M.: Type. T-va I.D. Sytina, 1918. 20 p., ill. 20.4x15 cm. In the publisher's illustrated chromolithographed cover. The famous "Sytin" popular print book for children.
Parsley- one of the characters of Russian folk puppet shows. Depicted in a red shirt, canvas pants and a pointed cap with a tassel; traditionally Petrushka is a glove doll (glove doll). Petrushka is “a nickname for a farce doll, a Russian jester, a joker, a wit in a red caftan and in a red cap; the whole clownish, puppet den is also called Petrushka. The origin of this doll, which appeared in Russia in the second half of the 19th century, has not been reliably clarified. Although in Russia Petrushki have been known since the 17th century. Russian puppeteers used marionettes (puppet theater on strings) and parsleys (glove puppets). Until the 19th century, preference was given to Petrushka, by the end of the century - puppets, as parsley-makers teamed up with organ-grinders. Petrushka’s appearance is by no means Russian: he has exaggeratedly large hands and a head, facial features are hypertrophied, the face itself (carved from wood) is treated with a special vegetable liquid, which makes it look darker; large almond-shaped eyes and a huge hooked nose, completely white eyeballs and a dark iris, due to which Petrushka's eyes appear black. He inherited Petrushka's appearance from the Italian Pulcinella. Many mistakenly believe that Petrushka's wide-open mouth is a smile, but this is not so; being a negative character, Petrushka constantly stretches his lips in a grin. He has four fingers on his hands (a possible symbol that Petrushka is not a person, but some character from another world). A typical misconception - to venerate Petrushka as an extremely ancient and primordially Russian hero, is based on his archetypal character traits, which originated in the depths of human ideas about oneself. Parsley is the younger relative of the older ones: the Neapolitan Pulcinella, the French Polichinelle, the English Punch, the Turkish Karagöz, the German Hanswurst and Kasperle, the Spanish Don Cristobal and others, despite the fact that they are all theatrical puppets and are controlled with the help of threads. The only analogue of Petrushka in terms of driving technique is the Guignol glove doll, which appeared in Lyon at the beginning of the 19th century. The famous Russian writer Maxim Gorky, describing the image of Petrushka, wrote the following:
“... a figure was created ... known to all nations ...
This is the invincible hero of the folk puppet comedy, he defeats everyone and everything: the police, the priests, even the devil and death, he himself remains immortal. In a rude and naive way, the working people embodied themselves and their belief that in the end it is they who will overcome everything and everyone. The parsley screen consisted of three frames fastened with staples and covered with chintz. She was placed directly on the ground and hid the puppeteer. The hurdy-gurdy gathered the audience, and behind the screen the actor began to communicate with the audience through a beep (whistle). Later, with laughter and a reprise, he ran out himself, in a red cap and with a long nose. The organ-grinder sometimes became Petrushka's partner: because of the squeaker, speech was not always intelligible, and he repeated Petrushka's phrases, carried on a dialogue. The comedy with Petrushka was played out at fairs and in booths. In Russia, only men "led" Petrushka. To make the voice louder and squeaky (this was necessary both for audibility at fair performances and for the special character of the character), they used a special beep inserted into the larynx. Petrushka's speech was supposed to be "piercing" and very fast. Until the middle of the 19th century in Russia, Petrushka did not yet have its current name. Most often, he was then called "Ivan Ratutu" or "Ivan Ratatouille" (which betrays the French roots of the doll). There is a version about the origin of the nickname Petrushka from the Ukrainian word “spade” (save). The current name came to Petrushka after the appearance among his many everyday scenes of the miniature “Petrushka and the policeman”, in which, during numerous attacks, the policeman says to Petrushka:
“You don’t even have a passport!”,
to which Petrushka proudly replies:
"There is! According to the passport, I am Pyotr Ivanovich Uksusov!
From some memoirs and diaries of the 1840s, it follows that Petrushka was called Pyotr Ivanovich Uksusov. The famous Russian puppeteer Sergei Obraztsov called Petrushka Petr Petrovich Uksusov (the story "Four Brothers") or Vanka Ratatuy. There were main plots: the treatment of Petrushka, training in the soldier's service, the scene with the bride, buying a horse and testing it. The stories were passed from actor to actor, by word of mouth. Not a single character in the Russian theater had the popularity equal to Petrushka. According to a widespread but unproven version, plays with the participation of Petrushka were still part of the repertoire of buffoons and consisted of humorous skits and dialogues. Each scene depicted Petrushka's fight with one or another character (the fights were carried out with the help of fists, sticks, etc.). Usually the performance began with the following plot: Petrushka decides to buy a horse, the musician calls a gypsy horse-dealer. Parsley examines the horse for a long time and bargains with the gypsy for a long time. Then Petrushka gets tired of bargaining, and instead of money, he beats the gypsy on the back for a long time, after which he ran away. Petrushka tries to get on a horse, which throws him off to the laughter of the audience. This could go on until the people laughed. Finally the horse runs away, leaving Petrushka lying dead. The doctor comes and asks Petrushka about his illnesses. It turns out that he is in pain. There is a fight between the Doctor and Petrushka, at the end of which Petrushka hits the enemy hard on the head with a club.
