This article discusses the final four working years of the stage designer Vasily Mitrofanovich Ulyanishchev (УЛЬЯНИЩЕВ Василий Митрофанович, born 30 January 1887, Bobrov in the Voronezh province, Russia; died 11 September 1934, Ljubljana, Slovenia, Kingdom of Yugoslavia). From 1930 until his death in 1934, Ulyanishchev worked for both the Opera and Drama of the National Theatre in Ljubljana. During his brief time in the Slovenian city, he designed the sets for fifty-five performances. Only twenty-nine of them are well documented with different visual material, mainly with photos and sketches. During this period, Ulyanishchev collaborated with several Slovenian directors, including Osip Šest (1893–1962), Bratko Kreft (1905–1996) and Ferdo Delak (1905–1968). Although Ulyanishchev is widely regarded as one of the most prominent avant-garde scenographers in Slovenia, his work has not yet received comprehensive scholarly attention. This article therefore attempts to address this shortcoming. The author examines his three distinct approaches to set design, discussing his orientation towards the practices of historical avant-gardes. At the same time, she explores the changes and innovations in his work during his final period. The article is thus the first reconstruction of the part of the author’s oeuvre created in Slovenia. The discussion is grounded in a comprehensive examination of the preserved stage designs and photographs of performances, complemented by a meticulous analysis of preserved sources in newspapers. The focus of this study is to illuminate the stage sets that drew inspiration from the historical avant-garde practices. Through a critical evaluation it aims to ascertain their significance in the evolution of historical avant-gardes within the context of Slovenian theatres.
|
