The Bolshoi Theater was opened on January 18, 1825. It was built by architect Osip Bove in place of the Petrovka Theater, which burned down in 1805.
Photo: A reproduction of a lithograph showing the Bolshoi Theater.
Photo: A reproduction of a lithograph showing the Bolshoi Theater.
The company was founded on March 28 (March 17 New Style), 1776, when the Moscow prosecutor and a famous patron of the arts, Prince Pyotr Urusov, was allowed by an imperial order to “stage … all kinds of performances.”
Photo: A reproduction of a mid-19th century lithograph, “A view of Theater Square from the Bolshoi Theater.”
Photo: A reproduction of a mid-19th century lithograph, “A view of Theater Square from the Bolshoi Theater.”
Initially, the actors of Prince Urusov and his companion, Michael Maddox, did not have a building and performed in a private house of Vorontsov in Znamenka Street. In 1780, they moved to the Petrovka Theater. It burned down in 1805, and the Bolshoi Theater was later built in its place to suit the architectural design of Petrovka (now Theater) Square. The Bolshoi Theater was built by architect Osip Bove in 1824 and included the remaining walls of the Petrovka Theater. Muscovites called the new theater The Coliseum.
Photo: The mall in Theater Square, Moscow.
Photo: The mall in Theater Square, Moscow.
A fire broke out in the theater in 1853, burning costumes and decorations, the archive, part of the music sheets and rare musical instruments, and damaging the building.
Photo: A reproduction of a painting by an unknown artist, “A Fire at the Bolshoi Theater on March 11, 1853.”
Photo: A reproduction of a painting by an unknown artist, “A Fire at the Bolshoi Theater on March 11, 1853.”
Russian-born Italian architect Alberto Cavos rebuilt the theater, restoring the design and volume of Osip Bove’s design. But he raised the ceiling and changed the theater’s proportions and interior decoration. In particular, he added cast iron galleries with lamps along the building’s sidewalls.
Photo: A lithograph of a drawing by Vasily Sadovnikov, “A View of the Bolshoi Theater” (the 1860s).
Photo: A lithograph of a drawing by Vasily Sadovnikov, “A View of the Bolshoi Theater” (the 1860s).
The Bolshoi Theater was rebuilt within 16 months and unveiled on August 20, 1856, in time for the coronation of Emperor Alexander II.
Photo: From a painting by Vasily Sadovnikov, “Theater Square on the Day of Opening of the Bolshoi Theater on August 20, 1856,” from the Bolshoi Theater Museum.
Photo: From a painting by Vasily Sadovnikov, “Theater Square on the Day of Opening of the Bolshoi Theater on August 20, 1856,” from the Bolshoi Theater Museum.
A scene from Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s ballet “The Sleeping Beauty” staged at the Bolshoi Theater, late 19th century.
The Bolshoi Theater was disguised to protect it during World War II.
The building became rundown by the 1990s, its wear and tear reaching 60%.
Photo: The Quadriga of Apollo on the Bolshoi Theater sculpted by Peter Clodt von Jurgensburg, circa 1850.
Photo: The Quadriga of Apollo on the Bolshoi Theater sculpted by Peter Clodt von Jurgensburg, circa 1850.
The Bolshoi Theater’s New Stage was unveiled in Theater Square with the assistance of the Moscow government in 2002. The New Stage is a hall that is only half the size of the original hall and so only one-third of the theater’s repertoire can be staged there. However, it made it possible to start the reconstruction of the Bolshoi Theater.
Photo: The rebuilt New Stage was unveiled on November 29, 2002 with a performance of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera “The Snow Maiden.”
Photo: The rebuilt New Stage was unveiled on November 29, 2002 with a performance of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera “The Snow Maiden.”
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© RIA Novosti . Alexey Kudenko
The latest reconstruction will not change the theater’s outlook, but the northern facade will lose the extensions where decorations have been kept for years. Several floors will be built 26 meters deep under the building, where the huge decorations will be stored.
Photo: The Quadriga of Apollo on the Bolshoi Theater during reconstruction.
Photo: The Quadriga of Apollo on the Bolshoi Theater during reconstruction.
A Chamber Hall seating 300 will also be located under the Bolshoi Theater. After the reconstruction, the New and Old Stages, located 150 meters from each other, will be connected by underground passages to each other and to the administration and rehearsal buildings. In all, the theater will have six underground floors.
Photo: The Bolshoi stage behind curtains, 2004.
Photo: The Bolshoi stage behind curtains, 2004.
