Tbilisi Russian Drama Theater named after A. S. Griboedov

The Russian theater in Georgia takes its roots at the beginning of the 19th century. Russian amateur performances were staged in Tbilisi; in the 1830s, the comedy of A. S. Griboedov “ Woe from Wit ” appeared in the repertoire of amateur circles. September 20, 1845 in Tbilisi, under the governor, Count M. S. Vorontsov, the first season of the first Russian theater opened. Until September 20, 1846, 104 performances were played. For the second season, actors were invited from Moscow and St. Petersburg , in the selection of which M. Shchepkin took part. The troupe was headed by A. Yablochkin (father of the People's Artist of the USSR A. Yablochkina ). The season opened with the performance "Woe from Wit." On April 10, 1858, with the arrival of the new governor, General Muravyov , the Russian drama troupe, together with the Georgian, opera and ballet, was calculated and dismissed - as not meeting the plans of the tsarist government. In the 1850-1860s, Russian enterprises were actively working in Tbilisi. In 1866, as a result of persistent demands from the public and the press, the Russian Drama Theater resumed its work. In 1887, a theater with an auditorium with 300 seats was created in the house of the famous Armenian, entrepreneur and philanthropist Esai Pitoyev (Pitoyan) - this is how the “Tiflis Artistic Society” appeared.

In 1898, construction began on the Theater of the Artistic Society. I. Pitoev invited the well-known architect A. Shimkevich to realize this goal. Style - later baroque . The hall was designed for 810 seats . To perform stucco work on the facade and inside the building, the best Italian craftsmen were invited. Furniture, mirrors, carpets, lamps and other interior details were brought from Europe and made in a single copy. On February 8, 1901, the first season opened with the production of “Woe from Wit” at the Theater of the Artistic Society. In 1902, the Armenian Artistic Society launched its activities in the theater building. Since 1921, it is the Tbilisi State Academic Theater named after Shota Rustaveli .

At the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries V. Nemirovich-Danchenko , M. Ermolova , M. Savina , A. Yablochkina , V. Komissarzhevskaya , A. Sumbatashvili-Yuzhin , V. Davydov, K. Varlamov , M. Petipa work on the Tbilisi stage. brothers Adelheim ... In 1904-1906. the theater season in Tbilisi hosted Vsevolod Meyerhold 's Partnership for a New Drama.

In 1915, the Russian troupe was created - the Partnership of Artists of the Russian Theater Society (TARTO), headed by director A. Tuganov , renamed the Russian Academic Theater in 1921.

In these years, the following people began to work in Tbilisi: the POARM XI Theater under the direction of A. Pokrovsky (the troupe arrived in Tbilisi with the 11th Army ); “The First Soviet Theater” under the direction of N. Shestov; The new theater under the direction of K. Mardzhanishvili ; Satiragit Theater, then renamed the Revolutionary Art Theater; Red Theater of the Proletcult of Georgia; "Maly Theater"; Tbilisi Theater of Young Spectators; "Chamber Theater" and others.

In 1926, under the leadership of Schweizer Vladimir Zakharovich (V. Pessimist) , the Tiflis Worker Theater (TRT) was created, which lasted until 1930. The question was about creating a permanent state Russian drama theater in Tbilisi.

In September 1932, a decree of the People's Commissariat of Education of Georgia was issued on the establishment of the Tbilisi State Russian Drama Theater (TGRT). The troupe was formed from the staff of the Tbilisi House of the Red Army and replenished with artists from various cities of the USSR. In the absence of space, the first season of TGRT worked in the building of the former Tbilisi House of the Red Army.

The director of the Second Georgian Theater, the great theater reformer Kote Marjanishvili, was invited to stage the first performance. November 3, 1932 TGRT opened the first season with the play by M. Gorky “ At the bottom ”. The second major event was the production of N. Pogodin ’s play “My Friend” by the outstanding Moscow director A. Popov . Unfortunately, a number of unsuccessful and controversial productions followed. This was evidence that the theater needed a single artistic direction.

The second season the Russian theater opened in early November 1933. The theater moved to a new room, the troupe replenished with new actors and directors. The new director and artistic director Konstantin Shah-Azizov , one of the founders of the Tbilisi Russian Theater for Young Spectators, directed all his efforts to raise the artistic level of TGRT. The second season turned out to be truly fruitful and determined the creative face of the Russian theater. The main result of the first two seasons was that a permanent Russian theater was formed in Georgia, replacing the seasonal Russian theater groups. In October 1934, the Tbilisi State Russian Drama Theater was named after A. S. Griboedov. In response, the team on December 12, 1935 opened the season with the performance “ Woe from Wit ” directed by A. Rubin with the participation of V. Bragin (Chatsky), I. Osipov (Famusov), K. Dobzhinsky (Skalozub), E. Satina (Khlestova).

