The avant-garde architect Konstatin Melnikov designed the Rusakov Club as a theater for workers who labored in nearby printing factories. The structure, built in 1927, featured three large seating galleries sloped upward from the center stage area and cantilevered well beyond the semi-circular principal elevation. (...)
The avant-garde architect Konstatin Melnikov designed the Rusakov Club as a theater for workers who labored in nearby printing factories. The structure, built in 1927, featured three large seating galleries sloped upward from the center stage area and cantilevered well beyond the semi-circular principal elevation. The building suffered insensitive renovations in the late 1930s and about the only maintenance performed since then has involved the replacement of exterior finishes during which the club’s name in low-relief stucco lettering was removed. Although the theater was leased in 1996 to the prominent Russian theater director Roman Viktiuk for use as a performance arena and nightclub, the building still requires restoration. The structural integrity of the building’s large, irregularly shaped roof required assessment and some of the walls and foundations also need inspection. A structural analysis must be conducted in order to develop a comprehensive restoration program for the building.