What kind of doctor are you? shouted Petrushka,- if you ask where it hurts? Why did you study? He himself must know where it hurts!
The quarter appears.
"Why did you kill the doctor?"
He answers:
“Because he doesn’t know his science well.”
After the interrogation, Petrushka beats the quarterly with a club on the head and kills him. A growling dog comes running. Parsley unsuccessfully asks for help from the audience and the musician, after which he flirted with the dog, promising to feed it with cat meat. The dog grabs him by the nose and drags him away, and Petrushka shouts:
- “Oh, my little head with a cap and a brush is gone!”
The music stops, which means the end of the show. If the audience liked it, they did not let the actors go, applauded, threw money, demanding continuation. Then they played a small scene "Petrushka's wedding." The bride is brought to Petrushka, he examined her the way they examine horses. He likes the bride, he does not want to wait for the wedding and begins to beg her to "sacrifice herself." From the stage where the bride “sacrifices herself”, the women left and took their children with them. According to some reports, another scene in which a clergyman was present was a great success. She did not get into any of the recorded texts, most likely, censorship removed her. There were scenes in which Petrushka did not participate. It was dancing and juggling with balls and sticks. Petrushka defeated all opponents, except for one - Death. In the last, final scene, Death took Petrushka with her. However, since Petrushka was used in the farce theater, it is natural that the performance was shown repeatedly and in different places. Thus, Petrushka, "dead" for one circle of spectators, "resurrected" for another. This gives rise to researchers to draw parallels between the image of Petrushka and many different pagan gods who endlessly died and resurrected.
Here is what Alexander Benois recalls about Petrushka:
“In fact, the first performances that I amused myself with were the performances of Petrushka. In any case, I remember Petrushka at the dacha, when we were still living in the Cavalry houses. A piercing squeal, laughter and some words are already heard from afar - all this is uttered by Petrushechnik through a special typewriter, which he put on his cheek (the same sound can be reproduced if you pinch both nostrils with your finger). Motley cotton screens are quickly set up, the “musician” puts his barrel organ on folding goats, the nasal, plaintive sounds it makes are tuned in a special way ... And then a tiny and very ugly little man appears above the screens. He has a huge nose, and on his head is a pointed hat with a red top. He is unusually mobile and nimble, his hands are tiny, but he gestures very expressively with them, he deftly threw his thin legs over the side of the screen. Immediately, Petrushka teases the organ grinder with stupid and impudent questions... Petrushka takes care of the terribly ugly Akulina Petrovna, he proposes to her, she agrees, and both make a kind of wedding walk, holding tightly by the arm. But a rival appears - this is a gallant mustachioed policeman, and Akulina apparently gives him preference. Petrushka, in a rage, beats the guardian of order, for which he falls into the soldiers. But the soldier's teaching and discipline are not given to him, he continues to commit excesses and, oh horror, kills his non-commissioned officer. Here is an unexpected interlude. For no reason, they emerge two, in bright costumes of dressed, black -fashioned arap. Each has a stick in their hands, which they deftly toss up, throw to each other, and, finally, loudly clobber each other on wooden heads with it. The interlude is over. Again on the screen Petrushka. He became even more fidgety, even more mobile, he enters into impudent altercations with the organ grinder, squeals, giggles, but the fatal denouement immediately comes. Suddenly, next to Petrushka, a figure gathered into a shaggy lump appears. Petrushka is extremely interested in her. In a nasal tone, he asks the musician what it is, the musician replies: "it's a lamb." Petrushka is delighted, strokes the "learned, soaked" lamb and sits on it. The “lamb” obediently makes two or three rounds with its rider along the side of the screen, but then suddenly throws it off, straightens up and, oh horror, this is not a lamb at all, but the devil himself. Horned, all overgrown with black hair, with a hooked nose and a long red tongue protruding from a toothy mouth. The devil butts Petrushka and ruthlessly pats him, so that the arms and legs dangle in all directions, and then drags him into the underworld. Three more times the pitiful body of Petrushka takes off from some bowels high, high, and then only his death cry is heard and an “eerie” silence sets in ... " Life of the Artist. Memories. Volume 2. Alexander Benois.
Occurs in almost all cities, suburbs and villages of Russia.
STEP ONE
Characters:
Parsley, Musician, Gypsy and horse.
A Musician with a barrel-organ, his comrade, the chief comedian, appears in the distance; he has screens, a box of dolls. Petrushka, still sitting in the box, sings in a shrill voice:
Along Piterskaya
Along the path
Petenka is going
Yes with a bell!
The screens are laid out; all this time, Petrushka sings and shouts whatever comes into his head. Finally, he himself appears and, with a loud laugh, sits down on the edge of the screen.
