Tchaikovsky Research : Ivan Vsevolozhskii (1835

Ivan Vsevolozhskii (1835–1899)

Ivan Vsevolozhskii

Russian diplomat, theatre director, and designer (b. 1835; d. 1909), born Prince Ivan Aleksandrovich Vsevolozhskii (Иван Александрович Всеволожский, Ivan Aleksandrovič Vsevoložskij, Ivan Alexandrovich Vsevolozhsky).

After graduating from Saint Petersburg University, Vsevolozhskii worked in the Asian Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for some years before being sent on diplomatic postings to The Hague and Paris. In 1881, he was appointed Director of Imperial Theatres for Moscow, with responsibility for the city's two main venues (the Bol'shoi and Malyi Theatres). This was a post which suited perfectly Vsevolozhskii's abilities and interests, as he had always been an enthusiast of the theatre, opera, and ballet. He was also an amateur playwright with at least two plays to his name.

Vsevolozhskii was convinced that the Imperial theatres should not just be run as a commercial enterprise or cater solely to the court, but that they should serve a wider educational purpose in Russian society. Thus, in 1882 he wrote a report to the Minister of the Court, emphasizing that the theatre provided "a means by which the illusions of the stage allow the viewer to experience in a few hours those lifetime experiences for which one would ordinarily have to sacrifice one's childhood. In a word, the theatre is a universal school for people of all ages, callings, and incomes". His ambitious reform proposals were accepted by Alexander III, and so he was able to increase the salaries and royalties paid to artists, have a new rehearsal hall built for the ballet school, and initiate the publication of the Yearbook of the Imperial Theatres (Ежегодник императорских театров) in 1892.

Although in music Vsevolozhskii's preferences were clearly with Italian opera and he generally disliked the younger generation of Russian composers, the crucial exception was Tchaikovsky, whom he thought very highly of. Already in 1885 he had suggested to the composer the idea of writing an opera The Captain's Daughter based on Pushkin's historical novel, but Tchaikovsky had proved reluctant to tackle this subject. Around 1885 Vsevolozhskii also first floated the idea of an opera based on Pushkin's The Queen of Spades, though not yet involving Tchaikovsky.

In 1886, Vsevolozhskii was appointed Director of Imperial Theatres for Saint Petersburg—a post he would occupy until 1899. There he was in charge of the Mariinskii, Aleksandrinskii, and Mikhailovskii Theatres, and it was under his supervision that the Imperial Ballet and Opera moved from their previous location in the Bol'shoi Kamennyi (Great Stone) Theatre to the Mariinskii in 1886. In that year he also tried to persuade Tchaikovsky to write a ballet Undina, but nothing came of this project either.

In 1888, however, Vsevolozhskii commissioned a new ballet from Tchaikovsky—The Sleeping Beauty—for which he provided a detailed scenario, as well as suggestions as to how the epoch of Louis XIV was to be reproduced in the music and on the stage. This time the composer was enthusiastic about the subject and readily set to work on the assignment. Vsevolozhskii arranged the initial meeting between Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa, and throughout their fruitful collaboration on this first joint project he acted as an intermediary between them. A fine draughtsman, Vsevolozhskii also produced sketches of the costumes for the ballet's fairy-tale figures and supervised the work of the set designers, always striving for historical authenticity. The successful première of The Sleeping Beauty at the Mariinskii Theatre on 3/15 January 1890 vindicated his creative vision, and Elena Fedosova has rightly emphasized that Vsevolozhskii anticipated by two decades the idea commonly attributed to Sergei Diaghilev (1872–1929) of "uniting composer, ballet master, and visual artist in the creation of a work". Tchaikovsky acknowledged Vsevolozhskii's vital contribution and support by dedicating The Sleeping Beauty to him.

Vsevolozhskii was also responsible for commissioning The Nutcracker in 1890 (for which he also provided the libretto and designed the costumes), as well as the opera Iolanta. After Tchaikovsky's death he continued the model successfully established with The Sleeping Beauty by bringing together Petipa and Aleksandr Glazunov to work on Raymonda, which was premièred in 1890. All in all, during his directorship of the Imperial Theatres (1881–99) Vsevolozhskii designed the costumes for some 25 ballets and operas.

In 1899, he was appointed Director of the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, and he held this post until his death.

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Ivan Vsevolozhskii

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