Nizhny Novgorod hosted the all-Russian project "Theatrical Train."

      On June 14 and 15, events of the large-scale all-Russian project "Theatrical Train" took place in Nizhny Novgorod, dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the Union of Theatre Workers of Russia and implemented with the support of the Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives. About 2,500 people attended the events. The meeting of the project participants took place on the morning of June 14 at the Moscow railway station. Here, representatives of the Ministry of Culture and the theatrical community of the region ceremoniously welcomed representatives of theaters from Kazan, Naberezhnye Chelny, Ulyanovsk, Yoshkar-Ola, and Almetyevsk. A musical gift was presented to the theater representatives by members of the Nizhny Novgorod Governor's Orchestra. "We are glad that Nizhny Novgorod has become part of the route of the all-Russian project 'Theatrical Train,' which has involved a total of 5,000 artists from 40 regions of Russia. I am sure that the Nizhny Novgorod audience, who saw the children's and adult performances brought by the participants, appreciated the creativity of theaters from neighboring regions and will definitely visit theaters in Kazan, Ulyanovsk, Yoshkar-Ola, and other cities during their family travels. Theatrical tourism and the recognition of the culture of other regions are what incredibly enrich travel. Our region, in turn, provided the best venues for performances. The stage of the Nizhny Novgorod Youth Theatre, the hall of the Nizhny Novgorod Puppet Theatre—we are truly proud of these venues, which form the cultural foundation of Nizhny Novgorod audiences and host leading capital theaters during tours," noted Deputy Minister of Culture of the Nizhny Novgorod Region Mikhail Pelchenkov. On Nizhny Novgorod soil, the project participants were welcomed by the chairman of the Nizhny Novgorod regional branch of the Union of Theatre Workers, Sergey Kabailo. "The Union of Theatre Workers is 150 years old. Our creative association is the oldest and largest in Russia, having stood the test of time. Theatre is a living art, and today, when artificial intelligence is increasingly entering our lives, we are convinced that there is nothing more alive in the world than theatrical art. Our regional branch of the Union of Theatre Workers has been waiting for this event. The 'Theatrical Train' is confirmation that our vast country is a unified whole. Our common heritage is the Russian repertoire theatre, and in this way, we preserve it and give festival guests the opportunity to see that it is alive and will continue to live," emphasized Sergey Kabailo. The Theatrical Train brought more than 70 artists to Nizhny Novgorod, who presented their performances for children, youth, and adult audiences at the venues of the Nizhny Novgorod Youth Theatre, the Nizhny Novgorod Puppet Theatre, the Nizhny Novgorod House of Actors, as well as at street venues on the city's main street—Bolshaya Pokrovskaya. In addition, the Center for Theatrical Mastery presented excerpts from the musical-poetic production "Vertinsky" on the stage at the Moscow railway station. Over the course of two days, Nizhny Novgorod residents were able to attend performances by the Kazan State Theatre for Young Spectators "Sparrow," the Naberezhnye Chelny State Puppet Theatre "Fly-Cockroach," the Ulyanovsk Drama Theatre named after I.A. Goncharov "Poor Lisa," the Republican Puppet Theatre from Yoshkar-Ola "The Magic Pipe," the Ulyanovsk Youth Theatre named after B.V. Alexandrov "I Choose to Remember," the Almetyevsk Street Theatre "Eastern Express," as well as the Ulyanovsk Puppet Theatre named after the People's Artist of the USSR V.M. Leontyeva "Zaykina Izbushka" and the Almetyevsk Tatar State Drama Theatre "Where is My Homeland?". One of the central events of the two-day program was a creative meeting with the project's ambassador—People's Artist of Russia Alexandra Zakharova. This meeting took place in a warm atmosphere in the hall of the regional House of Actors. "The project is unique, as there are no analogues in Russia or in the world. And this is a very powerful, interesting, joyful, somewhat childlike endeavor. I want to say a huge thank you to the people who believed in this and made it happen. All distances are erased, cities unite, artists unite, creating such an actor brotherhood that, in turn, unites with the audience. After all, a performance is born three times—first, it needs to be conceived, then there will be rehearsals, and then the audience comes, and the mystery happens, the exchange of energies and co-creation, and this is an amazing feeling," said Alexandra Zakharova at the beginning of the meeting. The final stop of the "Theatrical Train" in Nizhny Novgorod was the symbolic transfer of the baton to Nizhny Novgorod artists who joined the project—the creative teams of the Nizhny Novgorod Theatre for Young Spectators and the Dzerzhinsk Drama Theatre, which will present their performances at venues in Saransk and Ryazan. The "Theatrical Train" project unites 160 Russian theaters and is held with the support of the Ministry of Culture of Russia. Let us remind you that the culmination of the all-Russian project will be the arrival of two trains of the "Theatrical Train," "Vladivostok—Moscow" and "Sevastopol—Moscow," on June 30 in Moscow.

      Kristina Koretskaya