The Hermitage Garden in Moscow is one of the city's attractions that is not included in the tourist routes. The garden is worth visiting, at least because it has a special atmosphere. In addition, it can be called a historical place in the city center.
The Moscow Garden "Hermitage" is located on Karetny Ryad Street, it is popular with city residents and tourists.
The word "Hermitage" is associated with a museum in St. Petersburg and art. The word is of French origin, usually so called park pavilions, a place of solitude and small rural palaces. What does the Moscow garden have to do with art or pavilions?
Direct! The garden appeared in Moscow for entertainment purposes; it was the center of the city's cultural life.
Initially, the garden bore the name "New Hermitage", but over time it was renamed. Yakov Vasilyevich Shchukin (entrepreneur and philanthropist) - founder and owner of the garden.
The "New Hermitage" consisted of a summer garden and a winter theater; its project was developed by the architect V. P. Zagorsky, the author of the Moscow Conservatory. The plan of the garden, the project of summer music stages and awnings for the buffet were created by the architect A. U. Belevich.
The Summer Garden was opened to visitors on June 30, 1894, and the theater on December 28, 1894. It was in the "New Hermitage" that a private diesel power plant appeared for the first time in Moscow; it was brought from abroad to provide lighting in the garden. Electric lamps used electric arc lamps.
String orchestras under the direction of R. Bullerian and I. A. Truffi performed on the open stage.
In 1898, the Moscow Art Theater, a public theater, was opened in the Hermitage, and it was here that the premieres of Anton Chekhov's plays took place.
The garden was very popular, its owner decided to increase the territory and erect new stone buildings. At the beginning of the 20th century, a new theater and decoration workshops appeared in the garden.
The troupes of the famous philanthropist S. I. Mamontov and F. I. Shalyapin took part in the performances, S. V. Rachmaninov made his debut as a conductor for the first time, famous performers of romances and ballerina Anna Pavlova performed.
The Hermitage hosted the first public screening of the Lumiere brothers' cinema, performances by the famous illusionist Harry Houdini, foreign circus and pop artists.
The garden flourished, YV Shchukin owned it until 1917. After the revolution, the Hermitage was nationalized and transferred to the jurisdiction of Proletkult, the stage sites were rented out to private entrepreneurs. In the 40s of the last century, the entrance lobby was demolished and a colonnade with an open courtyard was erected.
Today, there are three theaters in the garden, two of them were reconstructed, the third was built in 1981. There are two stages, one of them is open. The bases of the lanterns have been preserved, and the lamps have been completely replaced. In addition to theaters and stages, monuments are erected in the garden, there are cafes and stalls with coffee and food, a playground, and various master classes are held. Admission is free, the territory is open at any time of the year.
