MUSICAL THEATER OF THE VICTORIAN ERA : HISTORICAL AND CULTUROLOGICAL ASPECT

Abstract

Problem statement and relevance of the study. English musical theater of the Victorian era, received the definition of a «closed genre» and today remains a little-known and little-studied phenomenon that determines the relevance of the stated topic. Purpose of the article. Generalization of information about the historical and cultural period of Great Britain in the
second half of the XIX-early XX century – the «Victorian era» – various socio – moral aspects of which received musical and theatrical embodiment in the English National Musical Theater on the example of ballad opera, Savoy opera.
Research methodology. Research methods. The methodology of the work has a complex character and is based
on a combination of the foundations of cultural, historical-typological, etymological, art history types of research, which
make it possible to identify the National specifics of English musical theater in the context of Victorian culture.
Results. The long reign of Queen Victoria is defined as the Golden Age of the British Empire, it was during this
period that a special type of English culture was formed, based on purely national historical traditions, and special
foundations, norms of behavior in the family and society defined the concept of «Victorian morality». It is determined
that this period is marked by the revival of church foundations in England, all spheres of art and culture are intensively
developing, in particular, historical painting, Victorian (Gothic) romance, neo – Gothic style in architecture. The
musical culture of Victorian England after the «age of silence» enters a stage called the new renaissance.
Novelty. The paper analyzes for the first time a little-known area of English musical theater for Russian cultural
knowledge and musicology – the Victorian Theater on the example of ballad opera and Savoy Opera.
The practical significance. The practical value of the work lies in the possibility of using materials in the courses
«History of foreign music», «Musical cultural studies», «History of musical Theater».