Description of the attraction
On the centenary of the birth of A. S. Pushkin, it was decided to build a theater building in Pskov. Its original name was the People's House. A. S. Pushkin. The theater received this name because funds for its construction were collected by residents of the province by subscription, that is, it was built with public money. From here it got its first name. The author of the project was the architect from Pskov E. A. Germeier. Despite the fact that the building was laid back in 1899, the construction was carried out only in 1906. In the same year, the theater was inaugurated. In those days on this stage one could see E. Karchagina-Aleksandrovskaya, V. Davydov, V. Khodotov, A. Pirogov, V. Komissarzhevskaya, L. Mendeleeva, F. Chaliapin, I. Sobinov, K. Varlamov, A. Duncan …
Soon after the 1917 revolution, the theater received a new name and became the Communal Theater. In 1920, he again changed its name to the Pskov City Drama Theater named after. A. S. Pushkin, and in 1939 - at the Leningrad Regional Drama Theater. A. S. Pushkin. Despite the frequent change of names, he still carried "reasonable, kind, eternal" for his audience, among whom there were many regulars. However, the Second World War made its own adjustments to his life. During the years of occupation, the Germans used it for their cultural events. Concerts and tours of other theaters took place here. And in 1944, during the bombing, the building was badly damaged. The theater was in ruin. Most of the property was plundered by the Nazis. Equipment and material values were taken to Germany.
After the end of the war, work began on the restoration of the theater. In 1946, a major overhaul was carried out. The theater was soon fully equipped and reopened to the public. He found a second youth and again became the cultural center of the Pskov intelligentsia. In the 50s of the 20th century, many famous actors of the Russian stage began their career here, among them the People's Artists of Russia: E. Vitorgan, T. Rumyantseva, V. Azo and other celebrities. Many of the actors now living are successfully working in well-known theaters in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Already in the 90s of the 20th century, the drama theater became famous in many cities and suburbs. The troupe takes an active part in tours and festivals in Russia and abroad, especially in Europe. The Pskov theater is known firsthand in many cities of Germany, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Finland, France, the Baltic states, as well as in the CIS countries - Ukraine, Latvia, Belarus.
Today, the Pskov theater has two folk and eight honored artists. Despite the realities and difficulties of today's life, the number of viewers has increased compared to past decades.
A wonderful creative experiment of the Pskov Drama Theater was his project "Carousel". It started in May 1988 and is a huge success. These are outdoor performances in the open air, which take place in historical places and monuments, most often dedicated to any holidays or historical events. With its performances, the theater participates in many international festivals in different cities of Russia and is especially popular with the audience. The head of the Karusel Theater is V. Radun, who together with E. Shishlo works as a director at the Pskov Academic Drama Theater named after A. S. Pushkin. V. Pavlov is the director of the latter.
Another undoubted merit of the theater is the active participation of students in its work. Thanks to the theater studio of the Pskov Polytechnic Institute, students have the opportunity to stage their own performances and even participate in the repertoire performances of the academic drama theater (in extras).
The theater constantly renews its repertoire, including classical and modern performances, and attracts the viewer with new creative discoveries and experiments.
