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sian skomorokhs as they appear on the 1555 German etching]] The skomorokhs (Sing. ''скоморох'' in ''σκώμμαρχος'' (cf. ''σκῶμμα'', "joke"); from the Italian ''sсаrаmuссiа'' ("joker", cf. English ''sсаrаmоuсh''); from the Arabic masẋara; and many others. The skomorokhs appeared in Kievan Rus no later than in the mid- 11th Century , and the Fresco s in the Saint Sophia Cathedral In Kiev are there to prove it. The skomorokh art reached its peak in the 15th - 17th Century . Their Repertoire included mock songs, dramatic and satirical sketches called ''glumy'' (глумы), performed in masks and skomorokh dresses to the sounds of Domra , Balalaika , Gudok , Bagpipes , or Buben (a kind of Tambourine ). The skomorokhs performed in the streets and on the city squares and socialized with the spectators, drawing them into their play. Usually, the main character of the skomorokh performance was a fun-loving saucy '' Muzhik '' (мужик) of comic simplicity. In the 16th -17th century, the skomorokhs would sometimes combine their efforts and perform in a ''vataga'' (ватага, or big crowd) numbering 70 to 100 people. The skomorokhs were often persecuted by the Russian Orthodox Church and civilian authorities. In 1648 and 1657 , the powers that be issued Ukase s banning the skomorokh art as blasphemous, but the actors would still occasionally perform during popular celebrations. In the 18th Century , the skomorokh art gradually died away, passing on some of its traditions to the '' Balagan s'' (балаган) and '' Rayok s'' (раёк). SEE ALSO |
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