Parsley. Ha ha ha! Dear gentlemen! So I came here, not in a tarantass-rydvan, but right on an airplane - in an oak box! My respect to you, gentlemen! I am your old friend - Petrushka. I came to amuse you, amuse you and congratulate you on the holiday! ( Refers to the Musician.) The gypsy didn't come?
Musician. It's been waiting for you for a long time.
Parsley. Call here!
Appears Gypsy with a horse.
Gypsy. Hello, Musya Shishel-Myshel! I came to you myself as a horse breeder! How are you doing? Do you get sick often? I am Gypsy Mora from the gypsy choir, I sing in bass, eat pineapple, drink kvass!
Parsley. That's what, grimy mug, Humpty-Baltai! Don't talk in vain, but speak your mind!
Gypsy. My acquaintance, the Englishman Rock, stuck a pitchfork in his side, roams all over Europe, spends the night at Khitrovka ... Shishel-Myshel, I heard from someone that you need a good horse.
Parsley. Yes, brother, I have been busy for a long time - I want to start a race runner. But do you have a good horse?
Gypsy. Such a horse, master, that without a yoke drive four whips ... and then only in the wind! Not a horse, but fire: it runs - it trembles, stumbles, but if it falls - it does not rise!
Parsley. Oh oh oh! Fathers-matchmakers! That's the horse! And what suit?
Gypsy. Brown, bay, thin on the sides, with spots, without a tail and mane - shaggy, crooked in one eye, the same as you - humpbacked. Arabian breed, with a certificate.
Parsley. This is the one I need... And how much does it cost?
Gypsy. For whom four thousand, and to you, through an acquaintance, I will give two hundred rubles!
Parsley. What are you, grimy, expensively broken? Or didn't sleep?
Gypsy. My request does not fit into your nose! Speak to your heart's content: how much do you give?
Parsley. Ruble and a quarter.
Gypsy. What kind of a wolf are you, howl with you! Give the kids extra milk.
Parsley. Well, here's a hundred rubles for you.
Gypsy. Not enough, the gentleman is good! Add more.
Parsley. Do you want a hundred and fifty and two kopecks?
Gypsy. There is nothing to do, for a dear friend and an earring from an ear! Give me money.
Parsley. Wait, I'm going to get my wallet now. (He leaves and quickly returns with a ratchet club, begins to beat the Gypsy on the head.) Here's a hundred, here's a hundred and fifty! (Gypsy runs away.) Hey, hey! Grimy! Wait - two more pennies left! (Laughs and turns to the Musician.) Musician, did I buy a horse cheaply?
Musician. What better! He just acted dishonestly - he didn’t give two kopecks!
Parsley (laughs). And the horse is good - very young! Not a single tooth in my mouth! (Sits on horseback.) Farewell, Musician, goodbye, gentlemen, guys!
Musician. Where are you, Pyotr Ivanovich, going?
Parsley. From here, through Vologda and Arkhangelsk, I will go straight to the Caucasus - to drink Kakhetian kvass. (The horse kicks.) Whoa! Whoa! Sivka-burka! Hush, damn! And then I will fall and become humpbacked for a whole century! (The horse throws Petrushka behind the screen.) Oh, fathers! My little head is gone! My death is coming!.. Musician. And where is your death, Pyotra Ivanovich?
Parsley. Oh oh oh! Behind the Zemstvo outpost, digging potatoes in the garden!
Musician. Do not grieve: it will not come soon.
Parsley. Yes, in twenty years, by Pokrov, I’ll probably die ... Call the doctor as soon as possible!
Musician. I'll bring it up in a moment.
ACT TWO
Parsley, Musician and Doctor.
Parsley (lies and groans).
Let the grave punish me
I am not afraid of my death!
Included Doctor.
Doctor. Who is sick here? What kind of noise is this? Do not moan, do not scream, but lie quietly until death! I am a famous doctor-healer, a pharmacist from under the Stone Bridge. Obstetrician and farrier, the whole Zatsepsky shaft knows me! Occurred all sciences in Italy and much further; performed operations in Paris and here closer to us! I have a talent, I know how to heal: whoever comes to me on his feet, he will go from me on crutches or be taken on wood. Where is the patient?
Parsley. Father horse-doctor, pharmacist from under the bridge! Have pity on me, orphan girl, don’t ruin me: don’t take it on firewood, and it’s better in a stroller.
Doctor. Well, tell the news about your pain: inside or outside? Here or here? (Feels Petrushka.)
Parsley. Here, between the shoulder blades, near the pad, and the right bridge aches.
Doctor. Here?
Parsley. Lower and more to the left!
Doctor. Here?
Parsley. Up to the right!
Doctor. What an idiot you are! With you, you will lose all peace. Down, then up! Get up and tell me!
Parsley. Father doctor, I don’t have the strength to get up! Apparently, my pain dragged on for forty years. Oh oh! Now I'll get up and show you. (He rises with difficulty, leaves and returns with a stick, with which he beats the Doctor on the head, neck and back.) Here it breaks! Here it groans! In this place it hurts, but here it hurts!
The Doctor runs away.
ACT THREE
Parsley, Musician and German.
