Aleksey V. Belov

PhD in History, Senior Researcher of the Institute of Russian History of the Russian Academy of Sciences

The Institute of Russian History of the Russian Academy of Sciences

(Moscow, Russia)

Abstract. The article highlights the development of the traditions of the Western European Theater in Russia in the first half and middle of the 17th century, i.e. at the historical stage that immediately preceded the official date of the first court theater in the country. The date of its appearance is the day of performance given in the village of Preobrazhenskoye ("Artaxerxes action"). The article describes and analyzes the main events of the 17th century that contributed to the acquaintance of both the highest representatives of the Russian society and the broadest segments of the population of the capital city with the traditions of theatrical Western European festivals. It also describes the circumstances and forms in which Muscovites got to know these traditions. The work assesses the degree of novelty of the Western European theatre for Muscovy. The article regards the reasons that slowed the process of penetration of the rules and regulations of the Western European theatrical culture into Russia (the reasons were both military-political and subjective in nature which was directly due to the complex relations between Russia and the countries of Western Europe, which arose as a result of the events of the Time of Troubles). The author notes not only the Russian society's little-known interest in the forms of art of the Western countries but also the direct involvement of these forms in the service of the Russian court, the state, and the Russian Orthodox Church, including the connection with the development of the educational system that uses the experience of the Kiev Theological Academy. The paper analyzes the development of theatrical traditions within the national Russian culture, which is developing under the influence of both internal trends and cultural borrowings from the Western European countries. The difficulties and failures that have influenced the implementation of this process are shown. The author evaluates the contribution of various individuals, both native residents of the country and people from abroad, and suggests a re-evaluation of the accepted degree of "backwardness" of Russia in the development of European-type theater culture.
Keywords: theater, Western European theater, court theater, Preobrazhensky theater, culture of Russia of the XVII century.

* The reported study was funded by RFBR, project number 18-09-00047.

Full text of the article (PDF)


For citation:Belov, AV 2020, ‘On the way to the "Artaxerxes act" of the preobrazhensky theater: theatrical tradition and spectacles in Russia in the first half of the XVII century’, Tula Scientific Bulletin. History. Linguistics, issue 3 (3), pp. 28–38, URL: http://tula-vestnik.ru/pdf/2020/vipusk_3_20_12_20.pdf (in Russ.)

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