Playbill

July 29, 1887

Paper, printing

70,6х38,7

On 29 July 1887, at the premises of the Petrozavodsk Charitable Society in Karelia, which had established its own theatre stage, amateur dramatic performers gave a benefit performance for those affected by the earthquake in the city of Verny (now Almaty). The devastating Verny earthquake occurred on 28 May (9 June) 1887 and reached an intensity of 9–10. The city’s masonry buildings were almost completely destroyed, around 330 people were killed, and thousands of residents were left homeless. A distinctive feature of the Petrozavodsk poster is its unusually detailed appeal to the audience. Rather than simply stating the charitable purpose of the performance, the organisers used the lower section of the poster to explain the need for donations, describing the earthquake as a “public calamity” and stressing that the success of the relief effort depended on the “full sympathy of society”.

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