7 September 2025 is the 155th anniversary of the birth of Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin. In his eventful life, the theatre occupied a special place, there was a period when Kuprin himself served as a prompter and actor "on the way out". In the year of the anniversary, Alexandrinsky Theatre once again turns to the writer's legacy.
"At rest" - is a performance-memory, performance-play about the old theatre, about actors who had roles and sounding names, about faithful prompters. The main characters came out of the story that gave the title to the production, first published in 1902, and this is not the first time they have appeared at the Alexandrinsky Theatre. More than a hundred years ago, in the season of 1907-1908, Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin himself brought to the Directorate of the Imperial Theatres a play based on this story. The premiere of the play "At Rest" took place on the Alexandrinsky stage in February 1908.
Tragedian Mercury Slavyanov-Raisky, operetta tenor Lidin-Baidarov, old prompter "Stakanych" in Kuprin's texts lead a poor, dreary life, dwell in the Asylum for elderly infirm artists.
Today at the Alexandrinsky Theatre, the audience enters their world after a brief prologue in the secret space of the backstage passages. The first guide into the world of the old theatre is Igor Volkov, People's Artist of Russia, who plays the role of Mercury Slavyanov-Raisky. In the role of Lidin-Baidarov - Sergei Mardar, prompter "Stakanych" - Honoured Artist of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic Evgeny Kapitonov.
The theatre itself turns out to be a shelter for the actors in the play. But now they live not on the stage, but in the parterre, covered with white covers. This is what the auditorium is like when the audience leaves. They remember successes and failures, quarrel and reconcile violently, prepare new roles. Their world is permeable, characters from other works by Kuprin appear. But the theatre here invariably governs life, makes up its essence, builds plots. And they are cut off suddenly.
The element of play, irony and love for the past of one's profession, the power of the theatre and the twists and turns of an artist's fate become the main content of this performance, eccentric, funny and sad at the same time.
* The performance begins with a prologue in the "backstage" space of the theater, which lasts 7-10 minutes. The audience watches the prologue standing up, and then moves to the traditional 7-tier auditorium.
Premiere - 25 October 2025