German (singing and dancing). Tra-la-la! Tra-la-la!
Appears Parsley.
Parsley. Musician, what is this stuffed animal?
Musician. And this is a foreign person, he does not speak Russian, ask him in French.
Parsley. How is that in French?
Musician. Parlay-vu-france, Alphonse Rallet.
Parsley. Hey mister musyu! Parlay-vu-france? (The German bows silently.) What the hell! He doesn't know a damn thing about French! It must be a German from the Green Isles. Let me ask him in German... Sprechen-see-deutsch, Ivan Andreevich?
German. Oh me! Their sprehe gut.
Parsley. Who is being burned here? Speak Moscow.
German. Main liber ger, you?
Parsley. What kind of kvass did you find here? Here, I'll bring you a glass! (He beats the German with a stick, he runs away.) Musician, where did the German go? He must have run to drink some kvass... Let me go and grab a glass!
Musician. Wait, he'll be back in a moment, it's probably him who wants to treat you.
Parsley. That is good! And while I sing a song. (Sings, sadly shaking his head.)"In the evening in the rainy autumn ..." (A German appears, hits Petrushka on the head with a stick and quickly disappears.) What a curiosity this is, brother Musician: as if a mosquito flew and touched me on the back of the head with its wing! (The German appears again and bows.) Aha! So Sprechen-zee-deutsch is back! Musician, why can't he see the bottle, but some kind of stick?
Musician. This is his corkscrew.
Parsley. Good corkscrew! Here I am now corkscrewing them! (He snatches a stick from the German and beats him on the head several times, the German falls on the barrier.)
Musician. What have you done, villain! After all, you killed him.
Parsley. Bought? Why do I need it? If you want, I'll give it to you for free - completely with tripe and bones.
Musician. What is he to me? You're going to get sued with him!
Parsley. Well, I'll sell it on the market. (She puts the German on her back, turns around with him in all directions and shouts.) Pigs! Pigs! Who needs it, I'll sell it cheap! .. (Hides.)
ACT FOUR
Parsley, Musician and later Corporal.
Parsley(dancing, singing).
Everyone knows me for the grip,
At least I'm ready to swear to you -
From Varvarka to Arbat
And to the Presnensky Ponds!..
Appears Corporal, Parsley is instantly hidden.
Corporal. Musician, where did Petrushka hide?
Musician. I can't know, Mr. Corporal! Went left, or maybe turned right.
Only the head of Petrushka is shown from behind the screen.
Parsley. Musician, tell him I've gone to Paris...
Corporal (turns quickly and grabs Petrushka). Here I'll show you, a swindler, Paris - you'll get rid of it quickly! You are all rowdy here and rude to noble people! You scream, yell, you don’t give peace to the whole of Moscow! Here, my dear, I will take you as a soldier without a term! .. You will start to drive frogs out from under my guns.
Parsley. Your frying pan, mister guard-corporal! What kind of soldier am I - a cripple with a hump? The nose is hooked, the head is a knot, and the box itself! And then I have no backbone!
Corporal. You're lying! Where is your hump?
Parsley. I lost my hump on Trubnaya Square!
Corporal. This won't get rid of me! Here's a gun for you, stand in front!
Parsley. It's not a gun, it's a stick!
Corporal. Fools are first taught with a stick, and then with a gun. Attention! Equal! K but-oh-oh-gee!
Parsley. Oops, fleas bite!
Corporal. Listen to the command: on the shoulder!
Parsley. Oooh, it hurts so hot!
Corporal. Right shoulder forward!
Parsley(hitting him with a stick). Here's to you, here!
Corporal. What are you doing, fool? Do not get you the next rank.
Parsley. I stumbled a little, Mr. Corporal! ..
Corporal. Hear the command: circle, march! (Petrushka walks behind the Corporal.) Left, right! One, two!
Parsley. Damn curly! (Hits Corporal on the back of the head.) Three, four, five, six! Go brush your hair?
The corporal runs away.
ACT FIVE
Parsley, Musician and mongrel.
Parsley. Ha ha ha! Cleverly I, Musician, served? Received the rank of ensign of the reserve!
Musician. What is better? Now you, Pyotr Ivanovich, should also think about the wedding... Prepare your dowry.
Parsley. I have a rich dowry: all things are good - five caftans with brand new patches, three crumpled hats, an arshin and a half of canvas, a horse on three legs, without a tail, an onion and a soldier's button in the barn ... There is a teapot without a lid with one handle, and he is given for repair!
Musician. Dowry important! You will live to the fullest!
A big shaggy one jumps out dog and with an angry bark rushes at Petrushka.
Parsley (smacks). Shavochka! Shavochka-kudlavochka! .. (The dog grabs him by the caftan.) Where are you, outcast? Stop, stop! You'll tear your official uniform. Oh boy, it hurts! Shavochka, darling! Let's go live with me - I'll feed you cat meat! (The dog rushes and grabs him by the nose.) Ay-ay! Doves, brother-in-laws! Step up, folks! Don't let the dog die! Disappear, my daring little head, with a cap and a brush!
