Entertainment in Russia
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Mariinsky Theatre
Home to the world-famous Kirov Ballet and Opera company, a visit here is a must, if only to delight in the sparkling glory of the interior. Use the website to book and pay for tickets in advance of your visit to the theatre and to the acoustically splendid new concert hall, which is nearby. The theatre-themed souvenirs are for sale in the Mariinsky gift shop. None of it is cheap, but where else can you get a ‘Property of Kirov Ballet’ T-shirt?
reviewed
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16 Tons
This club is widely believed to be the hottest live music venue in the capital, attracting top local and foreign bands, who almost always play to a packed house. The brassy English pub-restaurant downstairs has an excellent house-brewed bitter.
reviewed
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C
Hermitage Theatre
This austere neoclassical theatre – once the private theatre of the imperial family – stands on the site of the original Winter Palace of Peter I. At the behest of Catherine the Great, Giacomo Quarenghi designed the theatre to resemble an amphitheatre, with statues of Apollo and the Muses occupying the niches. During the Soviet period, this hall was used more often for lectures and such, but it reopened as a theatre in the 1980s. Appropriate for the setting, performances range from Tchaikovsky to Tchaikovsky. Some of the musical festivals also use this venue for performances.
reviewed
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Real Mccoy
This ‘bootlegger’s bar’ has walls plastered in old newspapers, two-for-one happy-hour specials (5pm to 8pm) and a dance floor crowded with expats. There is live jazz and rock music in the evenings (9pm Wednesday to Sunday) then, after 11pm, the serious drinking begins. The later it gets, the more they drink. The Real McCoy is considered to be the last of Moscow’s old-fashioned debauched and depraved dive bars, where women are invited to dance on the bar (preferably without a shirt on) and men are practically guaranteed to take home a new friend, if they are not too picky.
reviewed
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E
Night Flight
This continues to be one of Moscow's most popular spots for business travellers on expense accounts, despite - or because of - its dubious reputation. Indeed, it's hard to miss the crowds of working women hanging around this club. Nonetheless, the restaurant continues to receive rave reviews, thanks to Swedish ingredients and chefs. And the dance floor is always hopping. No cover charge for restaurant guests.
reviewed
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Tchaikovsky Concert Hall
Home to the famous State Philharmonic (Moskovsky Gosudarstvenny Akademichesky Filharmonia), the capital’s oldest symphony orchestra, the concert hall was established in 1921. It’s a huge auditorium, with seating for 1600 people. This is where you can expect to hear the Russian classics such as Stravinsky, Rachmaninov and Shostakovich, as well as other European favourites.
reviewed
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Sportland
Non-stop sports on three giant screens and countless smaller plasma TVs around the bar. You will undoubtedly be able to catch your team's big game here, no matter who your team might be. Otherwise, there is no reason to frequent this casino-bar, unless you enjoy glaring lights, blaring slot machines and greasy food. The Rbl500-cover charge gets subtracted from your bill.
reviewed
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Propaganda
This long-time favourite looks to be straight from the warehouse district, with exposed brick walls and pipe ceilings. It’s a café by day, but at night they clear the dance floor and let the DJ do his stuff. This is a gay-friendly place, especially on Sunday nights.
reviewed
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Datscha
If you are up for a night of bar-hopping, you can't do better than Dumskaya ul. Datscha is crammed into a crumbling, classical façade, along with three other hot spots for drinking and music. Shabby chic décor, cheap drinks and a strict 'no house or techno' policy.
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Bar 30/7
This slick bar on the Boulevard Ring is somewhere to see and be seen in Moscow. If you can snag a seat in the attached 'sun room' seating area, you will enjoy a lovely view of the boulevard promenade. Good luck, as the place gets packed on weekends.
reviewed
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Jazz Café
A hip and literally underground basement hangout with an extensive drinks and food menu (meals R200–550) and screenings of old black-and-white films. Live music most evenings (cover charge R100 to R300). Also boasts a large book and music shop.
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Tsely Mir
On Vasilevsky Island, this is a tranquil place where you can lounge on cushions on the floor and choose from 120 different types of tea; a pot for two starts from R180.
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People’s Bar & Grill
The preferred hang-out of Novosibirsk’s would-be rap stars and models. Descend the stairway opposite St Nicholas chapel.
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Philharmonia
Concerts here range from classical symphonies to Dixieland jazz. Ticket prices are between R100 and R450.
reviewed
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R-16
Booming nightclub with a big dance floor and attached lounge. It’s next to the Tokyo restaurant.
