IN THE ASPECT OF THE «NEW SPECTATOR» PROBLEM
The article investigates the history of now little known magazine «Tomsk Spectator» published
in Tomsk in 1926–1927 and analyzes both the materials presented in the magazine and its
avant-garde styling. The research discloses the versatile subject area of the magazine which concerned
theatre and musical life of the region and the country in whole as well as the issues of the
development of film industry in the USSR and abroad. However, the author observes that the
magazine practically lacked critical articles, detailed professional polemics about theatre production,
struggle between «right» and «left» movements. This peculiarity reveals the provincial nature
of the periodical, its dependence on the readers and spectators’ audience where the majority
belonged to so called «new», or inexperienced spectators. This circumstance helps to explain the
general publishing principle of the magazine implying that the purpose of the spectators’ enlightenment
prevailed over the purpose of their ideological education, open artistic propaganda, and
agitation. The magazine viewed the situation in the Soviet film industry within the world context.
«Tomsk Spectator» published short lists of foreign films and their annotations, the portraits of
foreign film stars, curios events on shooting sites, friendly caricatures, etc. When speaking about
the Soviet film industry, the magazine marked it as a unique phenomenon of the world level. In
the first place, this concerned documentaries with «Battleship Potemkin» by S. Eisenstein as the
standard sample. Referring to theatre and musical life of the region, the magazine published the
itinerary of guest performances of theatres, symphony orchestras and the leading soloists, showed
the educational orientation of theatre and musical companies. All the publications were in forms
of short news stories since aimed at mass audience. Because of the same reason the significant
volume of publications was devoted to theatre libretti. Thus, «Tomsk Spectator» was a noticeable
event among the regional periodicals. No substitution was found after the edition’s closing. The
short history of the magazine was to a certain extent compensated by the abundance of its publications.
This could not help influencing on educating and enlightening «new spectators» which
was one of the main cultural purposes in the USSR in the 1920s – 1930s.
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IN THE ASPECT OF THE «NEW SPECTATOR» PROBLEM // Сюжетология и сюжетография. 2017. № 1. Pp. 48–62.