Theatrical life of Kuznetsk in the late XIX - early XX century

The everyday life of the provincial cities of pre-revolutionary Russia is interesting from the point of view of the micro-historical analysis of the socio-cultural processes that took place at that time. One of its aspects is the consideration of past stories related to various activities of provincial residents. The focus of our attention is an attempt to explore the theatrical life of the county town of Kuznetsk, Tomsk province at the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries in the work of S.V. Ermakov "Theatrical life of Kuznetsk of the late 19th - early 20th century". The purpose of the review is to acquaint the scientific community with the monograph published in 2023, to show its strengths and weaknesses, to determine its place in the Kuznetsk local history. The source base of the work consists of archival documents from the collections of the GATO, the State Archive of Kuzbass in Novokuznetsk, the Novokuznetsk Museum of Local Lore, as well as a number of pre-revolutionary periodicals ("Tomsk Provincial Knowledge", "Siberian Life", "Siberian Bulletin", "Eastern Review", "Commemorative Books of the Tomsk province"). As S.V. Ermakov's research shows, despite the remoteness from cultural centers, theatrical life in the county Kuznetsk was quite active. It existed thanks to the local intelligentsia, which organized amateur troupes. The author identifies several cultural centers of Kuznetsk - the Noble (Public) Assembly, the Pushkin People's House, the Society of Lovers of Dramatic Art and the Kuznetsk County School. Classes in theater circles were an outlet for the educated part of the city, a departure from routine, monotonous everyday life, a kind of relaxing event, a way to diversify your life. Many performances and concerts were given for charity purposes. Yu.N. Kuibysheva, the mother of the famous Soviet party leader V.V. Kuibyshev and V.F. Bulgakov, the last secretary of L.N. Tolstoy, were active participants in the theatrical life of Kuznetsk. The reviewed publication has both advantages (published material, coverage of little-studied aspects of everyday life in pre-revolutionary Kuznetsk) and disadvantages (location of the material, style of presentation, description of the scientific apparatus). As a result, the conclusion is made about the importance of S.V. Ermakov's work for the study of the domestic, everyday and cultural history of pre-revolutionary Kuznetsk, as it told about the forgotten names of actors, patrons and theatergoers, and published a rich photographic material.