All About Saint Petersburg
Guide Sections
St Petersburg has always been renowned for its vibrant cultural life; music and drama have long been an integral component of the city's identity. Today, such traditional entertainment has been offset by the more hedonistic pleasures of the city's burgeoning club scene. Additionally, a wide range of cinemas show movies ranging from old Soviet classics tо modern Hollywood blockbusters.
Classical Music: Opera, Ballet, Symphony
This is a city of countless great composers—including Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov and Shostakovich—and possibly the most famous ballet troupe in the world: the Kirov Ballet. In the financially uncertain world of post-Soviet Russia, the city's cultural life has been hard-hit and many of it's music ensembles make money by heading out of Russia tо cash in on their excellent reputation. That said, St Petersburg remains one of the greatest cities in the world for lovers of classical music.
Foreigners may have some problems purchasing tickets for events, especially in more popular venues like the Mariinskii Theatre for which a dual-price system is in operation (visitors have tо pay more than twice the amount Russians do). Formerly known as the Kirov, this theatre is the jewel in the crown of the city's cultural life. Luxuriously outfitted, it hosts several major premieres every year and affluent tourists flock tо catch showings of major Russian pieces such as Swan Lake and The Nutcracker as well as performances of major works from the European canon.
For opera and ballet, your next best bet is the Mussorgsky Theatre on Arts Square, not quite as luxurious or prestigious as the Mariinskii but still worth a visit. Elsewhere, the Oktiabrskii Kontsertnii Zal ('October' Concert Hall) hosts performances in its large Soviet-era hall, but these are only tо a recorded soundtrack.
Symphony concerts can be attended at a variety of excellent venues, among them the Philharmonia on Arts Square and the Glinka Kapella just off Palace Square.
Smaller venues such as the Iusupov Theatre and the Hermitage Theatre (both former private theatres for the Imperial elite) offer more intimate performances.
The recently renovated Smolnyi Cathedral also hosts classical music performances.
Cinema
The Russian film industry is in a state of some disorder. Though it has produced the odd blockbuster in recent times such as The Barber of Siberia or the Brat movies, mainstream cinemas are Hollywood-dominated. The most obviously blockbuster cinema is the shiny Crystal Palace on Nevskii Prospekt (just follow the smell of popcorn). Barrikada shows pretty much the same range of films, but in a decidedly more elegant and spacious environment.
At the opposite end of the scale, Spartak is the best of the art-house bunch, showing both contemporary and older Russian movies along with art-house foreign imports.
Dom Kino is housed in an impressive Style Moderne building and shows both major Russian and Western films, as do the Khudozhestvennyi, which increasingly fails tо live up tо its name (which means ‘art'), and the Parisiana.
If you're looking tо catch up on some classics, you could try the Molodezhny (at the time of writing showing The Last Emperor) or the Leningrad cinema.
The bar/nightclub Fish Fabrique has also started showing films on a frequent basis, complete with English translation on headphones.
Clubs
The club scene in St Petersburg is a lively affair. From low-end discos tо glitzy strip-bars (of which there are many), there is a plethora of options tо suit the tastes of any clubber.
For techno/dance music you can head for the underground chill of Griboedov or the sparkling expanse (and expense) of Metro. There's also the huge Port nightclub and the smaller hangout Fish Fabrique.
For live music your best bets are Manhattan, Zoopark or Money Honey.
The city has a few gay venues, far and away the most popular of which is Club 69—a hedonistic and expensive mix popular among clientèle of all sexual orientations.
Jazz has a long history of popularity here and the city boasts both a string of well-known bands and a devoted and knowledgeable following. There are numerous venues: the Jazz Philharmonic Hall is something of an establishment and charges the highest prices. JFC Jazz Club is a small and nearly always packed venue notable for the enthusiasm of its crowd and the variety of music played: dixieland, Latin jazz, acid jazz…it's all here. There's also the seemingly underground Jimi Hendrix Blues Club, which caters to fans of blues music as well as straight jazz, plus the Neo Jazz Club, a smaller venue near the Summer Gardens.
The numerous strip clubs also deserve a mention: Tribunal Bar, Sahara, Marstall...the list goes on and on. They all offer varying degrees of...well, maybe it's best to find out for yourself.
Theatre
St Petersburg has a grand dramatic tradition and takes the theatrical arts very seriously. There are a huge variety of venues tо visit, offering a wide range of performances.
The premier venue is the Bolshoi Drama Theatre on the Fontanka canal, whose repertoire takes in a broad range of Russian material plus the occasional interpretation of Western works.
Located in a beautiful Rossi-designed auditorium, the Aleksandrinskii Theatre draws on the full canon of Russian and Soviet works.
The Malyi Drama Theatre is another popular option as is the Komissarzhevskaia Drama Theatre just off Palace Square. Both show mainly Russian works, the latter with a much more classical bent.
The Baltiiskii Dom hosts a number of the city's more progressive and innovative drama groups as well as a number of rock and pop concerts.
Copyright © 1999-2009 wcities.com All rights Reserved - Contact wcities to report incorrect information
- How to Plan FAQs TravelMusings Blog About TravelMuse Site Map Join us on: