Theater code in "Invitation to a beheading" novel by Vladimir Nabokov

The article analyzes the theatrical beginning in one of the most famous novels by Vladimir Nabokov “Invitation to a Beheading” (1936). The purpose of the article is to understand the nature and forms of theatricality in the novel. The author presents the topos which serve as an analogue of theatrical scene: a cell in a prison, a terrace in the city, a house of the Cincinnatus family, a scaffold. Theatrical ways of portraying both real and character world with its disguises are described: director Rodrig Ivanovich, jailer Rodion, prison doctor. Mise en scene set and authorship of plot lines are shown. Various theatrical forms are presented: Drama Theater, circus, Puppet Theater, masquerade. There is a duality in the representation of the protagonist, which points to the unexplained relations between the outer and inner worlds.