The Best Theater Productions in Saint-Petersburg

My personal recommendations: which theater productions are definitely worth seeing.

Photo from Pexels

In this article, I want to talk about Saint-Petersburg theaters and the performances I highly recommend seeing. These are the performances I personally saw and which I particularly remember.

1. Theater on Sadovaya

Located in the historic center, not far from Sennaya Square, the theater was founded in 1987 by Yuri Tomoshevsky, an actor at the Bolshoi Drama Theater.

What makes this space unique is that it is the first state theater in Russia without a permanent company: the organizers invite different companies and directors for specific projects, which makes the repertoire noticeably diverse.

The auditorium is small and cozy, with a clear view even from the back row.

What I recommend to watch:

• «The Idiot». Directed by Pyotr Shereshevsky. A production of Dostoevsky's novel. The action is set in our present day, so you'll definitely recognize yourself or your loved ones in the characters' behavior. The main idea: the world has gone mad, but people seem oblivious.
• «Oresteia». Directed by Gleb Cherepanov. A modern interpretation of an ancient story. Even more interesting is that Aeschylus's text is set in the future, a world after a global catastrophe. According to the plot, only one family remains on Earth—an absurd post-apocalyptic world. This multi-genre production weaves together ballet and musicals.
• «Serotonin». Directed by Andrey Prikotenko. A play based on the novel by Houellebecq (French writer) about a man descending into depression and social isolation. His life has reached a dead end. It's a quiet, growing feeling that he no longer has control over his own life.
• «The Man from Podolsk». Directed by Mikhail Bychkov. An absurdist play about a completely ordinary man who is arrested for no apparent reason and taken to the police station for questioning. Expect the grotesque, the absurd, and the bitter truth. A simultaneously funny and disturbing story about power, human destiny, and violence.

2. Malyshitsky Chamber Theatre

A small drama theatre founded in 1989 by director Vladimir Malyshitsky. The theatre's current leading director is Pyotr Shereshevsky, winner of the Golden Sofit, St. Petersburg's highest theatre award, a multiple nominee for the Golden Mask, Russia's highest theatre award, and a second prize winner at the international stage of the Monocle Festival.

The auditorium is tiny (three rows), so the audience feels intimately connected to the actors.

What I recommend to watch:

• «Three». Directed by Pyotr Shereshevsky. A very unusual take on the classic (Chekhov's "Three Sisters"). It's a postmodernist play on a Chekhovian plot. The action of the play is transferred to a communal apartment in the center of St. Petersburg. The audience is shown the apartment wide open, creating a feeling of nakedness and vulnerability among the characters. The narrative itself is reminiscent of a therapy session.

It's surprising how familiar the plot sounds in a new way.

• «Krum». Directed by Pyotr Shereshevsky. A production based on the play by Hanoch Levin, a renowned Israeli playwright. "Krum" is the story of a man who returns to his old neighborhood after an unsuccessful emigration and discovers that nothing special awaits him at home: a lack of prospects and opportunities for development. A story of painful decline, in which the only hope for the future is helplessness, which will bring with it a "salvific" indifference.
• «A Clockwork Orange». Directed by Dmitry Krestyankin. The play is based on Anthony Burgess's novel. At the center is the theme of violence, which is hushed up in our society and is terrifying to talk about. The production raises questions about how evil emerges, how to resist it, and how to protect your children from it. The world is seen through the eyes of a teenager. The director sees him primarily as a child, and, as we know, adults bear responsibility for children.
• «Killer Joe». Directed by Petr Shereshevsky. Tracy Letts's dark American thriller takes place in a Russian chamber theater. The tension gradually builds throughout the performance, bringing the audience to a state of horror. Violence is presented as something completely unaesthetic, dirty and humiliating, just as it really is.

3. Subbota Theatre

One of the oldest independent theatres in St. Petersburg: it began its work in 1969 as a club and studio, and gradually evolved into a fully-fledged state drama theatre.

What I recommend to watch:

• «The Beggar's Opera». Directed by Pyotr Shereshevsky. A crime comedy with music. Based on John Gay's play about the mores of English society, in which criminals are more sympathetic than the police. The director sets the action in the wild 1990s. The play is about thieves, prostitutes, and corrupt officials. Expect humor, chanson, a love story, and profound meanings.

4. Lensovet Theatre

The Lensovet Theatre of St. Petersburg was founded in 1933. Today, it positions itself as a "modern theater in the heart of St. Petersburg" and continues to alternate classics with new experiments.

What I recommend to watch?

• «Macbeth. The Movie». Directed by Yuri Butusov. A bold interpretation of Shakespeare's tragedy. Don't try to understand everything at once; the production has a complex composition: parts can be repeated, and everything is not linear. Also, several characters can play the same character. So it's very easy to get confused. But it's very interesting to explore, trying to get to the bottom of it. In addition to interesting directorial choices, the production features a very engaging musical repertoire: Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, Kino, Bjork, Nirvana, and many others.
• «Uncle Vanya», Directed by Yuri Butusov. The director once again turns to the classics. You won't hear the familiar Chekhovian intonations; you're unlikely to see an "Uncle Vanya" like this anywhere else. Instead of the Voinitsky estate, the actors are confined to a narrow strip of stage. The set is deliberately artificial: a cardboard world with painted-on doors. Both the premises and the characters are in a state of decay.
• «Three Sisters». Directed by Yuri Butusov. I think you definitely didn't expect to see such a production of this classic! From the costumes to the music (Auktyon, Deep Purple, Eminem). This is a unique interpretation of the classic: an unconventional directorial style, profound philosophical reflections... The play contains a huge number of refrains, meaning certain scenes are repeated several times in a row, which forces you to listen carefully to the phrases and better understand the meanings.

5. G.A. Tovstonogov Bolshoi Drama Theater

The BDT is one of the most famous drama theaters in Russia. It was founded in 1918. During the Soviet period, it was directed by Georgy Tovstonogov, whose name it now officially bears. The BDT's repertoire includes productions of both classical and contemporary plays. Many premieres have won major Russian awards (Golden Mask, Harlequin, Golden Soffit, and others).

What I recommend to watch?

• «What Is to Be Done?» Directed by Andrey Moguchy. A performance in which Boris Pavlovich's character directly engages with the audience, asking questions and, at certain moments, provoking emotion. A theme that can still evoke conflicting emotions in audiences – equality, the women's issue, and, of course, freedom. The protagonist's manifesto: "I want to be free, I don't want to owe anyone anything, I don't want anyone to tell me: you have to do this for me! No, I only want to do what I want. And let others do the same; I don't want to demand anything from anyone, I don't want to restrict anyone's freedom, and I want to be free myself."
• «Kholopy». Directed by Andrey Moguchy. A production based on the play of the same name by P.P. Gnedich, a renowned playwright of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The production touches on the history of serfdom. Scenes from the past are intertwined with episodes from our present, making the performance both topical and ironic.
• "The Storm". Directed by Andrey Moguchy. Ostrovsky's play about a woman's difficult fate. The Bolshoi Drama Theater utilizes every possible stage resource: complex lighting, multi-layered sets. Beneath the spectacle lies a profoundly insightful psychological story about how violence becomes normalized when everyone learns to ignore it. The performance features stunning acting.

Shared by

Maria Li