The dog pulls Petrushka and drags him by the nose.
This hero was called Petrushka, Pyotr Ivanovich Uksusov, Vanka Ratatuy. He became the main character of the Russian folk puppet theater. The parsley comedy has been very popular and extremely widespread since the end of the 18th century. Petrushechniks performed at fairs, festivities, showing their uncomplicated comedy several times a day. The Petrushka Theater itself was simple. The most common was the "walking" Petrushka.
The "theater" consisted of a folding light screen, a set of puppets placed in a box, a hurdy-gurdy (or violin), as well as the puppeteer himself and his assistant musician. In any place and at any time, moving from city to city, they put up their "theater" in the open air on the street. And here he is, a little lively man with a long nose, jumps to the edge of the screen and begins to speak in a sharp, shrill voice. And for this, the puppeteer-comedian had to put a small device on the tongue, consisting of two bone plates, inside of which a narrow strip of linen ribbon was strengthened.
The extraordinary love of the people for their puppet hero was explained in different ways: some believed that the reason for this was the topicality and satirical orientation of the parsley comedy; others believed that the simplicity, comprehensibility and accessibility of the theater to any age and class made it so popular.
The performance at the Petrushka Theater consisted of separate scenes, but in each of them the participation of the main character, Petrushka, was obligatory. The main scenes of the traditional comedy about Petrushka were the following: Petrushka's exit, the scene with the bride, buying a horse and testing it, Petrushka's treatment, training him for military service (sometimes the scene with the quarter, master) and the final scene. At first, laughter or a song was heard from behind the screen, and Petrushka immediately appeared on the screen. He bowed and congratulated the audience on the holiday. Thus the show began. He was dressed in a red shirt, plush trousers tucked into smart boots, and wore a cap on his head. Often, Petrushka was also endowed with a hump, or even two.
The peculiarity of the Petrushka theater was that the audience did not enjoy getting to know the new work, but from how they played the long-known comedy. All attention was focused on the shades of the game, on the movements of Petrushka, on the dexterity and skill of the parsley. There were always two heroes on the screen: Petrushka and someone else. And the reason is simple: the parsley maker could only control two dolls at the same time, holding each of them in his hand. And the introduction of additional characters in the scene, of course, required more puppeteers. The musician also played an important role in the Petrushka Theater. He not only accompanied the action with music, but also participated in the dialogue - he was Petrushka's interlocutor. The composition of the parsley comedy could also include pantomime scenes not related to the action of the comedy. Thus, the Petrushka Theater is known, where pantomime was shown with the participation of "puppets representing different nationalities." They all sang and danced, while Petrushka at that time sat on the edge of the screen and sang "Along Pavement Street ...". In other performances, there was a dance of two araps. But, despite all the intercalations and pantomimes, Petrushka remained the only main character in this peculiar theater. Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky in his “Diary of a Writer” for January 1876 says this about the performance of Petrushka in the St. Petersburg club of artists: “Children and their fathers stood in a solid crowd and watched the immortal folk comedy, and really, it was almost the most fun on the whole holiday. Tell me, why is Petrushka so funny, why do you certainly have fun, looking at him, everyone has fun, both children and old people?
It is believed that the birthplace of modern puppet theater is India and Ancient China. Later, this type of democratic art was brought by itinerant artists, possibly gypsies, to ancient Greece, and from there it spread throughout Europe. It is not known for certain when puppeteers appeared in our country, but the Russian folk theater Petrushka was very popular with people of all ages and classes for about three centuries.
background
Researchers believe that in Russia there were 3 types:
- puppet, in which the puppets were controlled with the help of threads;
- Petrushka Theater - with figurines of characters put on the puppeteer's fingers;
- nativity scene - a theater in which dolls were motionlessly fixed on rods and moved along slots made in a special box.
The latter option was popular only in the southern regions of the country and in Siberia, and until the end of the 19th century, puppets, due to the complexity of the figurines, were used quite rarely. Thus, speaking about Russian pre-revolutionary puppet shows, they most often have in Petrushka. It got its name from the name of the protagonist of funny performances played right on the street.
Who is Petrushka
This nickname was given to a glove puppet, which was usually dressed in a red shirt, canvas pants and a pointed cap with a tassel. It is still not entirely clear why her physiognomy was traditionally given "non-Russian" features. In particular, he has an excessively large head and hands, a swarthy face, huge almond-shaped eyes, and most likely, Petrushka's appearance is due to the fact that he was created in the image and likeness of the Italian Pulcinella.
As for the nature of the character, then he is also a swindler, to whom no laws are written.
Appearance of Petrushka
In Russia, a glove puppet with strange features and named Ivan Ratyutu appeared in the 17th century. However, it received its greatest distribution and its final name only 200 years later. By the way, Petrushka himself introduced himself as Pyotr Ivanovich (sometimes Petrovich) Uksusov.
