Pietro Gonzaga. Design for the Stage Set "Tavern"

This sheet is a design for the stage set "Tavern" by the Italian scene painter Pietro di Gottardo Gonzaga (1751–1831). Together with a second design by the artist in the museum's collection, it reveals his concept for the sets of the theatre at Arkhangelskoye.

In 1792 Gonzaga signed a contract with Prince Nikolai Borisovich Yusupov, then in charge of court entertainments, and became chief decorator of the St Petersburg theatre; for more than 30 years he headed the art department of the imperial theatres. For Yusupov's private theatre at Arkhangelskoye, opened in 1818, Gonzaga painted 16 sets. The theatre has survived without alterations: the stage with its machinery, the curtain and 4 sets of original scenery by his hand remain. The museum first showed Gonzaga's original drawings in 2008, at an exhibition marking the theatre's 190th anniversary.

The design shows a view through a large, tall stone arch into a vaulted room with a barred window; on the right are a narrow staircase, a row of tables and a hearth, and above the arch runs a gallery with a balustrade. The sheet is executed with pen and brush in ink and sepia on paper.