Theatre and revolution in 1917: The case of the Petrograd State Theatres

Abstract

This article examines the relationship between the Petrograd State Theatres, the Provisional Government, and the Bolsheviks in the first months of revolution. It illustrates how the close pre‐revolutionary ties that existed between the State Theatres and the Russian government were consolidated throughout the course of 1917 by the general consent of revolutionary leaders and artists alike. The Provisional Government and the Bolsheviks both moved immediately to assert their authority over the former Imperial Theatres; and the artists, demanding organisational autonomy but not complete independence from the state, supported the new authorities (notwithstanding initial hostility to the Bolsheviks). It is suggested that the events of 1917 thus confirmed a fundamental symbiosis between Russian governments and the State Theatres ‐ governments recognised the political utility of preserving the tsarist cultural heritage as part of the state apparatus, while artists acknowledged that precious subsidies and privileges depended on continuing cooperation with the state.