pl. Iskusstv, 5, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 191186
On November 30, 1912, the first public performance of Vladimir Mayakovsky took place in the "artistic basement" of the "Wandering Dog."
In the "Theater Review," the following note appeared about this event:
“— At the last meeting in the ‘Wandering Dog,’ an extremely interesting and lively dispute occurred between Moscow and Petersburg poets… Representing a small group of Moscow poets, the artist David Burliuk gave a brief introductory speech… After Mr. Burliuk, another Moscow poet—Mr. Mayakovsky—performed, reading several of his poems, in which the listeners immediately sensed a genuine great poetic talent. Mr. Mayakovsky’s poems were met with applause.”
According to a widespread legend, on March 16, 1915, the police of Petrograd closed the art club "Wandering Dog" because of a fight caused by Vladimir Mayakovsky. In reality, the truth was much more prosaic.
In 1914, World War I began. The celebration that lasted in the "Wandering Dog" increasingly contradicted the harsh everyday life. Many regular visitors of the tavern went to the front. The number of visitors decreased day by day.
In the spring of 1915, the tavern "Wandering Dog" was closed by order of the Petrograd city governor, Major General Prince Obolensky, for a simple reason — illegal sale of alcoholic beverages during the "dry law" introduced at the start of the war.
On February 11, 1915, Mayakovsky came here. He stepped onto the stage and slowly, distinctly, separating one word from another, without any affectation or melodiousness so familiar to this audience, said:
You, who live through an orgy of orgies,
who have a bath and a warm closet!
How can you not be ashamed to read out
about those presented to George
from the columns of newspapers?
Do you know, you talentless many,
who think it better to get drunk,
maybe now a bomb
has blown off the legs of Lieutenant Petrov?..
If he, led to slaughter,
suddenly saw, wounded,
how you, with lips smeared in a cutlet,
lustfully hum Severianin!
Is it for you, who love women and dishes,
to give your life in service?!
I’d rather serve
pineapple water to whores in a bar!
The audience was offended, outraged. A scandal broke out. The poet endured this outburst of fury. He stood on the stage, smoked, occasionally retorting. Then the manager came up and announced that there would be no more performances. The audience noisily left the hall. A few days later, a poster was put up in the city announcing that on Friday, February 20, in the basement of the "Wandering Dog," the Artistic Society of the "Intimate Theater" was organizing an evening for Mayakovsky and that admission to the evening was "exclusively by prior registration of gentlemen, full members, and performers." The restrictions imposed by the organizers of the evening were not in vain: the interest in Mayakovsky’s performance after his sensational poetry reading was so great that the cramped café room could not accommodate all those wishing to attend.
Sources:
Events I. Mayakovsky in Petrograd-Leningrad. – Lenizdat, 1963. - pp. 57-59
http://majakovsky.ru/mesta/italyanskaya-d-4/
Liteyny Ave., 46, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 191014
52 Mayakovskogo St., Saint Petersburg, Russia, 191014
Zhukovskogo St., 7, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 191014
Pod"ezdnoy Lane, 4, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 190013
Gatchinskaya St., 1, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 197136
Chkalova St, 8, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 194361
Mokhovaya St., 33, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 191028
