Theatre journalism of Ilya Surguchev in the Stavropol press of the early 20th century

Ilya Surguchev (1881-1956), who later became a famous playwright and writer, manifested himself as a talented theater critic in Stavropol periodicals in the early 20th century. He wrote a large number of texts in different genres published in private sociopolitical newspapers. If during the First Russian revolution he sometimes considered the performances and plays through the prism of social events, later he abandoned this approach. Over time the young author developed certain principles of reflection in theatre reviews that allowed him to create a multifaceted picture in the context of dramatic and theatrical pursuits. The theatre journalism of the young author was implemented mainly in the genre of theatre reviews, less often in the genre of announcement, overview, correspondence or obituary. With rare exceptions, he wrote about cultural events in the city. The content analysis showed that a mandatory component in Surguchev's texts was evaluation of acting. The future author of dramaturgy closely observed the performance of the actors, and sometimes compared them with their colleagues from the capital. He also gave assessment of the play in the context of Russian and foreign literature, modern or classic. Surguchev, who had not created his plays by then (his first play "A Trading House" was published in 1912), was attentive to the work of his predecessors and to the literary process in general. In the period rich in literary pursuits and controversies, he put Leo Tolstoy above all and criticised modern symbolism. In the analysis of the plays, in modern scientific language, the author tended to determine their intertextual connections and to identify prototext. An important place in the theatre-critical heritage of Surguchev is the obituary on the death of the famous Russian actress Vera Komissarzhevskaya, written immediately after receiving the sad news in Stavropol. Surguchev, who previously paid tribute to the great talent of the actress, calling her a representative of Russian art which makes the glory of Russia abroad. "The fire of the genuine Holy fire of Prometheus faded" was the metaphor Surguchev used to convey the significance of the loss.

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