THE REPUTATION OF A PLAYWRIGHT BETWEEN THE STATE AND THE SOCIETY: THE THEATRICAL AND LITERARY COMMITTEE AND "THE MARRIAGE OF BALZAMINOV" BY A. N. OSTROVSKY

The article discusses an episode from the history of the Theatrical and Literary Committee, an organization that was supposed to control the aesthetic level of the repertoire of the Imperial theaters. In 1861, the committee forbade, and a year later allowed the staging of the scenes by Ostrovsky Whatever You Look For, You'll Find (The Marriage of Balzaminov). The discussions of this decision are used to analyze the dynamics of the institution of a playwright's reputation, which was increasingly defined by the periodical press, rather than the state.