Makhachkala

Lak Music and Drama Theatre of E.Kapiev

since 2001

Lak Theatre is one of Dagestan's national theatres. It all began in 1914 in the mountain village of Kumukh with the premiere of the first Dagestan play "Tinkers" ("Ludilshciki") created by Garun Saidov. It’s a social drama about challenging life and work conditions, still relevant today. The birth of national drama contributed a lot to the emergence of the national theatres. Since 1925 the national theatres of Avar, Kumyk, Lezgian, and Laks have been developing actively. In 1935 the Lak State Drama Theatre was officially opened.  ​​In 1964 graduates of the Lak studio at The Boris Shchukin Theatre College joined the Lak Theatre. They greatly contributed to its professional advancement. Professional directing and playwriting flourished extremely in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1970 the Lak Theatre moved to the capital of the Dagestan Republic – Makhachkala.  Currently, the Lak Theatre continues to elaborate theatre art and stages performances in both the Lak and Russian languages. The theatre successfully participates in international and all-Russian festivals and receives awards.