The Alexandrinsky Theater

On August 31 (September 12), in 1832, in the center of St. Petersburg, on the Alexandrinsky Square (now Ostrovsky Square), on the site of the wooden "Small" Theater, the grand majestic empire building of the Alexandrinsky Theater was inaugurated.

The main facade from the side of Nevsky Prospekt is decorated with a deep multi-column loggia. The side facades of the building are made in the form of eight-columned porticos. On the other side, a street designed by and named after Rossi leads to the theatre, which creates a general ensemble with it.

The building is surrounded by an expressive sculptural frieze with antique masks and garlands of laurel branches. In the niches on the front facades there are statues of the Muses, on the attic of the main facade is the quadriga of Apollo, created by the outstanding sculptor V.I. Demutom-Malinovsky. Loggia with a powerful Corinthian colonnade is crowned with an attic with molded reliefs of Glory and Apollo's chariot.

When designing the theater, the latest engineering solutions were applied, including the original systems of metal roof structures invented by K.I. Rossi together with the engineer M.E. Clarke.

Places for spectators were created on a five-tier system of lodges with an amphitheater and spacious stalls. Lodges are richly decorated with gilded carvings: the carving of the central ("Royal") box, as well as the lairs near the stage,  are made according to the drawings of Rossi. The theater's interiors practically retained their original decoration.