Petersburg, like Alexandrovsky and Mariinsky theaters, and was originally intended for the family of Emperor Nicholas. After 30 years it was opened to visitors.

• The architect of the theater was Karl Bryullov’s brother, Alexander Pavlovich, who skillfully integrated the new building into the style of the Arts Square. Facades similar to facades Mikhailovsky Palace, performed by Carl Rossi.
• The theater witnessed a murder. The Narodnaya Volya took advantage of the fact that the coachman was slowing down near the theater.
• Not only the imperial family visited the walls of the theater. He himself was the conductor of the theater orchestra. And in 2013 he performed on its stage

• There is a museum on the second tier of the theater. Past outfits, posters and photographs will introduce the viewer to the life of Mikhailovsky.
• The theater was named after the brother of Nicholas I, Mikhail Pavlovich. In the 20s of the 20th century it was renamed Maly academic theater. In the late 80s, the theater began to bear the name of Mussorgsky, and only in 2007 did it return to its original name.
• The influx of spectators to the legendary theater never ends. Even during periods of economic downturn in the country, people did not stop visiting the St. Petersburg Mikhailovsky Theater.

Shakespeare's Globe Theater

The era is characterized by a transition from amateur to professional theater. The aristocracy treated actors favorably, offering them jobs as servants.

• The theater building was originally located in Shoreditch on rented land by the Burbage family. Financial difficulties associated with the lease forced the building to be dismantled and moved to the Thames. This is how the Globe appeared.

• The theater troupe was a partnership of shareholders who had income from fees received from performances.
• William Shakespeare was a shareholder as the main playwright. The actors who did not play the main roles were on salary.
• There was no curtain, the scenery appeared very rarely.
• But there was a flag hanging outside, signaling that the show was going on.
• Spectators watched the performances while standing, while gnawing nuts or eating oranges.
• Famous guests had the right to sit directly on the stage. Emotions were expressed violently.

• A cannon that misfired at a performance in 1613 led to a devastating fire. The fire took the building with it, sparing people.
• 1614 is the year the theater was restored. The stone building served the troupe until 1642, when the theater was closed by government decision.
• The modern theater building resembles the historical version of the Globe.

Facts about theaters for children

Theaters for children flourished in the 20th century. After the end of World War II, theaters began to open in many countries of the socialist regime. young viewer. In the United States of America, children's plays were staged by students of theater and literary universities.

Not everyone knows that:

• For the first time in Russia, the tsar spoke about such theaters after a trip to Ukraine, where he attended a performance for children. Upon returning to the country, the king gave instructions to open children's theater at the palace.
• As soon as children's theaters gained popularity, Russian institutions shone on the world stage. Until now, our teams successfully go on tour.

• The most big amount St. Petersburg can boast of children's theaters in Russia.
• The Yekaterinburg Theater for Young Spectators founded the All-Russian festival of children's theaters.
• During times Soviet Union Russian drama has firmly established itself in the country's theaters. Schoolchildren were shown various revolutionary plays.
• With the advent of children's theaters cultural development children do not stand still.

Theater is an unusual phenomenon that in an instant transports you into a mysterious world. What is this, in fact, magic, fantasy, movement in time space? Theater is always a fascinating performance, both for an acting troupe, musical accompaniment, choreographers, and for the audience.

Even in the time of Pushkin, chairs were installed only in the first rows of the theater hall. These places were intended for rich and famous gentlemen. Next were standing places for commoners and workers. The cost of a ticket to this part of the hall was significantly lower. There were a lot of people who wanted to attend premieres and popular performances, so the most avid theater lovers came several hours before the performance in order to take the best standing places.

Female actors were treated differently in the Middle Ages than in modern times. Almost always, a woman could play the role of a servant or slave. Such roles were invented as irony and mockery. Even wardrobe items and theatrical costumes corresponded to the meaning.

The now fashionable multi-part series are by no means an invention of the 20th century. Even in ancient times, there were performances in Sicily that lasted for months. Every day, after the end of the working day, the audience hurried to the theater to see the long-awaited performance. Roland’s feud with the Moors was very popular for 8 centuries.

In ancient Rome, spectators delighted in bloody battles with particular pleasure, not only watching gladiator fights, but also during theater performances. Scenes of the play where it was necessary to depict death, the real actor was replaced by a slave on death row, in order to deal with him in front of an enthusiastic audience.