Description of the theater at an early stage
In the 17th century, performances were played without a screen. More precisely, the traditional Petrushka theater assumed the participation of only one actor, who tied a skirt to his belt. A hoop was sewn to its hem, lifting which, the puppeteer was hidden from prying eyes. He could move his arms freely and imagine scenes with the participation of two characters. At the same time, the comedian almost always worked in tandem with the bear leader and also performed the functions of a clown.
Description of the theater after the middle of the 19th century
From the 1840s, screens began to be used. It consisted of three frames, which were fastened with staples and tightened with chintz. She was placed directly on the ground, and she hid the puppeteer. An obligatory attribute, without which it was impossible to imagine the Petrushka Theater, was a hurdy-gurdy. Her sounds invited the audience, and behind the screen, the comedian communicated with the audience through a special whistle. During the performance, he could run out to the audience with a long nose and a red cap. At the same time, the organ grinder became his partner, and together they acted out comical scenes.
puppeteers
The Petrushka Theater, whose history has not been fully studied, was considered purely masculine. To make the puppeteer's voice more squeaky and loud, a special whistle-beep was used, which was inserted into the larynx. In addition, the puppeteer tried to speak very quickly and laugh disgustingly at his every joke.
Plots
The plays of the theater (Petrushka was their main, but not the only hero) were rather monotonous. The main plots are: treatment and training for a soldier's service, a date with the bride, buying and testing a horse. Scenes followed one after another in a certain order. At the same time, the duration of the performance depended on how long the audience paid their attention to this street performance.
The action took place in the following sequence:
- Petrushka decides to buy a horse from a gypsy horse-dealer. He negotiated with the seller for a long time. Then this occupation bothers him, and he beats the gypsy, who runs away.
- Petrushka tries to get on the horse, but the horse throws him off and goes after the horse-dealer, leaving the cunning man lying motionless.
- The doctor comes. He asks Petrushka about his illness. It turns out that he has a thousand diseases. The doctor and Petrushka fight because the patient calls the doctor rude. The bully hits the medic hard on the head with a baton.
- The quarterly appears and asks Petrushka why he killed the doctor. Plut replies that he "does not know his science well." Then Petrushka beats the quarterman with a club and kills him. The dog comes running. Petrushka turns to the public and asks her for help. He then tries to appease the dog and promises to feed her cat meat. The dog grabs Petrusha by the nose and drags her away. With this the performance ended and the audience dispersed.
"Petrushka's wedding"
Sometimes, usually during Maslenitsa and other festivities, the performance, at the request of the public, could go on even longer. Then they played the scene "Petrushka's Wedding". Her story was crude and frivolous. Petrushka was brought a bride, whom he examined as if it were a horse. After he agreed to marry, long persuasion of the bride began to "sacrifice herself" before the wedding. From that moment on, the spectators left the performance, taking the children away. The remaining men listened with delight to Petrushka's greasy jokes.
There was also a scene with a priest or deacon. However, due to censorship considerations, it was not included in any of the collections where the texts of the performances with Petrushka were recorded.
"Death"
Among the characters of the Petrushka Theater was one of the most sinister, who defeated the main character. It was Death, who, after a verbal skirmish, took Petrushka with her. However, the hero soon resurrected in another place. This circumstance was the reason that some researchers began to find a connection between Petrushka and pagan deities, who endlessly died and were reborn here and there.
Puppet theaters in Moscow
Before the October Revolution, there were no such permanent cultural institutions, and performances were staged by solo artists on the streets or in booths, or they were invited to private houses in order to entertain guests. The first real puppet theaters in Moscow appeared in the early 1930s. The most famous of them eventually became the largest in the world. This is the theater. S. Obraztsova. It is located at: st. Sadovaya-Samotechnaya, 3. In addition to it, at about the same time, the Moscow Puppet Theater appeared in the capital, originally created to popularize children's literature. He toured the country and introduced viewers to new works by Soviet authors written specifically for the younger generation.
Later, other puppet theaters in Moscow appeared: "Albatross", "Firebird", "Fairytale", "Chamber" and others. In them you can watch not only children's performances, but also performances specially created for adults.
To preserve the traditions of Russian street performances for children and adults, Andrey Shavel and artist Valentina Smirnova organized a new creative team. He received the name of the Russian folk theater "Petrushka" and made his debut in 1989 in the city of Fresino.
The theater puts on performances lasting 30 minutes right on the street and tries not to deviate from the traditional scenarios of farce performances.
The emergence of the Petrushka theater is connected with the desire of its creators to preserve the best that was in the street mass art of past centuries.
Performances are also played indoors. In such cases, the audience is also introduced to the history of Petrushka and the Russian farce theater. In their work, the actors use props that are an exact copy of the screens and dolls that their predecessors used to entertain the public on the streets of Russian cities 150-200 years ago.
Now you know how the puppet Russian folk theater arose. Parsley is still of interest to children today, so be sure to take them to some performance in a farce style.
In folk art was also known puppet theater: marionette theater(in it, the dolls were controlled with the help of threads), Petrushka theater with glove puppets (the puppets were put on the puppeteer's fingers) and nativity scene(in it, the dolls were motionlessly fixed on the rods and moved along the slots in the boxes).
