Duration of the excursion to Sergiyev Posad – about 7 hours.
Lev Tolstoy Yasnaya Polyana Estate. It is located 12 km southwest from Tula. The great Russian writer Lev Tolstoy was born and spent most of his life at Yasnaya Polyana, and is buried there. The museum contains the writer’s mansion, the school he founded for peasant children, and a park with Tolstoy’s grave.
The excursion to Yasnaya Polyana takes 12 hours.
Excursions to the Moscow countryside should be booked, preferably well in advance, through the Service Bureau in the hotel.
Theatres
The Bolshoi Theatre was designed by famed architect Joseph Bové. Its original name was the Imperial Bolshoi Theatre of Moscow. Its opera and ballet productions are famous all over the world. Among them are Tchaikovsky’s ballets Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty and the Nutcracker, Adam’s Giselle, Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet, and Khachaturian’s Spartacus; operas such as Mussorgsky’s Boris Godunov, Glinka’s A Life for the Tsar, and Rimsky-Korsakov’s The Tsar’s Bride, Borodin’s Prince Igor.
Moscow Art Theatre (MKhAT), founded in 1897 by Constantin Stanislavski and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko, is famous by Anton Chekhov’s four major works, beginning with The Seagull. This play has been so firmly associated with the Moscow Art Theatre that the seagull became its emblem. In 1987, the theatre split into two troupes: Chekhov Moscow Art Theatre and Gorky Moscow Art Theatre. Oleg Tabakov was Chechov Moscow Art Theatre’s artistic director since 2000. The theatre is presently located just off Tverskaya Street, within walking distance of Red Square.
The Maly Theatre is the oldest theatre in Russia. Its company was founded by the Moscow University in 1756. The theatre’s artistic director is the national artist of the USSR, Yu.M.Solomin. The theatre’s repertoire mainly consists of Russian and world classics, especially plays by A.N.Ostrovskii. The theatre is well-known for its staging of A.K.Tolstoi’s dramatic trilogy about the history of the Russian state: Tsar Ivan Groznyy, Tsar Fedor Ioannovich and Tsar Boris. Must-sees at the Maly Theatre are Griboedov’s Gore ot uma and Pravda – khorosho, a schast’e luchshe.
The Obraztsov Puppet Theatre (formerly the State Central Puppet Theatre), founded by Sergey Obraztsov. Children and grown-ups alike love its puppet shows. Here children find themselves in the wonderful world of fairy-tales, meet their favourite characters, and enjoy the performances to the utmost.
The Moscow State Circus (on Vernadsky Prospekt) is an auditorium which was opened in 1971 and can seat up to 3,400 people. Performances are held each day in the afternoon and evening. The company employs several hundred performers and tours as the "Great Moscow State Circus troupe". The circus consists of a cast of thirty-one performers, including clowns, trapeze artists, aerial acrobats, springboard acrobats and illusionists, but does not feature animals. Since 2012 its director is Edgar Zapashny, a famous wild-animal tamer from a well-known circus dynasty.
Moscow Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard named after Yuri Nikulin still remains the most popular one. Among the famous performers who worked there were the clowns Karandash, Oleg Popov, and Yury Nikulin, who managed the company for fifteen years and whose name it has borne since his passing in 1997. In front of the building is a remarkable statue of Nikulin, whose son Maxim has been in charge of the circus ever since his death.
Evening performances in all Moscow theatres begin at 19:00; matinees – at 12:00. Concert and circus shows begin at 19:30.
Notes
Andrei Rublev Museum of Early Russian Art, the – Центральный музей древнерусской культуры и искусства им. Андрея Рублева
Annunciation Cathedral, the – Благовещенский собор
Archangel Cathedral, the – Архангельский собор
Assumption Cathedral, the – Успенский собор
Bell Tower of Ivan the Great, the – Колокольня Ивана Великого
Cathedral Square – Соборная Площадь
Christ the Savior Cathedral – Храм Христа Спасителя
Church of All Saints – Церковь Всех Святых (На Кулишках)
Church of the Ascension of Christ in Kolomenskoye – Церковь Вознесения в Коломенском
Church of the Deposition of the Robe, the – Церковь Ризположения
Donskoy Monastery, the – Донской монастырь
Faceted Palace, the – Грановитая палата
Fili Church – Церковь Покрова в Филях (Церковь Покрова Пресвятой Богородицы в Филях)
Grand Prince Andrew Bogolubsky – великий князь Андрей Боголюбский
Ivan the Red – Иван Красный
Ivan the Terrible – Иван Грозный
Iver God’s Mother Icon Chapel – Часовня Храма Иверской Иконы Божьей Матери
Kazan God’ Mother Icon Cathedral – Храм Казанской Иконы Божьей Матери
Kolomenskoye Estate-Museum, the – музей-усадьба Коломенское
Kuskovo Estate and the Ceramics Museum, the – усадьба Кусково и музей керамики
Moscow State University – Московский Государственный Университет имени М.В. Ломоносова (МГУ)
Museum of Oriental Art, the – музей Востока
Novodevichy Convent – Новодевичий монастырь
Old English Embassy, the – старое английское посольство
Palace of Congresses, the – Дворец Съездов
Patriarch’s Palace, the – Патриаршие палаты
Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, the – Музей Изобразительных Искусств имени А.С. Пушкина
Roman boyar residence – Палаты бояр Романовых
Sergiev Posad History and Art Museum-Preserve, the – Историко-художественный музей-заповедник в Сергиевом Посаде
St. Basil’s Cathedral (Cathedral of the Intercession) – Храм Василия Блаженного (Покровский Собор)
State Department Store (the Upper Trade Rows) – Государственный Универсальный Магазин, ГУМ (Верхние Торговые Ряды)
Time of Troubles, the – Смутное время, или Смута (период в истории России с 1598 по 1613 год, по другим данным по 1618 год, ознаменованный стихийными бедствиями, гражданской войной, русско-польской и русско-шведской войнами, тяжелейшим государственно-политическим и социально-экономическим кризисом)
Tretyakov Art Gallery, the – Третьяковская галерея
Triumph Arch – Триумфальная Арка
Tsar-Bell, the – Царь-колокол
Tsar-Cannon, the – Царь-пушка
Victory Park on Poklonnaya Hill – Парк Победы на Поклонной горе
Vocabulary
1. A sweeping panorama of – обширная панорама чего-либо
2. A tour of memorable places – тур по памятным местам
3. A treasure-trove of culture and art – сокровищница культуры и искусства
4. An eminent figure in cultural life – выдающаяся персона в культурной жизни
5. An inseparable component of – неотделимая часть чего-либо
6. The intersection of trade routes – пересечение торговых путей
7. To acquaint smb. with smth. – знакомить кого-либо с чем-либо
8. To be booked in advance – быть заранее заказанным (зарезервированным)
9. To be embellished with – быть украшенным чем-либо
10. To be exquisitely decorated – быть изысканно (изящно) украшенным
11. To be mentioned in chronicles – быть упомянутым в летописях
