Saint Petersburg State Theatre Arts Academy
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Saint Petersburg Theatre Arts Academy, located in the very centre of the city, was established in 1779 and is the oldest and largest institution of its kind in Russia that trains and educates every possible professional needed in the field of contemporary theatre. During over two hundred years of history, the Academy evolved from realistic traditions of the Emperor's Theatre School to Vsevolod Meyerhold's workshop, world renowned stage director and faculty member of the Academy in the late teens of the XX century. Nowadays the Academy's principal approach is mainly based on Stanislavsky System, especially Method of Physical Actions and Method of Action Analysis, his later theatre technique, well known in Russia, however, not widespread overseas; system of actor's training also includes Meyerhold's Bio-mechanics. Thus, with true respect for classical school - a distinctive feature of Saint Petersburg's cultural landscape overall - the Academy manages to combine it with contemporary innovations based on main achievements of the Russian theatre in the 20th century. This is a unique feature of the Academy that majority of its faculty are working professionals, half being leading actors and artistic directors of the main Saint Petersburg theatres. This way the Academy remains in touch with current trends and skill requirements of a today theatre.
[edit] HISTORY
The foundation stone of theatre education in Russia was laid in Saint Petersburg in the 1740-s when the first "acting class" appeared in the curriculum of the Cadet Corps, a college for boys located in Menshikov Palace. Not long after that the institution widened its range of theatre majors offered to its scholars, and a Court Cadet Theatre, a forerunner of a contemporary School Theatre, was opened in February 1750. The first constant professional public state theatre - "Russian Theatre for Performing Tragedy and Comedy" - was instituted by Empress Elizabeth in 1756; its company consisting of Cadet Corps alumni. A Drama school was based in the Emperor's Theatre for a while, before it was separated into the State Theatre Institution in 1779 to become the first institution of its kind in Russia. A newly organised "Theatre School", a predecessor of the Theatre Arts Academy, was growing rapidly assimilating and uniting a number of theatre classes and schools independently existing in the city and was subsequently renamed the Petersburg Theatre College. The College has been reorganised several times. In fact, after the 1905 Revolution the name of the Petersburg Theatre College and its official status have been changed 8 times, until 1918, when "The School of Acting" under Leonid Vivien and "Stage Direction Courses" under Vsevolod Meyerhold were founded based on what was left from the pre-Revolutionary theatre institutions. In four years they were merged with smaller theatre institutions and continued the traditions of theatre education In Saint Petersburg under the new name of the Theatre Institute. From 1962 it was called Leningrad State Institute of Theatre, Music and Cinematography (LGITMiK). The Academy acquired its present name in 1993. The names of eminent professors who set forth educational principles of the Academy throughout the XX century have found a place in its history. Among them are Boris Sushkevich, who took part in "birth" of Stanislavsky System in the MXAT (Moscow Art Theatre) First Studio; Boris Zon, witness of Stanislavsky's intensive searching in the 30-s that resulted in advent of his late techniques - Method of Physical Actions and Method of Action Analysis; Georgy Tovstonogov, a chair-holder of Directing Department for 30 years and former Artistic Director of the Bolshoy (Gorky) Drama Theatre.
[edit] STRUCTURE OF THE ACADEMY
The The Academy now has an average annual roll of around 950 full-time students with faculty staff numbering over 200 professionals including doctors, professors, leading actors and artistic directors of the main city theatres. It consists of four departments - Drama Department, Puppetry Department, Set Design and Stage Technology Department, Theatre Studies Department - where students are trained in great variety of theatre majors and are given opportunity to become professionals in the following majors:
acting in drama directing in drama theatre acting/directing in musical theatre acting/directing in variety show TV and video-film directing acting in puppet theatre directing in puppet theatre set design in puppet theatre stage technology in puppet theatre set design stage technology theatre research (theatre critics) performing arts management
[edit] THE ACADEMY THEATRE
The Academy Theatre hosts public performances staged by students of the Academy throughout the education process. Its repertoire varies each year from 10 to 16 productions, and as a rule the Academy Theatre holds 150-180 public performances a year ranging from the second year presentations up to the final diploma productions. The best performances are moved to be staged in the leading theatres of Saint Petersburg: The Maly Drama Theatre, The Alexandrinsky Theatre, The Lensovet Theatre, etc.