The Petrushka Theater was especially beloved by the people. In the 19th century, the Petrushka Theater was the most popular and widespread type of puppet theater in Russia. It consisted of a light folding screen, a box with several dolls (the number of characters is usually from 7 to 20), a hurdy-gurdy and small props (sticks or ratchet clubs, rolling pins, etc.). The theater of Petrushka did not know the scenery. The puppeteer, accompanied by a musician, usually an organ grinder, went from court to court and gave traditional performances about Petrushka. It could always be seen during festivities, at fairs. The main character was Petrushka, after whom the theater is named. This hero was also called Pyotr Ivanovich Uksusov, Pyotr Petrovich Samovarov, etc. It arose under the influence of the Italian puppet theater Pulcinello, with which the Italians often performed in St. Petersburg and other cities.
In the Petrushka Theater, separate satirical scenes were presented. A.M. Gorky noted that "the invincible puppet hero defeated everyone and everything: priests, the police, the devil and death. He himself remained immortal." one
Here is how D.A. Rovinsky's performance of the Petrushka Theater, which he witnessed:
“This comedy is being played in Moscow, near Novinsky. [...] Its content is very simple: at first Petrushka appears, lies all sorts of nonsense in verse, burr and nasal in his nose, - the conversation is conducted by means of a typewriter, attached to the sky, over the tongue, just like The Gypsy appears, offers Petrushka a horse, Petrushka examines it, and receives kicks from the horse now in the nose, now in the belly, the whole comedy is filled with jerks and kicks, they constitute the most essential and most ridiculous part for spectators. Bargaining in progress, - Gypsy speaks without a typewriter, in a bass voice. After a long auction, Petrushka buys a horse; Gypsy leaves. Petrushka sits on his purchase; the purchase hits him front and back, throws Petrushka and runs away, leaving him dead on the stage. A plaintive howl follows Parsley and lamentations for the untimely death of a good fellow.The Doctor comes:
Where does it hurt?
Here!
And here?
It turns out that Petrushka is in pain. But when the Doctor reaches the tender spot, Petrushka jumps up and taps him on the ear; The Doctor fights back, a fight begins, a stick appears from somewhere, with which Petrushka finally calms the Doctor.
What kind of Doctor are you, - Petrushka shouts to him, - if you ask where it hurts? What did you study for? You must know where it hurts!
A few more minutes - the Quarterly, or, in a puppet style, “fatal fiter” appears. Since a dead body lies on the stage, Petrushka is subjected to a strict interrogation (treble):
Why did you kill the Doctor?
Answer (on the nose):
Then, that he knows his science poorly - he looks at the beaten man, what he does not see, and he also asks him.
Word for word, - apparently, the interrogation of Fatal Petrushka does not like it. He seizes the former stick, and a fight begins, which ends with the destruction and expulsion of the Fatal, to the general delight of the spectators; this puppet protest against the police usually makes a real sensation in the public.
The play, it would seem, ended; but what to do with Petrushka? And then a wooden Poodle Dog, pasted over the tail and legs with shreds of whipped cotton wool, runs into the stage, and starts barking with all his urine (the bark is attached at the bottom of the husky).
Shavochka-darling, - Petrushka caresses her, - let's go live with me, I'll feed you cat meat.
But Shavochka grabs Petrushka by the nose for no reason; Parsley aside, she holds his hand, he takes the other, she again holds his nose; Finally, Petrushka takes a shameful flight. And so the comedy ends. If there are many spectators and Petrushkin's matchmaker, i.e. the chief comedian will be given vodka, then after that a special interlude is presented called Petrushka's wedding. There is no plot in it, but there is a lot of action. Petrushka brings the bride Varushka; he examines her in the manner of a horse. Petrushka liked Varyushka very much, and he could not bear to wait for the wedding, which is why he began to beg her: “Sacrifice yourself, Varyushka!” Then the final scene takes place, in which the fair sex cannot be present. This is the real and “latest end” of the show; then Petrushka goes to the outdoor stage of the booth to lie all sorts of nonsense and invite the audience to a new performance.
In the intervals between the actions of the play, dances of two Arapok are usually presented, sometimes a whole interlude about a Lady who was stung by a snake (Eve?); here, finally, the game of two Pagliacs with balls and a stick is shown. The latter comes out with experienced puppeteers extremely deftly and funny: the doll has no body, but only a simple skirt is faked, to which an empty cardboard head is sewn on top, and hands, also empty, from the sides. The puppeteer sticks the index finger into the doll's head, and the first and third fingers into the hands; he usually puts a puppet on each arm, and in this way acts with two puppets at once. In puppet comedy there is always a hurdy-gurdy, which replaced the old classical bagpipe, harp and whistle; the organ grinder at the same time serves as a “push”, i.e. enters into conversations with Petrushka, asks him questions and urges him to continue his lies without stopping.
