Victor Schröter was a Russian architect of German descent, academician and professor of architecture at the Imperial Academy of Arts, and chief architect of the Directorate of the Imperial Theatres. Born in 1839 in Saint Petersburg, he was educated at the Imperial Academy of Arts and later at the Berlin Academy of Arts, where he was awarded a gold medal, a rare honor for foreigners. He studied architecture in European countries before returning to Russia, where he gained prominence among Saint Petersburg's architects. Victor Schröter made a huge contribution to the development of theatre architecture. As the chief architect of the Directorate of the Imperial Theatres, he oversaw the major reconstruction and expansion of the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg after the fire of the 1880s, and also designed theatre buildings in Kiev, Irkutsk, Nizhny Novgorod, and Tiflis. The City Opera House in Kiev was built to his design, as was the Georgian Opera and Ballet Theatre in Tiflis. He was also involved in the reconstruction of the Noble Assembly building in Saint Petersburg. The Bakhrushin Theatre Museum's online collection features archival materials relating to Victor Schröter.