An interesting fact about the theater is the belief that you should never drop a script before a performance. But if this did happen, it was necessary to immediately sit down on it, and it did not matter where it fell, in the mud or in the water. After sitting for a short time, the script must be picked up, and only after such procedures it was possible to stand up. All cast I’m sure that if you don’t do all this, then you always have to wait for trouble (the actors will forget the text, or the performance will fail miserably).

Words such as souffle and prompter are completely different in meaning, but come from one French word“souffle” (exhale, blow). The soufflé - because it is as light as air, and the prompter - because all the prompts to the actors must be made quietly and unnoticeably from the viewer.

The phrase “Finita la comedy” has existed since ancient Rome. This expression ended all performances.

The most extraordinary symbolism of the theater is the clock on the façade of the Obraztsov Puppet Theater in Moscow. Every 60 minutes, the doors near the dial open and to the tune of “Whether in the garden or in the vegetable garden” you can see 12 animals.

Photo: Vitalina Rybakova, PantherMedia / Vitalina Rybakova

March 27 is World Theater Day. We have collected interesting facts about the theater. Did you know about this?

In Pushkin's time, not the entire stalls of the theater were occupied by armchairs. They were only in the first few rows for especially noble and wealthy gentlemen. Behind these rows there was a standing area of ​​the stalls, tickets for which were much cheaper. There were usually creative people, students, and clerks here - they were the most active part of the public, setting the tone for applause and shouts of “Bravo!” For particularly popular performances, a lot of theatergoers crowded into the stalls, the most avid of whom came 2-3 hours before the start and took the best standing places, writes the Fact Site.

In the USA, in the state of Virginia, there is a unique “Barter Theater”. The viewer can pay for entry here with food.

Croatia is home to the oldest public theater in Europe.

Female theatrical characters of the Middle Ages were very different from modern ones. Often women appeared on the theater stage only in the roles of maids. Their characters were created for ridicule, so every detail of their toilet had its own characteristic features.

In one of the theaters of Ionia there was a special row for one-armed warriors. A row of bald slaves was seated in front of them, and by hitting their bald heads, the first could applaud.

World Theater Day was established in 1961 on the initiative of delegates of the IX Congress of the International Theater Institute of UNESCO.

For a long time, in ancient Roman comedy it was forbidden to show Roman citizens in a funny way. That is why Roman comedy depicted Greeks and Greek life. And so it turned out that the Greeks and Romans showed touching unanimity: the Greeks laughed at themselves, the Romans also laughed at the Greeks.

In the last years of her life, Tatyana Peltzer was already forgetting the words when she played in Lenkom performances. She once played Clara Zetkin in the play “Blue Horses on Red Grass,” where Oleg Yankovsky played Lenin. She went on stage and suddenly said: “Oh my God! My fathers! Well, I don’t remember anything.” Oleg Yankovsky was not at a loss and asked: “Klara, you probably want to say that the proletariat should unite?” Peltzer replied: “Yes, father, I want to!” And Yankovsky conducted the rest of the dialogue himself.

In Sicily to this day there is a puppet theater, the performance of which lasts... a month! In ancient times there were also performances that lasted for a year! True, during the day the audience went about their usual business, as they do now, and in the evening they watched the continuation of the same play. For the last eight hundred years, one and the same theme has been developed - the struggle of the knight Roland with the Moors.

In 16th-century Italy, virtually all maids in theatrical productions were named Columbina, Smeraldina or Franceschina. These were specially distorted female names, which were very popular in the country at that time. The women's costumes were either those of peasant women or the clothes of maids.

The Japanese kabuki theater, where all roles, even female ones, are played by men, was founded by a woman. Her name was Okuni and she was a shrine attendant in the 17th century. She and other women then also performed all roles, including male ones. However, soon the country’s leadership did not like the immoral atmosphere that often reigned at such performances, and women in the kabuki theater were replaced by young men, and later by mature men. Nowadays, traditions are no longer so strong, and in some troupes women have begun to play female roles again.

The ancient Greek playwright Phrynichus once presented his play “The Taking of Miletus” in the theater - about the destruction of the Greek city by the Persians. She upset the audience so much that the whole theater burst into tears; As punishment, the authorities sentenced the poet to a fine of one thousand drachmas and banned the production of his play.