The directors A. Ridal , A. Rubin, V. Karpov, A. Smeyanov, A. Augustov, artists V. Ivanov, B. Loktin, V. Roberg, I. Shtenberg, E. Dontsova worked at the Griboedov Theater. A vibrant acting team has developed: L. Vrublevskaya, B. Beletskaya, E. Evstratova, O. Kutyreva, N. Martynova, E. Satina, A. Semenova, N. Shelekhov, M. Belousov, V. Bragin, K. Gardin, P Donetsk, A. Lipnitsky, K. Myufke , I. Osipov, A. Smiranin, Y. Maximova and others. Later N. Burmistrova, T. Belousova, P. Luspekaev, D. Slavin, I. Rusinov, M came to the theater Pyasetskiy, Yu. Shevchuk, V. Zakharova, A. Gomiashvili , I. Zlobin, A. Shengelaya , V. Semina, A. Levin, M. Ioffe, B. Kazinets, L. Krylova, D. Sikharulidze, E. Kukhaleishvili , E. Baykovsky, E. Kilosanidze , C. Golovin, Z. Grigoryan and others.

Prominent directors - Alexander Takaishvili , Dmitry (Dodo) Aleksidze , Leonid Varpakhovsky , Medea Kuchukhidze, Sergo Chelidze, Kote Surmava , Giga Lordkipanidze , Georgy Tovstonogov , Petr Fomenko , Gizo Zhordania, Gogi Kavtaradze and others made a bright mark in the history of the theater.

Four of the great memorial plaques in the Great Foyer of the Griboedovo Theater are dedicated to Vsevolod Meyerhold , Kote Marjanishvili , Petr Fomenko and Alexander Tovstonogov.

On March 5, 1939, he presented his thesis - the play “ Children of Vanyushin ” by S. A. Naydenov — GITIS graduate Georgy Tovstonogov (in all, Georgy Alexandrovich staged thirteen performances in the A. Griboedov Theater!). A student of Tovstonogov, Mikhail Tumanishvili staged in the theater. Griboedov's play by A. Miller " View from the bridge ." His first work - the play "Treasure" by J. Priestley - was performed on the stage of Griboedovsky by Robert Sturua , a student of Tumanishvili.

Among the best productions of different years are “Children of Vanyushin” by S. Naydenov (G. Tovstonogov, 1939), “The Great Mouravi” by I. Wakeli (A. Rubin, 1941), “Deep Roots” by D, Gow and A. de Yusso (D Aleksidze, 1947), “The Last” by M. Gorky (G. Gviniashvili, 1950), “Woe from Wit” by A. Griboedov (A. Takaishvili, 1954), “Irkutsk History” by A. Arbuzov (A. Vipman, 1960) , “Two on a Swing” by W. Gibson (A. Chkhartishvili, 1962), “A Liar is Required” by D. Psafas (K. Surmava, 1963), “Caesar and Cleopatra” by B. Shaw (A. Ginzburg, 1966), “Give way the place for tomorrow ”V. Delmar (M. Pyasetskiy, 1970),“ Steps of the Commander ”V. Korostylev (G. L rdkipanidze, 1971), “The Road of Flowers” ​​by V. Kataev (P. Fomenko, 1972), “Elder Son” by A. Vampilov (A. Tovstonogov, 1975), “The Young Guard” by M. Fadeev (A. Tovstonogov, 1975), “Forget Herostratus” by G. Gorin (A. Tovstonogov, 1975), “Cruel Intentions” by A. Arbuzov (A. Tovstonogov, 1978), “The Law of Eternity” N. Dumbadze (G. Zhordania, 1981), “Dear Elena Sergeevna” L. Razumovskaya (G. Chakvetadze, G. Zhordania, 1982), “Rush Hour” by E. Stavinsky (G. Zhordania, 1983), “Sisters” by L. Razumovskaya (G. Chakvetadze, G. Zhordania, 1985), “40 Sholom Aleichem Street” by A. Stavitsky (L. Jashi, 1986), “Cherry Orchard” by A. Chekhov ( G. Kavtaradze, 1992), “Rasputin” M. Lasher (G. Kavtaradze, 1993), “Anna Karenina” by L. Tolstoy (G. Kavtaradze, 1998).