Like scientist bears, puppets were once part of the buffoon repertoire. Folk puppeteers, leading a wandering lifestyle, played out their merry performances wherever people gathered. In the 19th century, Petrushka (Peter Ivanovich Uksusov, aka Vanka Ratatouy) became the main character of the Russian folk puppet theater throughout the country. A dense crowd of spectators invariably gathered around this character.
Petrushka's traveling theater was the most common: the puppeteer, with his assistant musician and the necessary equipment (a folding screen, a set of puppets, musical instruments) moved from fair to fair, earning bread and travel. Another type of this entertainment was represented by city organ grinders, who walked mainly only along the streets of their city and its environs. In addition, a puppet show with Petrushka often took place in booths as one of the numbers in the mixed program.
The puppeteers usually mastered their skills so well that the audience had the illusion that Petrushka was really a living person, and not a doll. In general, Petrushka managed to win truly popular love, but the reasons for the popularity of this character are very different: from the “plainness” of scenes with his participation to their satirical, topical component.
The content of performances with Petrushka varied depending on the place and time they were held, however, there were scenes and techniques common to all performances, since the comedy about Petrushka was usually transmitted from performer to performer only orally. The Petrushka Theater in the middle of the 19th century included obligatory scenes (the main part of the comedy), and a number of secondary ones, the number, content and order of which were determined by the puppeteer himself at his discretion, depending on his abilities, talent, local tradition, and so on. The main scenes with Petrushka were as follows: Petrushka's exit, the scene with the bride, the purchase of a horse, Petrushka's treatment, his training as a soldier, and the finale. The appearance of Petrushka usually began with his unexpected appearance from behind a screen. Petrushka's outfit consisted of a red shirt, plush pants tucked into boots, and a red cap. His distinguishing features were a hump and a long nose.
Jumping out in front of the audience, Petrushka introduced himself (“I am Petrushka, Petrushka, a cheerful little boy! I drink wine without measure, I am always cheerful and sing ...”). Before starting the performance itself, this character had lively conversations with the audience on any topic; sometimes, in order to create the appearance of a relaxed conversation, the puppeteers hired special “pushed” who from the crowd had a free conversation with parsley. Then Petrushka's adventures began, which started with his intention to marry. His puppet bride appeared, in the face of which various characteristic features of her time were often comically played out, for example, urban customs and manners, a village girl's ignorance of urban fashion, and a guy flaunting his metropolitan habits.
After the marriage story, there usually came a scene where our hero buys a horse, which turned out to be not at all as good as the gypsy seller painted it. The stubborn horse throws Petrushka down and beats him with a hoof, he begins to moan loudly and call for the doctor, and then one of the constant heroes of Petrushka's comedy appears - a doctor who can say to himself like this: “People are brought to me on their feet, but from me they are being driven on drogs. ". This is followed by a funny episode, beloved by the public, of searching for a sore spot and a squabble between Petrushka and a doctor, as a result of which he, on the very “doctor-pharmacist”, demonstrates exactly where the horse hit him.
Almost any performance with the participation of Petrushka included scenes of training the "soldier's article", during which he comically performed combat commands and rifle techniques. A comical effect was also achieved when the hero allegedly did not hear the commands given to him (for example, to the corporal’s command “Keep it straight!”, He asked again: “What is it? Matryona Petrovna?”). Well, at the very end of the performance, according to tradition, Petrushka falls into the "underworld", that is, some character (hell, dog, ram) drags him down, behind the screen, but only so that our hero will "resurrect" again at the beginning of the next performance .
At the same time, the degree of social sharpness of Petrushka's comedy varied depending on the place and time of the performance; for this, a skilled puppeteer could sharpen any moments of the performance and smooth out others during the performance. For example, if a comedy was staged for a single company, then Petrushka's jokes became more obscene and the plot concerned mainly his relationship with his bride; if the performance was in front of peasants or the urban poor, then the scene of interrogation and reprisal of Petrushka over a policeman became very relevant. Thus, Petrushka could express popular protest, but the puppeteer did not always have such an opportunity, and some scenes were waiting in the wings in front of a narrow circle of spectators.
The Petrushka Theater could not exist without a good musician who performed three main functions: accompanied the action by playing a musical instrument; temporarily participated in the puppet action, talking with Petrushka; acted as an intermediary between the public and the puppets.
Puppet comedy with the participation of comic heroes has its roots in Italy and France, and the performances of foreign puppeteers influenced the Petrushka theater, but in Russia Petrushka became a popular favorite, incorporating Russian folklore features.
Performances with the participation of Petrushka were always perceived as a holiday and gathered a large number of people around them, however, by the beginning of the 20th century, this entertainment gradually faded away and Petrushka ceased to be the main character of the fair, he was replaced by other folk amusements. Only after 1917 was Petrushka briefly able to gain fame.
(The article was prepared based on materials: A. Nekrylov "Russian folk city holidays, entertainment and spectacles. The end of the 18th - beginning of the 20th century")
On the illustration "Petrushka", 1882. Solomatkin Leonid Ivanovich (1837-1883)
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