Published on: 2026-08-22
Source: Moscow Government – Правительства Москвы –
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In Oleg Tabakov Theater The new season has begun. Vladimir Mashkov, the artistic director, spoke about the upcoming performances and other plans at the company meeting.
Premieres
The first premiere of the season, “Local Time’s Star Hour”, will take place on August 28 and 29. The actor Vladislav Miller turned to the play by Georgy Nikolaev — for him, this will be his directorial debut.
“It seems to me that we managed to find a lot of new and interesting things in it. The basis of the play’s plot is the relationship of young people, their first love — the most acute,” he noted.
This will be the second performance of the play on the stage of the Oleg Tabakov Theater — previously it was shown here in 1992, when Vladimir Mashkov first tried himself as a director. He received the play from the author himself. The times were difficult: makeshift materials were used to decorate the production.
“We found one of the decorations on the street, costumes were brought from home—whatever anyone had. Oleg Pavlovich looked at all this and said: ‘Play!’ He saw that his kids were developing in the right direction, independently, and that was a great joy for him. And now I am eagerly awaiting this premiere,” said Vladimir Mashkov.
As a director, the artist Mikhail Shugarev also makes his debut in the new season with a play based on his own script. Its working title is Mayday, a word used as an international distress signal in radiotelephony, similar to the SOS signal.
“The heroes of our play are the quintessence of modern society. This is a research play about how quickly all pretenses fall off people. It is an attempt to understand: who are we when no one is watching? And who are we on the brink of life and death, when everyone’s main task is to survive?” — said Mikhail Shugarev.
The theater’s repertoire will include its own “Ordinary Story.” Ivan Goncharov’s novel is a frequent presence on the Russian stage; one of the most famous productions was created by Galina Volchek in “Sovremennik” in 1966. Oleg Tabakov played the main role then. Before the premiere, he had a heart attack, but Galina Borisovna said that she would not replace the actor and the performance would not be shown without him. Oleg Pavlovich recovered in just a month, and then received the USSR State Prize for this work. In 1990, he himself directed “An Ordinary Story”—now at his own “Tabakerka”. More than 30 years later, a new production will be presented by director and actor Sevastyan Smyshnikov. This will be his third directorial work at the theater—performances are successfully running on stage. “Tender Heart” and “Call Sign Silence”.
In dusty rose color: watching “Tender Heart” at the Oleg Tabakov Theater with “Mosbilet”
40th anniversary of the theater
In 2027, the theater will celebrate its 40th anniversary: in 1986, an order was issued by the USSR Ministry of Culture to establish a new youth theater-studio led by People’s Artist of the RSFSR Oleg Tabakov, and the official opening took place on March 1, 1987. Guests saw the play “The Armchair” based on Yuri Polyakov’s story “An Incident of District Scale.”
On March 1, viewers will be awaited by the opening of an interactive museum about the history of theater development. It will be located on the historic stage on Chaplygin Street. The exhibition will consist of three halls, symbolizing three eras of the life of the Oleg Tabakov Theater.
“This season we will be guided by the slogan: ‘Theater Born from a Dream.’ The dream of its creator, Oleg Pavlovich Tabakov, and, of course, the dreams of every subsequent generation of actors. The signature style of the anniversary year became the schematic depiction of the starry sky. Our actors drew the stars,” noted Vladimir Mashkov.
In addition, the large rehearsal hall on Chaplygin Street will now bear the name of Viktor Monyukov — artist, director, and teacher. He once lived in the building where the historical stage of the Oleg Tabakov Theater is currently located.
“I have a personal story connected with him,” recalls Vladimir Mashkov. “When I came in 1984 to apply, there was unexpectedly an audition with Viktor Karlovich, who was then teaching at the Moscow Art Theatre School-Studio. He told me: ‘Come in May, I’ll take you.’ He passed away in April, and I joined Mikhail Tarkhanov’s course.”
“Metamorphoses of the Oleg Tabakov Theater”
On August 17, Oleg Tabakov’s birthday, the launch of the themed tram “Metamorphoses of the Oleg Tabakov Theater” also took place. This is a joint project of the theater and the capital city Department of Transport and Road Transport Infrastructure Development and the Moscow Metro. The tram will run along route A (Kalitniki — Chistye Prudy metro station) until the end of 2026.
All stops are announced by the artists of the Oleg Tabakov Theater: Marina Salakova, Dmitry Brodetsky, Arina Avtushenko, Alena Morilova, Ksenia Utekhina, Gordey Yashin. They not only announce the stops but also tell short stories about their theater.
The new themed tram “Metamorphoses of the Oleg Tabakov Theater” has started route A
The main symbol decorating the tram became the black and orange monarch butterfly, whose colors echo the design of the historical stage of the Oleg Tabakov Theater, and the patterns resemble the mirrored space of the foyer of the main stage on Sukharevskaya (which is currently under renovation).
“The amazing property of the monarch butterfly is metamorphosis. It flies four thousand kilometers, and when it dies, its children continue flying further, genetically knowing this path. Just so, our master Oleg Tabakov passed on to us knowledge about this world, about our profession, and now new generations of actors continue the work of their teacher,” emphasized Vladimir Mashkov.
Tour
The theatre artists’ tour will begin in August. Thus, on August 23 and 24, the Kamchatka Drama and Comedy Theatre will stage a performance “Matrosskaya Tishina”. The troupe will go to Kamchatka for the first time.
Vladimir Mashkov noted: “This play is very important for us — it was directed by Oleg Pavlovich, and it was precisely with it that a new era of our theater’s existence began.”
In December, a performance of “Matrosskaya Tishina” will take place in Kursk. In September, the troupe will go to Krasnoyarsk, where they will present the production. “Not listed in the records”.
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