Today, the artistic management of the theater is carried out by Avtandil Varsimashvili, laureate of the State Prize of Georgia, Prize named after K. Mardzhanishvili, holder of the Order of Friendship (Russia), Order of Honor (Georgia). The repertoire policy of the theater is aimed at popularizing classical Russian dramatic art - the Seasons of Russian Classics are announced at the theater. In 2013, the theater. Griboedova received the Theater Star award in the nomination “The Best Russian Theater Abroad” and the Grand Prix of the XI Golden Vityaz International Theater Forum for the performance by A. Varsimashvili “Canvas meter. The history of the horse ”based on the story of L. Tolstoy. Among the performances of recent years, a significant public outcry was caused by: “Teresa Raken” by E. Zola (A. Varsimashvili, 1999), “Russian Blues” (A. Varsimashvili, 2001), “Meek” by F. Dostoevsky (A. Varsimashvili, 2004), “Hanuma” by A. Tsagareli (A. Varsimashvili, 2005), “The Master and Margarita” by M. Bulgakova (A. Varsimashvili, 2006), “Dostoevsky.ru” (A. Enukidze, 2009), “Ghetto” by J. Sobol ( A. Varsimashvili, 2010), “To Kill a Man” by E. Radzinsky (G. Margvelashvili, 2010), “The Marriage” of N. Gogol (A. Varsimashvili, 2011), “The Eldest Son” of A. Vampilov (G. Margvelashvili, 2014) , "The Freeloader" by I. Turgenev (N. Lordkip Anidze, 2014), “The Cherry Orchard” (A. Enukidze, 2015). The theater actively tours and successfully participates in international theater festivals in the near and far abroad, which has been the leader among Georgian theaters in terms of the number of tour trips for a year.

Modern Theater Troupe

Theater Artistic Director - Avtandil Varsimashvili

Theater Director - Nikolay Sventitsky

Directors:

Varsimashvili Avtandil Eduardovich

Andro Enukidze

Georgy Margvelashvili

Vakhtang Nikolava

Actresses

Lyudmila Ivanovna Artyomova-Mgebrishvili

Vorobeva Inna Egorovna

Voronyuk Natalya Nikolaevna

Darchiashvili Nana Georgievna

Garmatyuk Anastasia Vladimirovna

Gachechiladze-Mgebrishvili Nino

Kalatozishvili Nina Georgievna

Kvizhinadze Irina Vladimirovna

Kenya Karina Rafaelovna

Kikacheishvili Nino Sulkhanovna

Kitia Maria Georgievna

Lomdjaria Sofya Olegovna

Mamontova-Tskhadaya Alla Mikhailovna

Megvinetuhutsesi Irina Givievna

Mumladze Medea Petrovna

Nikolava-Harutyunyan Anna Aikovna

Ninidze Nina Karlenovna

Shengelaya Ariadna Vsevolodovna

Actors

Ambrosov Mikhail Yakovlevich

Arzhevanidze Mikhail Volfganovich

Baratashvili Archil Givievich

Gabashvili Vasily Igorevich

Gurgenidze Lasha (Leri) Mikhailovich

Zanguri Georgy Gelaevich

Kublashvili Apollon Alexandrovich

Kurasbediani Ivane Alexandrovich

Kusikashvili Merab Kobaevich

Merabishvili Dmitry Levanovich

Mchedlishvili Oleg Mikhailovich

Natenadze Stanislav Pavlovich

Piliev Khristofor Lavrentievich

Sporyshev Dmitry Vladimirovich

Kharyutchenko Valery Dmitrievich

Cherkezishvili Guram Georgievich

Chipashvili Zurab Davydovich

Turkiashvili Georgy Semenovich

Contemporary Repertoire

• “The Scarlet Flower” - based on the tale of S. T. Aksakov “The Scarlet Flower ”.
• “Scarlet Sails” - according to the story of Alexander Greene “ Scarlet Sails ”.
• "English detective"
• Cherry Orchard
• "Ghetto"
• Thunderstorm ( A. N. Ostrovsky )
• “The Twelve Months” - based on the tale of S. Y. Marshak “The Twelve Months ”
• “Dostoevsky. ru »
• “Emelin happiness” - ( R. S. Sef , 1974)
• “ Marriage ” - a play by N.V. Gogol
• “Yellow Angel” - a performance created based on the songs of A. Vertinsky and verses by Igor Severyanin
• "Winter's Tale"
• "Cinderella" - according to the fairy tale Cinderella
• " Career Arturo Wu " - a play- pamphlet by Bertolt Brecht
• Casting
• "Meek"
• “Mowgli” - based on the works of Rudyard Kipling
• Mayakovsky
• “Frost” - according to the Russian folk tale Morozko
• "The Free Shop " - a comedy by I. S. Turgenev
• "Christmas tale"
• "The Tale of Tsar Saltan" - based on a fairy tale in verses by A. S. Pushkin
• "The eldest son"
• “To kill a man” - a tragicomedy in one act based on the play by E. Radzinsky
• “The history of the horse on the canvas” - according to the story by L. N. Tolstoy “The canvas ”
• “Cipollino” - according to the story of Gianni Rodari “ Cipollino ”
• Winter's Tale - ( William Shakespeare )

• The official website of the theater