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In 1960-1961,
Kremlin Palace of Congresses was built on the territory of
Kremlin, not far from Trinity Tower. The site chosen for
the new palace used to be occupied by 19th century
services buildings and the old building of Armoury built
in 1806-1810.
Kremlin
Palace of Congresses has been, and remains, the biggest
public building in Moscow: It contains some 800 rooms
varying in size; its useful area is 55,600 Sq. m; it is
73m wide at the perimeter, 121 m long, and 27 m high. The
building is sunk under the ground to the depth of 15-16 m
(which is the height of a five-storied apartment house).
This has made it possible to preserve the peculiar
historical silhouette of Kremlin complex. Besides
stairways, the building has 14 escalators and 26
elevators.
The
palace intended to be used for CPSU congresses, sessions
of USSR Supreme Soviet, international congresses, major
conferences and meetings. However, it could also be used
for holding concerts and stage performances, festivals,
banquets and balls.
The
main room of the building is the conference hall, which is
also the auditorium. At the time of construction, the hall
was the biggest in Europe. Its area is 5,600 Sq. m; the
stalls have 2663 seats, the amphitheatre 1569seats, and
the balcony with the boxes 1770 seats. Hall is equipped
with all kind of technical and radio devices, including
those for simultaneous interpretation into 30 languages,
which can be broadcast to any seat in the hall. The stage
is also the largest in the world (2000). It has a
proscenium, which is so designed as to be converted into
an orchestra pit. On the back wall of the stage is a
screen, which can be moved closer to the front part of the
stage.
Above
the conference hall there is the banquet hall for special
receptions and festive soirees. It can seat 2500 people.
On the days, when stage performances or concerts are held
in the palace the hall is used as a buffet for the
spectators.
The
main entrance of the palace faces Arsenal building. North
façade of the building looks out on the former Palace
Street and Pleasure Palace. The pylons are riveted with
white marble. The glass panes reflect Kremlin buildings
surrounding the Palace as if trying to conceal its true
nature, which is so alien to old architecture.
The
building and the installations of Kremlin Palace of
Congresses were designed by a group of architects and
engineers, including M.V. Posokhin, A.A. Mndoyants, E.N.
Stamo, P.P. Shteller, G.N. Lvov, A.N. Kondratiev and I.I.
Kochetov. The interior decorations are by many well-known
artists, including the famous Soviet painter A.A. Deineka.
In the last years of 20th century,
Kremlin Palace of Congresses was renamed State Kremlin
Palace. Stage performances or concerts are held here
nearly every day. State Kremlin Palace has its own young
ballet company, which has won renown both in Russia and
abroad.
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