In the Chuvash Republic there is the city of Cheboksary. The Russian Drama Theater, which is located in the center of this city, is the oldest professional theater in this region. The building itself was built back in 1959, and its history is part of the artistic and aesthetic heritage of all of Chuvashia. The theater was founded in 1922 and over the history of its existence, various actors played on its stage, who subsequently made a significant contribution to the theatrical art of this republic.
On the history of the creation of a drama theater in Cheboksary
In this city, attempts to create a real Russian theater have been undertaken for a long time. The first modest steps in this direction belong to 1918. Then, lovers of Russian art created their own performances, which they showed in a folk house in Cheboksary. This building is the house of the merchant Efremov. After a couple of years, a small group of professional actors is added to the amateur team. In December 1922, the first theater season in Cheboksary, the Russian Drama Theater, opened on December 14. The first production that the audience saw was a production based on the work of Ostrovsky - Vasilisa Melentiev. This significant day marked the beginning of the history of the theater and the professional collective of actors in Chuvashia. The theater troupe was led by I. A. Slobodskoy, a director who brought with him many years of experience the best theater traditions from St. Petersburg to the Chuvash Russian Theater. A special creative take-off of the Russian theater in Cheboksary was the period when it was led by E. A. Tokmakov.
Artistic directors and actors
The first director of the Cheboksary Russian Theater was I. A. Slobodskaya, thanks to whom the first traditions of the formation of art in Chuvashia were laid. In 1937, E. Tokmakov became his artistic director, he worked here for more than two decades. Over time, the troupe turns into a theater of a single school. At this time, many honored artists of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic come here: G. A. Morev, V. S. Osipov and many others. Thanks to the efforts of the artistic director E. Tokmakov, the creative team was rallied together, a real constellation of talents appeared here. After the first artistic director retired, a young talented director V.P. Romanov led the Russian Drama Theater in Cheboksary. This was a new stage in the history of the theater.
Since 1997, a new leader has been in it - V.I. Sergeev, who also made a considerable contribution to the development of theatrical art and culture of Chuvashia. Today, the main director of the Cheboksary Russian Drama Theater is V. A. Krasotin. In different years, a huge number of actors played on the stage of the institution, who wrote their pages in its history. Today it is proud of the names of honored artists of Chuvashia, the real luminaries of the stage of the theater in Cheboksary.
Russian Drama Theater. Poster
In the repertoire of this famous theater in Chuvashia, throughout its history of existence, performances based on the works of national drama have been repeatedly staged. The performances "Aydar" and "Symphony of Everyday Life" by P. Osipov and several others became a major event in the cultural life of the native republic. They had a well-deserved success not only with local viewers. Today, the theater director, Honored Cultural Worker of Chuvashia - S. M. Ermolaeva, is actively introducing various Internet projects here. Since 2010, tickets to the theater can be purchased on the website, and in 2016, an online broadcast of productions started working. The Cheboksary Russian Drama Theater is the only one in the republic that offers such a service.
Theater participation in festivals, its achievements and awards
The theater troupe regularly participates in all kinds of festivals, not only all-Russian, but also internationally. This is the “Friendship Bridge” in Yoshkar-Ola, “At the Golden Gate” in Vladimir, a theater art competition called “Patterned Curtain” and others. The Cheboksary Russian Drama Theater in 2015 was included in the ranking of the 50 best professional theaters in Russia in 2015.