The eighteenth December 1892, here in St. Petersburg, the Premier Performance of Tchajkovskij’s The Nutcracker (Щелкунчик) went on stage at the Mariinsky Theatre. Even though the reception at the time was not that good, the Nutcracker remains one of the most loved ballet ever composed. What I want to propose you, however, is not another день рождения, but a warm recommendation. During your stay here, both if you love ballets and if you rather never see one in your life, both if you’re a (self?)-esteemed intellectual or the earthliest person on Earth, you have to go to the Mariinsky.
“What is the Mariinsky?”
The Mariinsky Theatre was founded in 1860, and has since been Petersburg’s leading theatre. It hosted the premieres of some of the best-known Russian composers, like the above mentioned Nutcracker’s. The facade, white and green, recalls to mind the Hermitage, but it is the interior which will stick to your memory forever. Today – since 2013 – there’s also a second smaller theatre, the Mariinsky II, technologically perfect, right across the canal, and a Concert Hall, right next to it.
“Why would I want to go to the other locations?”
In case you miss the chance of buying the tickets, which, in fact, happens pretty often. I strongly recommend you to buy them right after the sale opens, exactly a month before the show. The tickets are not cheap, but then again, it is the same if you want to go to a ballet at La Scala, with the difference that in this case you do not travel back in time, to 1900 Russia. And without mentioning that you probably spend that amount of money every time you go out on Saturdays. But here we are flowing into the next section:
“Why should I listen to you?”
First of all, more than one Russian person recommended me this experience. The first week I was here, my roommate Sasha told me I had to do 3 things: visit Peterhof, visit the Hermitage, go to a ballet at the Mariisky. Unluckily (for me) Peterhof has to be visited during spring or summer, but the other two activities can be – and are even better when – done in winter. Second of all, a night at the Mariinsky is also one of the 20 experiences you have to do in Russia, according to the guide Lonely Planet (my trusted travel companion).
So, what are you waiting for?