Artistic Director

Levan Tsuladze

Levan Tsuladze occupies a leading position in the contemporary Georgian theatre scene with his avant-guard productions. This is borne out by dozens of successful plays staged across Georgia and beyond it, local and international premiers and enthralled viewers who flock to see his works.

In the 90s together with his colleague-friends he initiated the creation of the first independent theatres in Georgia (first on the Rustaveli Avenue, later in Vake, both in Tbilisi) called Basement Theatres. Later, in 2006 he took over the role of artistic director in the Tbilisi Marjanishvili Theatre where he gave a whole new perspective to the theatrical representation and the use of stage space and created 2 other “theatres” within its walls.

Levan Tsuladze continues to search avenues to find various ways of representation and work closely with the new generation of artists to delve into variety of genres and styles such as drama, sad comedies and tragicomedies by staging authors across the spectrum ranging from Shakespeare, Goethe, Thomas Mann, Brecht, Chekhov, Kafka to Georgian authors Kakabadze, Batiashvili and Bughadze. The scope of his creations manifest his multifaceted artistic nature for which there are no obstacles and if there are, there are proven ways to cope with them and if there are no such ways they can be invented.

He has a rare gift of reflecting his own nature and qualities (not his stand or views) in his creations. His plays continually show him as a person, convey his love to people, the ability to make their problems his own, make promises, keep his word, and instill hope that all will work out.

Amongst them:

• THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO, THE MAD DAY"  Pierre  Beaumarchais, 2021
• "CRIME AND PUNISHMENT"  Fyodor Dostoevsky, 2021
• „THE KREUTZER SONATA" After Lev Tolstoy's  Story “The Kreutzer Sonata​”  2020
•"HAMLET"  William Shakespeare, 2019
•„​JOB OR SUMMER NIGHT DREAM"   2018
•"Carmen"  Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy , 2017
• "Bakula's pigs" after Davit Kldiashvili, 2017
•"The Star without name" Ana kozakova (after Mikhail Sebastian)  2016
•"Begalut - in exile" story based on several fragments from Shalom Aleichem's and Guram Batiashvili's novels 2016 
•"The Mad Man's Diary" Nikolai Gogol, 2014 
•"Drunk Cherry" Author of the text and Director, 2013
•"Tartuffe" Molière, 2013
• "University of Laugh" Koki Mitani,  2011
• ”As You Like It” William Shakespeare, Marjanishvili State Drama Theatre, Premiere was held in Shakespeare’s Globe To Globe Theatre in  May  2012
• “Il Decameron” Giovanni Boccaccio, 2011
• “Lady with a Dog” After Anton Chekhov story “Lady with a Dog”,   2009
• “Le Ronde” Arthur Schnitzler, 2007
• “Kakutsa Cholokashvili “Guram Kartvelishvili , 2006

The performances in the Basement Theatre:

• “The Other Moon” Levan Tsuladze  -  2005
• “The Snake – Eater”   after Vaja –Pshavela  poem the “Snake-Eater” -  2005
• “Khanuma”  Avksenti Tsagareli – 2004
• “The Merchant of Venice”  William Shakespeare – 2002
• “Metamorphosis”  France Kafka  -  2001
•  “Wedding of Figaro” Pierre Beaumarchais-  2001
• “Faust”  Goethe  -  2000
• “The Three Penny Opera”  Berthold Brecht  -  1998

INTERNATIONAL WORKS:

2011 - Azerbaijan, Baku National Theatre, performance “Don Juan or Love of Geometry”, Max Frisch
2011 - Macedonia, Skopje, Macedonian National Theatre, performance “The Marriage of Figaro”, Pierre Beaumarchais
2011 – Joint Project - Mercury Theatre, Colchester (UK) and Kote Marjanishvili State Drama Theatre (Georgia) "Captain Corelli's Mandolin", Louis de Bernières
2012 -  UK, Festival "Globe to Globe" , performance "As you like it", William Shakespeare
2014 - Kote Marjanishvili State Drama Theatre and Emilia Romagna Teatro Fondazione Co-Production (GEORGIA - ITALY), "The Mad Man's Diary", Nikolai Gogol
2015 – Greece, Athens, Anesis Theatre, performance "Crime and Punishment", Fyodor Dostoyevsky

HONORS AND AWARDS:

2016 - "Athinorama" Award 2016, Best Director Levan Tsuladze 'Crime and Punishment', Anesis Theatre, Athens, Greece
2015 - National Award for the performance "As You Like It", William Shakespeare
2015 - Independent Theater award “DURUJI” for best directing, performance "The Mad Man's Diary", Nikolai Gogol
2013 - Award of Excellence
2012 - Prize of Theater Union (Georgia) for best directing.  Performance "University of Laugh", Koki Mitani
2011 - Independent Theater award “DURUJI” for best directing, performance "University of Laugh", Koki Mitani
2009 - Independent Theater award “DURUJI” for best directing, performance "Lady With a Dog", Anton Chekhov
2008 - Kote Marjanishvili award  for performance "Kvarkvare" (Rustavi Municipal Theatre), for the best stage direction
2006 - Presidential "Medal of Honor" for achievements  in theater
2005 - Prize of Theater Union (Georgia)  for best directing,  performance "Khanuma"

The performances of Levan Tsuladze were invited to different Festivals and toured in UK, Germany, Italy, Yugoslavia, Poland, Lithuania, Belarus Romania, Israel, Bulgaria, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Russia, USA, France, Korea and Tunis with big success.