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Che Guevara
Has dancing or live music in a fun saloon-club with 1950s pin-ups and a commie-Cuba theme.
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Opera & Ballet Theatre
The main venue for classical dance and musical performances.
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Bolshoi Theatre
An evening at the Bolshoi is still one of Moscow’s most romantic and entertaining options, with an electric atmosphere in the glittering six-tier auditorium. Both the ballet and opera companies perform a range of Russian and foreign works here. After the collapse of the Soviet Union the Bolshoi was marred by politics, scandal and frequent turnover. Yet the show must go on – and it will. Unlike other theatres around Moscow, it is not possible to buy tickets to the Bolshoi at the teatralnaya kassa (theatre kiosk). In theory, tickets can be reserved by phone or over the internet, or (depending on the season) it is often possible to purchase tickets at the Bolshoi’s box…
reviewed
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Mariinsky Concert Hall
In April 2007, Mariinsky director Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky Theatre Symphony Orchestra opened the new Mariinsky Concert Hall – just in time for the annual Stars of White Nights Festival. The new building is a magnificent multifaceted creation. It preserves the historic brick façade of the set and scenery warehouse that previously stood on this spot facing ul Pisareva, but the modern main entrance, facing ul Dekabristov, is all tinted glass and angular lines, hardly hinting at the beautiful old building behind. The state-of-the-art facility was financed primarily by private investors, including Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov.
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The Most
If you want to party like the novy russky (New Russians) this is the place for you. It is certainly among the most expensive, the most exclusive and the most extravagant clubs in Moscow. Located in the basement of a fancy French restaurant, its post-industrial space is decorated with baroque architectural elements (think gold-framed mirrors bedecking red brick walls, and crystal chandeliers suspended alongside black iron pipes). Girls in gowns groove along the catwalk overlooking the dance floor. The place is co-owned by Roman Abramovich, the most rich and famous of all New Russians. PS – face control; the most.
reviewed
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Komissarzhevskaya Theatre
Now buried in Tikhvin Cemetery, Vera Fedorovna Kommisarzhevskaya was a great St Petersburg actress who gained her reputation as leading lady in Vsevolod Meyerhold performances. In the early years of the 20th century, Kommisarzhevskaya founded an acting troupe that performed in the Passage concert hall, staging plays by all of the famous playwrights of the day, including Mikhail Gorky and Anton Chekhov. Revived in the midst of the Siege, the theatre was renamed in honour of the great actress. These days, headed by artistic director Victor Novikov, it is known for its modern treatment of classic plays.
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Musical Comedy Theatre
Formerly the Palace Theatre, this neoclassical beauty on pl Iskusstv (Arts Sq) was built in 1801 as a palace. Only in the 20th century was it redesigned, and it opened as a theatre in 1912. It is famous as one of the few theatres that stayed open throughout the blockade. Recently renovated, the place still retains the opulent atmosphere of a palace, with a gorgeous gala staircase and a famous ‘grotto buffet’. These days it hosts a wide variety of musical and theatrical performances, including crowd-pleasing classical ballets and operas.
reviewed
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Priyut Komedianta Theatre
This delightful theatre’s name means ‘the actor’s shelter’ and it does a pretty good job of fulfilling its role, providing refuge for some of the city’s best up-and-coming directors and producers. It was founded by actor Yury Tomashevsky in the late 1980s, when the city turned over a defunct cinema that the group still uses. Recent successes have included Peter Shereshevsky’s adaptation of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s The Eternal Husband and Georgy Vasiliev’s ambitious staging of Viktor Yerofeyev’s Moscow Stations, a sort of Russian Trainspotting.
reviewed
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Moscow Children’s Musical Theatre
Founded by theatre legend Natalya Sats (the official name of the theatre is the Natalya Sats Moscow Children’s Theatre) in 1965, this was the country’s first children’s theatre. Sats, apparently, was the inspiration for Prokofiev’s famous rendition of Peter and the Wolf, which is still among the best and most popular performances at the children’s theatre. All performances staged here are highly entertaining and educational, as actors appear in costume before the show and talk with the children.
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Solyanka
Solyanka No 11 is a historic 18th-century merchant’s mansion that has been revamped into an edgy, post-industrial club. Wide plank-wood floors, exposed brick walls, leather furniture and funky light fixtures transform the space. By day it’s an excellent restaurant, serving contemporary, creative Russian and European food. On Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, the big bar room gets cleared of tables and the DJ spins hip hop, techno and rave. The music usually starts at 11pm (and so does the face control).
reviewed