The Natalya Sats Musical Theater
is one of the most acclaimed and well-known theaters in Moscow with an
illustrious and dramatic history. It is forever inter-woven with classical music
history as the birthplace of Prokofiev's Peter
and the Wolf.
The theater
was the brainchild of Natalya Sats, known as "the mother of all theaters
in the world." She devoted her life to children's theatre as a producer
and director and pioneered a combination of music, dance, acrobatics,
drama and multimedia. Known as "synthesized theater," it has become
the dominant style of children's theater throughout the world. In 1918, when Sats was only fifteen years old,
she oversaw the founding of the first theatre in Russia specifically
for children, the Mossoviet Central Children's Theatre.
She played a
huge part in developing a repertoire for children's theatre, not least by
prompting Prokofiev to compose Peter and
the Wolf. As the wife of Marshal Tukhachevsky, one of the eight top Red
Army commanders purged by Stalin in 1937, Sats was condemned to sixteen years
in the gulag, but returned to Moscow in the late
fifties with her enthusiasm for the theatre undimmed.
Her
indefatigable energy triumphed and the theatre that bears her name was founded
in 1965, developing a strong repertoire from close work with contemporary
composers. Sats' ambition was both to create new productions specifically aimed
at a younger audience, and to present the classics in a way that made them
accessible to children.
The theater's
symbol, the bluebird, represents child-like happiness. The exterior combines elements of a
medieval castle and modern design: the portals are adorned with sculptures
depicting characters from various fairytales. Special criers herald the
beginning of performances from balconies under the portals. Inside, costumed
characters entertain children before the show. Real birds sing in the aviary,
decorative fish swim in aquariums, and there is even a special room painted in
story-book style.
The repertoire
today reflects Sats plans and, alongside new versions of fairytales such as Puss
in Boots, Snow White and The Frog Princess, there are
also productions of “adult” operas like Madame Butterfly and Evgeniy Onegin and
bold new ballets like the Snow Maiden.
The company has an international reputation for the high quality of its
performers, and has discovered many
bright new talents and served as a springboard for their careers.