Unit 18 Bolshoi Theatre Restoration

1 Introduction 2 interface

1.1 Read the text title and hypothesize what the text is about. Write down your hypothesis.

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1.5 What do you know concerning this issue? List your ideas in the table left column “I know”.

I know that…	I have learnt that…

1.6 If you know answers to these questions write them down in the space given after each question.

	When was the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow inaugurated?
	Who constructed the present building of the Bolshoi Theater?
	What were the first years of the project devoted to?
	How was the problem of providing the theatre with extra working areas solved?
	What spoiled the unique acoustics of the Bolshoi auditorium?
	How was each restored element of interior decoration examined?
	What architectural styles does the Audience hall represent?

1.7 Circle in the list the words and expressions you know. Write down their translation in the table and calculate the percentage of your lexical competence.

	to inaugurate			five-tiered
	to fold up			a wooden pile
	an overhaul			to subside
	a constant scrutiny			a backstage area
	badly dilapidated			an orchestra pit
	a rehearsal room			forestage
	a formal reception			a suite of halls
	an auditorium			a box

The Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow has long been seen as one of Russia’s symbols. Designed by the architect Joseph Bové, it was inaugurated on 18 January 1825. The Bolshoi Ballet and Bolshoi Opera are amongst the oldest and most renowned ballet and opera companies in the world. In fact, the theater is the second largest opera stage in Europe, only La Scala is larger than Bolshoi.

Bolshoi Theater’s building represents classical Russian architecture. The neoclassical building impresses with its stature and size, it is considered an architectural masterpiece of Russia. The facade of the building is spectacular with astonishing precision elements and carved statues.

The present building of the Bolshoi Theater was constructed by architect Albert Kavos after the previous building burned down, and opened on August 20, 1856. During World War II, the theatre was damaged by a bomb, but it was immediately repaired. By the 1990s, over 60 per cent of the building was in a very grave condition, having decayed greatly since its last repair works. Time attacked the theater from both construction and decorative perspectives.

In 2005 when experts first examined the Bolshoi, they discovered that the building could collapse, fold up like a house of cards at any moment. Various renovation schemes were suggested: from a superficial overhaul to a total reconstruction of the existing building. The project was eventually chosen and approved by the Theatre Company, architects, public figures in the arts etc. The restoration was to involve the Theatre’s public spaces and a cardinal reconstruction of the stagehouse, plus the addition of new, underground space. As a protected monument, moreover, the building’s historical appearance had to be preserved. The Theatre’s rehabilitation, therefore, came under constant scrutiny from state authorities and public alike.

The reconstruction and refurbishment of the Bolshoi Theatre Main stage was a colossal, world-level project. The first years of the project were devoted to a scrupulous examination of the building itself, the scanning of its position in space, the condition of its walls and foundations. And only in the autumn of 2009, after numerous preliminary studies, was the huge and badly dilapidated Bolshoi Theatre building transferred from temporary supports to a permanent foundation and large-scale restoration work initiated in the Theatre itself.

In the two years that followed, record volumes of work were achieved in the renovation and reconstruction of the Theatre. Over three and a half thousand specialists worked at the Theatre each day, of which numbers upwards of a thousand were restorers. And another thousand labored in restoration workshops outside the Theatre.

In addition to the restoration of the Theatre’s historical appearance both inside and out, the project designers were also faced by the problem of providing it with extra working areas. This was successfully solved by the creation of additional underground space. The theater’s space has been more than doubled to almost 780,000 square feet as the building expanded about 79 feet deep into the ground. Thanks to the expansion of the Theatre’s existing underground spaces (under stagehouse) and to the construction of new underground space under Theatre Square, this has been achieved without any change to the Theatre’s external appearance.

Thus the Theatre has acquired badly needed new space, including an underground concert and rehearsal room, which has inherited its name from the Beethoven Hall, under the Theatre lobby. This hall is a multi-functional space which can be used in different ways. It consists of five main platforms: the central platform is the stage itself, two platforms to the right and left of it can be used either to increase the size of the stage or as audience space. The two remaining platforms form the main space of the auditorium. All of the platforms can be raised to foyer level to create a space for holding formal receptions. Apart from this concert hall and its auxiliary premises, the rest of the underground space under Theatre Square accommodates a large number of technical, service and staff rooms.

The five-tiered Bolshoi auditorium was well-known for its acoustics. The interior was trimmed in wood, and it was said that the theater itself was a musical instrument – one of the most acoustically perfect buildings in the world. But even those acoustics have fallen into disrepair. One of the reasons is the Neglinka River, which eroded the ground under the theater. After it was enclosed into a pipe and the ground waters disappeared, the wooden piles of the building’s foundation started to rot under the influence of air. In 1920, one of the main hall’s walls subsided during a performance, the doors jammed, and the audience was evacuated. It forced architect and engineer Ivan Rerberg, in the late 1920s, to place a concrete plate under the main auditorium, reminiscent of a mushroom’s shape. However, the concrete spoiled the acoustics. So, special attention was paid to the restoration of the legendary acoustics. International experts did extensive research work and made sure all their technical recommendations were carried out to the letter.

State of the art machinery has been installed in the stagehouse. The Bolshoi Theatre Main stage now consists of seven two-tier rising and descending platforms. These platforms can easily change their positions, thus the stage can become horizontal, raked or stepped. The stage and backstage area can be united which creates a stage space of incredible depth. The rehearsal stage mirrors the main stage directly below, so the dancers know the exact size of the space. New upper stage equipment, remotely controlled by computer, makes it possible to derive maximum use from lighting, sound and visual effects. Cutting edge rigs have been installed for the deployment of lanterns, special effects apparatus and acoustics.

The orchestra pit has been provided with extra space under the forestage. This makes it one of the biggest orchestra pits in the world seating up to 130 musicians, which is necessary for the performance of such large-scale works as, for instance, Wagner operas.

The Bolshoi has to a large extent reacquired its authentic historical appearance, lost during the years of the Soviet power. The auditorium and part of its suite of halls now look as they were originally conceived by Bolshoi Theatre architect Alberto Cavos. While the former imperial foyer halls have been given back their 1895 decor, this was the year they were redecorated for Emperor Nicholas II’s coronation celebrations. Each reproduced or restored element of interior decoration was made the object of a special project for which separate documentation was collected based on numerous archival and on-site researches.

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