9.1. Read the text to find out. What made the unique style of the Vakhtangov Theatre? In this review you'll learn about the history and traditions of the renowned Vakhtangov Theatre. To begin with, here is a short biography of its founder. Yevgeny Vakhtangov (1883 - 1922) was a stage director and producer who played a leading role in the Russian theatre of the 20 century. Vakhtangov was born in Vladikavkaz, Russia. He joined the Moscow Art Theatre as an actor in 1907 and became a chief of its Third Studio in 1914. In 1921 Vakhtangov started rehearsals in his final production: Carlo Gozzi's play Princess Turandot. The opening night was at the beginning of 1922 but Vakhtangov couldn't attend as he was seriously ill. The performance was a tremendous 168 1) cloakroom ['klaukrum] 2) foyer ['forer] o programme ['praugram] 6) opera glasses [opra gla:siz] h part of a theatre on the left with a definition or pom where actors put on their costum area on which the performance a line of seats a way down from back to front the area of downstairs seate success, so that its enthusiastic spectators forgot the cold and hunger of Russian 1920s. they shouted: "Bravo, Vakhtangov!" Konstantin Stanislavsky, a famous reformer of Russian theatre, whom Vakhtangov regarded as his teacher, praised the play's cast: "Over the 20-odd years that have passed since the establishment of the Moscow Art Theatre (founded in 1898 by Stanislavsky and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko) there have been few such victories" he told the actors. The performance of Princess Turandot marked the birth of a new Moscow Theatre which was given Vakhtangov's name shortly after his death. The troupe expressed its credo: "Without Vakhtangov - With Vakhtangov!" the Vakhtangov Theatre has always been distinguished by striking forms, improvisation, a symbolic manner of performance and deep psychological insight into the characters in the plays. Vakhtangov's influence spread throughout the theatre world to actors and directors he had worked with, including Yu. Zavadsky, R. Simonov, B. Zakhava, B. Shchukin and many others. In the Theatre, a long-established tradition has been established to begin each season with the cheerful story of Princess Turandot. Since 1922, the story of the erratic, capricious and stony-hearted princess and the riddles she sets for her admirer, Prince Kalaf, to solve remains as captivating, witty, impassioned and happy a tale as it was decades ago. In 2006 the performance was inhibited by the decision of the Artistic Board of the theatre. For 90 years, the Vakhtangov Theatre has put on good seasons and bad. For a very long time, it had fantastic success: tickets for performances were always sold out, and the troupe frequently went on tour to other countries. That success mostly belonged to the theatre's chief stage director, great actor, student and follower of Yevgeny Vakhtangov, Ruben Simonov (1899 - 1968). He was an artistic director of the theatre up to 1968 After Simonov's death, the Vakhtangov Theatre was headed by his son Yevgeny Simonov (1925 - 1994), a talented stage director. During this period, there were such outstanding productions as The Irkutsk Story by A. Arbuzov with M. Ulyanov and Yu. Borisova in the leading roles; Little Tragedies by A. Pushkin; and Rosa and the Cross by A. Blok, etc. After some caustic articles about the low quality of the repertoire and productions, Simonov was discharged. The theatre began to decay; its repertoire and stage directors changed frequently, actors came and went. The theatre staged a large number of weak and dull performances. All those problems drove audiences away. A new artistic director and leading actor of the theatre, Mikhail Ulyanov (1927 - 2007) began to invite directors from other theatres to collaborate with the theatre. For instance, Roman Viktyuk staged a monumental production based on L. Tolstoy's novel Anna Karenina and the elegant comedy I Don't Know You Any More, Darling by A. de Benedetti. Another guest director, Pyotr Fomenko, staged the historical play Our Father the Tsar by F. Gorenstein. The most successful production of the Vakhtangov Theatre has been Fomenko's performance of A. Ostrovsky's play Innocent Victims. The action takes place in the theatre's snack bar as one of the play's characters says, "We are actors, we belong to a cafeteria". The play, whose cast includes all the theatre company's stars, has received various awards and was named the best production of 1994. Yulia Borisova was awarded a top prize for her leading role, Lyubov' Kruchinina. All Moscow's theatergoers wanted to see the play. But it wasn't so easy to visit, as the theatre's cafeteria can only seat 80 spectators. Fortunately, the play was videotaped and shown on television, so millions of people managed to see it.Gradually, spectators have returned to the theatre. A talented stage director, Vladimir Ivanov, staged a few magnificent productions such as The Uncle's Dream by F. Dostoevsky, the Tsar's Hunt by L. Zorin, the operetta Mam'zelle Nitouche by F. Herve, etc. Another gifted stage director, A. Gorban', staged the play Following Two Hares... by M. Startsky. This production has been stunningly successful among spectators. In 2009 a well-known Lithuanian stage director Rimas Tuminas became an artistic director of the Vakhtangov Theatre. He had staged a lot of plays in Lithuanian and had a few productions in the Vakhtangov Theatre (e.g. The Inspector General (Revizor) by N. Gogol, Uncle Vanya by A. Chekhov, The Masquerade by M. Lermontov, and Troilus and Cressida by W. Shakespeare). The 89th season of the Vakhtangov Theatre started with the first night of A. Chekhov's play, Uncle Vanya, about people whose lives slip away in the Russian countryside. The cast of the play includes some leading actors of the theatre: S. Makovetsky, V. Simonov, A. Dubrovskaya, and others. For the 90*h anniversary year of the Theatre, the play Wharf was staged. Metaphorically speaking, an anniversary is the dock or shore to which the ship 'theatre' is moored. The dates 60, 70, 80 and 90 are inscribed on the side of this ship. Actors of different ages and characters are passengers on it. The legendary cast of the theatre, including Yu. Borisova, Yu. Yakovlev, V. Etush, V. Lanovoy, Y. Knyazev and others, is on the bridge. Together they are combined in a crew or friendly theatrical family. Each actor in this play has its own theme, character and scene. "Wharf is a certain temple, railway station where people meet, part, fall in love, recollect" - said Tuminas to the troupe during the opening of a new season. The first night of the performance took place on the 11th , 12* and 13th of November 2012. 9.4. Answer the questions. What production became Vakhtangov's tremendous success? What was the credo of the Vakhtangov's troupe? How do you understand it? Why was Yevgeny Simonov discharged? Who began to invite directors from other theatres and why? What plays did Rimas Tuminas stage in the Vakhtangov Theatre? What performance was staged celebrating the 90*h anniversary year of the theatre? How can it be described? Have you ever visited the Vakhtangov Theatre? If you have, what productions do you visit? 9.5. Use the word combinations in bold to complete the sentences. The Cirque du Soleil shows always A lot of theatergoers attended _of Innocent Victims by A. Ostrovsky. 3. This prosperous company after the global economic and financial crisis. 4. The Zoological Society of London WWF and publishes the Living Planet Index. In 1900, Max Planck formulated the hypothesis that the quantum theory. The films of Ingmar Bergman demonstrated people's inner world. The great painting Black Square_ Kazimir Malevich. Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace in Great Britain. Nowadays, the Vakhtangov Theatre is one of the best and oldest Russian theatres ever, with its inimitable style, magnificent productions, brilliant cast and long traditions. The mixture of these unique elements brought fame to the theatre that was once founded by a great stage director Yevgeny Vakhtangov.