Shota Rustaveli National Academic Theater

Why is it significant?

Pause before the theatrical extravaganza of the Shota Rustaveli National Academic Theater, one of the most ornate and prestigious performing arts palaces in Eastern Europe.

Key Facts

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Pause before the theatrical extravaganza of the Shota Rustaveli National Academic Theater, one of the most ornate and prestigious performing arts palaces in Eastern Europe. Built between 1898 and 1901 by architects Cornell Tatishchev and Aleksander Szymkiewicz, the building originally housed the Artists' Society of Tiflis. Its flamboyant facade is a tour de force of late nineteenth-century eclecticism, blending French Rococo flourishes, Italian Baroque pilasters, and whimsical Art Nouveau sculptural mascarons.

Examine the theatrical stone reliefs adorning the exterior, where sculpted comedy and tragedy masks, chimera gargoyles, and mythical harpies perch above the arched windows. Step into the opulent lower foyer to discover the famous subterranean bohemian cafe, known as Kimerioni. In 1919, the vaulted ceilings of Kimerioni were painted with whimsical murals by avant-garde masters Lado Gudiashvili, David Kakabadze, and Kirill Zdanevich, becoming the legendary gathering place of the Blue Horns symbolist poets. The magnificent main auditorium is crowned by an ornate painted ceiling depicting the nine classical Muses celebrating dramatic arts in golden splendor.

In the 1920s and 1930s, visionary director Sandro Akhmeteli pioneered radical theatrical constructivism here, fusing Georgian folk rhythm with dynamic staging to international acclaim. Tragically, Akhmeteli was executed during the Stalinist purges of 1937 as an enemy of the people. Decades later, legendary director Robert Sturua revived the theater's global fame with groundbreaking productions of Shakespeare's Richard III and The Caucasian Chalk Circle, performing to standing ovations in London, Paris, and Edinburgh.

The gilded auditorium with its tiered red-velvet balconies and crystal chandelier radiates palpable theatrical glamour and creative electricity. For over a century, this historic stage has served as the dynamic forum where the Georgian soul explored its greatest philosophical dilemmas and cultural triumphs. The Rustaveli Theater remains an undisputed temple of world-class dramatic art.

Stroll two blocks north along Rustaveli Avenue to reach the breathtaking Moorish facade of the Tbilisi Opera.