In Irkutsk, Russia, there aren’t many notable tourist spots, but looking at a map on Google Map, I discovered an opera house named “Drama Theatre”!
I thought the theater in the country town was … anyway, but when I went there, it was a real opera theater with gold decorations and a beautiful auditorium with chandelier, which was as authentic as Western opera theater, so I was surprised!
I would like to report the details of this theater called “Irkutsk Academic Drama Theatre” in English including how to purchase tickets.
※This article was written before the virus scandal. This will be updated.
Index
Location of Drama Theatre
You can find Drama Theatre in Irkutsk here. It is located near the Angara River along the main street of Irkutsk “Karl Marx Street”. It is close to the downtown area, but there are no bus or tram stops nearby, so the access is a bit inconvenient. …。
It was built in 1897 on Karl Marx Street, but major repairs were carried out between 1997 and 1999.
Dr 100 ama Theatre is one of the oldest theaters in Eastern Siberia.
entrance hall
When you enter from the main entrance, there is an entrance hall, and the ticket is torn here. Doors open 30 minutes before curtain time.
This time, I bought a ticket at the ticket window of the theater, and even though it is in the highest 1st category, the price is as low as 200 RUB (≠ 340 yen)! It’s cheap enough to worry about, but it’s also unique to Russia where prices are cheap!
I will introduce how to buy tickets in detail later.
foyer and bar
You can check the ticket at the foyer. Although it is a stark lobby with only a narrow passage along the entrance door, it is a lobby with elegant and calm colors.
On the other hand, there was a western-style foyer upstairs. This one doesn’t have a color based on light blue and gorgeous decorations, but it has a refined beauty.
There was a room with a bar upstairs and it was crowded before the performance started. There are two counters, but there is a long line during the intermission!
Since the menu is only in Russian, it is refreshing, but when I judged from the illustration, the cake is 100 RUB ~ 200 RUB, the coffee and soft drink is 50 RUB ~ 250 RUB, and the alcohol is no check, but the ticket price is cheap, and the price of this kind of bar is much cheaper than that of the Western Opera House.
A gorgeous and beautiful auditorium!
Now, when I went to the seats, I was surprised at the gorgeous auditorium! The white walls are decorated with gold, and the chairs and damasks are all in masu flower color (Masuhara Nairo), giving them a refined beauty!
The gold decorations are on the ceiling, and the chandelier is quite impressive. It is a bit sad that there are no frescoes or portraits.
It is a small theater with a capacity of about 550, but it is an authentic horseshoe Opera House. The orchestra pit seems to be equipped properly, but the performance this time is not live, so the pit is closed.
There are three balcony seats in addition to the flat dirt floor. It is quite a large scale structure for an opera house with a capacity of about 500.
top balcony
My seat this time is the balcony on the top floor. Because I bought it just before, there were no good seats at all, and I ended up with such a narrow seat … (The reason will be described later.). I can’t see half of the stage unless I get out of my body, but for some reason even this is the worst cost performance seat in the 1st category …。
The seat specifications are different from usual, and only the balcony on the stage side has low cushioning. However, it is not fixed, so it is convenient if you want to keep some distance from the next seat.
Also, the balcony on the top floor has regular seats in the center. It may be comfortable to sit on, but it is also difficult to see the stage due to the pillars, so the ticket price category is the cheapest.
In this performance, this area is empty all the time! It’s probably not very popular.
A little disappointing program …
Now, this program is called “Crazy Day, or The Marriage of Figaro”. Although it is named “The Marriage of Figaro” it is not a historical work of Mozart but a modern comedy.
I went there because I thought it would be fun to see the promotion, but the stage set was a child’s play and there wasn’t much music, so it was a bit disappointing …。 It was not inferior to the play performed at a small theater in Ikebukuro by young people who want to go to theater.
I couldn’t understand what they were saying because there were no subtitles, and it was so boring that I passed the second half after the break and left!
According to word of mouth, the classical works of ballet and opera are performed at this Drama Theatre, so I would like to visit again at a different time.
The performance program is 50 RUB. You can buy it from the staff in the lobby. You don’t seem to get change, so you need small bills to buy it.
Performance tickets that cannot be purchased on HP
By the way, regarding Drama Theatre, when I tried to purchase a ticket on the official website in advance, I got an error at the credit card payment counter! I tried 6 cards in total, VISA, Master and JCB, but I couldn’t pay for any of them.
It seems that the credit card issued in Japan is not ready yet.
So I decided to buy the ticket at the ticket office attached to the venue. Drama Theatre’s ticket office (KACCA) is located on the other side of the theater building in a yellow building facing the park. It is open from 12: 00 ~ 18: 30.
When you enter, there is a window where you can buy a ticket. If it is a simple English word, it seems to be understood. I showed the screen of my smartphone with the date and time of the performance written on it, and I said 1 ticket please, and it was understood.
There is a seat map at the window, and you can make detailed seat reservations. It’s easy because you just say “I want seats around here.” and point at it!
Can I go in for preview?
For that reason, the contents of the performance were not great, but the interior of Irkutsk Drama Theatre was beautiful and impressive. Since the ticket price is cheap, I felt that it is enough to enter for preview without watching the performance. If you have a chance, please!
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