What types of plays do you like?

I like comedies most of all. I like to see people when they’re happy. In general, I like everything that can entertain. I think that when you don’t laugh at all – you don’t live!

Fetisov Eugene

Do young people in your country go to the theater in their free time?

I can’t say for everyone but to my mind young people don’t go to the theatre in their free time. They usually prefer going to the cinema and clubs to it.

Mamochkina Natalie

Are you a theatre-goer?

I can’t say that I’m a theatre-goer. But it doesn’t mean that I don’t like theatre at all. Sometimes when I have free time I can go to the theatre but only in that case when an interesting play is performed there and my favourite actors take part in it.

Muraeva Olga

How often do you go to the theatre? (a year, a month)

I go to the theatre once a year, because I’m not a theatre-goer and I think our Bryansk theatre is short on good plays.

Shashkina Sveta

Does theatre play any role in your life?

By all means, theatre has a beneficial effect on me. It develops my outlook, enriches my knowledge and it is simply a good way to spend an evening. I think theatre makes our life a little bit brighter.

Kovaleva Helen

What can make theatre as popular as movies?

I believe, the only thing that can popularize dramatic art is our passion for acting alive, our passion for pondering over our feelings and life problems, which theatre actors can make us do playing this or that character just before your eyes. It's a great experience to feel vividness and energy of actors who act for a limited audience. Theatre will be inferior to movies (in terms of its popularity) as long as we are not accustomed to experience the greatest feeling of being involved into the storm of emotions shared by the public in the auditorium.

Alexander Vinokurov

Why do people consider theatre a tedious thing?

I think, that happens because what people see at the theatre doesn’t always measure up to the expectations of those who come simply to entertain. They may consider theatre performances to be tedious and not so captivating as movies but, frankly speaking, I don’t share this opinion because theatre is really a great art that arouses our mind and soul.

Tanya Khokhlova

Does theatre have any advantages as compared to movies?

Frankly speaking, if I were to choose between theatre and cinema, I’d prefer cinema. But nevertheless I think that the main advantage of theatre as compared to movies is that you feel the energy of the actors playing on the stage. That’s really great.

Kate Zhuk

Is theatre necessary in our life?

In my opinion, theatre is of the same importance to people as other kinds of art. The fact that a play can tap deepest reaches of man’s spiritual life shows a person’s sense and sensibility, kind nature. I’m sure that people, who go to the theatre at least once a month, arouse their minds and souls what is really important for the right understanding of their lives.

Androsova Irene

What types of plays do you like?

What types of plays do I prefer? Well, in my opinion when you are at the theatre all plays seem to be beautiful if, of course, they are directed in a proper way. And for me it doesn’t matter whether it is a comedy or a drama because here, at the theatre, you have an opportunity of a first-hand experience. Of course you can say that you can have the same experience watching TV at home. Well, you may be right but I believe that when you are at the theatre all your feelings are more vivid, more striking, you feel yourself a part of what is going on the stage.

Kate Nosikova

Do young people in your country go to the theatre in their free time?

Yes they do but not as much as they visit cinemas unfortunately, as films are very popular with them. But for those who want to be highly cultured it is important to go to the theatres as much as to the cinemas during their free time.

Kukareko Olga

Nowadays they stage very many musicals. How do you find this tendency?

On the one hand musicals’ popularity is a good thing because many young people go there very often. They develop themselves and learn many interesting things, become more moral and edifying. Many today’ stars taking part in musicals and good advertisement supports such popularity. But on the other hand because of such popularity too many musicals are produced now and because of it quality and skill suffer.

Shelkunova Marina

What are the famous theatres in your country?

For decades the capital of our country has had a reputation as a city of theatres.Every evening the doors of Moscow theatres open to streams of theatre-goers.These theatres are: the Maly Theatre, the Bolshoi Theatre, the Moscow Art Theatre, the Musical Comedy Theatre, the Central Children's Theatre, the Variety Theatre, the Vakhtangov Theatre, the Taganka Theatre and others.A building of the Bolshoy Theatre stands in Theatre Square in Moscow's central quarter, not far from Kremlin. This is the leading Russian opera house with the best vocalists and
choreographers.

Makarkina Irene

Do you know anything from theatre history? Any honored actors?

The origins of dramatic art can be traced in different cultures of the world but the antique culture gave birth to the western theatre tradition and also some of the theatrical forms to emerge in the world - tragedy, comedy and satyr plays. The Roman culture borrowed Ancient Greece theatrical genres which became the foundation of dramatic art in Rome.

Generally speaking, Greek theatre and plays have had a lasting impact on Western drama and culture. It is in ancient Greece that the origin of western theatre is to be found. It developed from a state festival in Athens, honoring the god Dionysus. The Athenian city-state exported the festival to its numerous allies in order to promote a common identity.

As for honoured actors, I know several distinguished Russian headliners, for example, Nickolay Tsiskaridze, Ilze Liepa, Mihail Dyakov. All of them are the Bolshoi theatre big-name actors.

Yakubovsky Maxim

If you don’t like theatre is there anything that could make you go there?

If I don’t like theatre the only thing that can make me go there is the production of some play, that is performed by a famous director or some big name actors will take part there.

Ann Lapik

OUR COMMENTS

Now that we had our final class "Theater Talk" yesterday, December 15 2007, why not share our comments?!

I think noone will deny that the class was successful and everybody's performance was simply magnificent.
My thanks to everybody!
Not only were you perfectly ready but also, as the phrase learnt by you says, you "showed the marvels of artistic transformation" - you did good job as the students who learnt the material, you did some creative job and you performed well as actors.
And this class also helped us to get a little glimpse into one another's souls - and that is very important in the work of teachers and students.

So, you are welcome, you can post your comments here.

Our final class devoted to the theatre impressed me greatly! I learned a lot of new facts from the presentations devoted to the history of the theatre, to famous Russian theatres, to Globe theatre and avant-guard theatres.Though I’m not a theatre-goer, after this class I decided that if I had an opportunity I would visit all these famous theatres.
I think, Kate’s presentation devoted to Oleg Menshikov was very emotional and she made all of us interested in him as he is a charismatic personality and outstanding Russian actor. Though I’m not a fan of this actor, I also admire him and thanks to Kate’s presentation I learned a lot of new about Oleg Menshikov.
I really enjoyed watching our version of “Pygmalion” and I think all actors created true-to-life images, but Eugene as Higgins outshone everybody else.
This class left a deep and lasting impression on me.

Sveta Shashkina