The drama of E. Rostand in Tomsk theatre in late 19th - early 20th centuries (on the material of newspapers Sibirsky Vestnik and Sibirskaya Zhizn')

The article analyses the particularities of the reception of Rostand's plays in Tomsk newspapers at the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries. Eight articles of different volume and content devoted to the staging of the five most famous Rostand's plays ("La Princesse Lointaine", "Les Romanesques", "Cyrano de Bergerac", "L'Aiglon" and "Chantecler") appeared in local newspapers Sibirsky Vestnik and Sibirskaya Zhizn during the period from 1896 to 1910. Observations and statements of Tomsk critics formed the image of the French playwright, a famous representative of neo-romanticism in the eyes of the local audience (readers), and developed a taste to the theatre in whole. The first two reviews published on the pages of Sibirsky Vestnik in 1896 devoted to the staging of the play "La Princesse Lointaine" in E.I. Korolev's theatre were rather negative. Tomsk critics emphasized strangeness and abnormality of Rostand's play and denied any ethic and aesthetic value of his work. The staging of the comedy "Les Romanesques" was described in the next article which appeared in the same newspaper in 1900. The local reviewer mentioned all the values of the play and praised the performance of the artists, who played the leads. In 1901 "Cyrano de Bergerac" was shown on the Tomsk scene. The review of the performance was presented by the journalist of Sibirskaya Zhizn who analyzed the performance without much enthusiasm, but appreciated the central idea of the work. The drama "L'Aiglon" appeared in the repertory of Tomsk theatre in 1902. Two Tomsk newspapers - Sibirsky Vestnik and Sibirskaya Zhizn - reviewed the performance. Both reviewers concluded that Rostand's play was of no interest to local audience because of the specificity of its content. "Chantecler" became the last play of Rostand shown in Tomsk in 1910. Despite the poor acting the performance was rather a success thanks to presentable dress and well-acted crowd scenes. The analysis of the material published in Tomsk newspapers shows that the theatre of French neo-romanticism was quite popular in Tomsk at the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries. Although in the first reviews Rostand's play "La Princesse Lointaine" was received negatively and even sarcastically, gradually the neo-romantic foundation of his work was appreciated by the local critics and even took their favorable view.

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