Activities

Cultural

Abovyan Drama Theatre

Kotayk

Theatre in Abovyan began in the 1980s, when the town’s first acting company opened at the House of Culture with “Charley’s Aunt,” produced by Sasha Gharakhanyan. In the late 1980s young members joined, studied at theatre schools in Armenia, and some went on to work professionally. The theatre itself dates its history from 1980. It is now run by the Abovyan Drama Theatre Foundation. Current productions are directed by Armen Sargsyan, who was named artistic director in 2020. The current repertoire mixes children’s and adult work. It includes Nar-Dos’s “I and He,” Goldoni’s “The Servant of Two Masters,” “Treasure Island,” “Masha and the Bear,” and a musical version of Tumanyan’s “The Dog and the Cat.” Performances are scheduled for October 2026.

Cultural

Hrazdan Drama Theatre

Kotayk

Founded in 1953, the theatre has had actors such as Vahram Papazyan, Hrachya Nersisyan, Mher Mkrtchyan, Armen Khostikyan, Kim Yeritsyan and Ishkhan Gharibyan on its stage. Today it operates as the “Hrazdan Drama Theatre – Cultural Center” under director Vahagn Margaryan.

Cultural

Alaverdi Puppet Theatre

Lori

The theatre was founded in 2013 by director Levon Sadaghyan, a 2009 graduate of the Yerevan State Institute of Theatre and Cinematography. Alaverdi municipality supported it, and Counterpart International sponsored it. It began at the Sanahin Plateau Palace of Culture and worked as a touring theatre from 2013 to 2015. Its first production, “Tales of Lori,” based on Tumanyan’s fairy tales, played in about 35 communities in Lori and Tavush, as well as in Gyumri, Vanadzor and Yerevan.

Cultural

Bohem Chamber Theatre (Vanadzor)

Lori

Bohem was founded in 1993. It is now a municipal non-profit organization. Its director is Heriknaz Baghdasaryan, and its company includes Aramayis Sargsyan, an Honored Art Worker of Armenia. The theatre is active. In September 2026 it premiered “The Last Stop,” based on Anna Petrosyan’s play “The Urn.” The play follows an emigrant family in the USA, where the father’s dying wish to be buried in Armenia sets his widow and son against each other. In March 2026 the company staged “The Fence” on the stage of the Vanadzor Puppet Theatre. The Lori regional administration also lists a “Vanadzor Chamber Theatre” at Tigran Mets Ave. 2, the address of the Charles Aznavour Palace of Culture

Cultural

Vanadzor Puppet Theatre

Lori

In 1992, actor Sergey Melikyan and a group of enthusiasts turned a Soviet-era flower shop into a puppet theatre. The curtain first opened two years later with Tumanyan’s “The Dog and the Cat.” In the years that followed, the theatre toured villages and towns across the region, took part in international festivals, and visited Armenian communities abroad. Sevak Sargsyan became its artistic director and director in 2020. The theatre traditionally works with rod puppets. After it reopened in 2021, it staged “Doctor Aibolit,” its first production with floor puppets, where actors and puppets share the stage in full view. In 2022 it marked its 30th anniversary with a new staging of “How the Dog and the Cat Quarrelled.” For that anniversary the municipality fully rebuilt the building; during the works the theatre performed at the Charles Aznavour Palace of Culture.

Cultural

Vanadzor Hovhannes Abelyan State Drama Theatre

Lori

The theatre opened in 1931 as the State Theatre of Gharakilisa (Vanadzor’s old name) and was the third theatre in Armenia. Before it was founded, actors toured the region in amateur troupes. One of them, Hovhannes Abelyan, helped them so much that the new theatre was named after him.Over the years the stage hosted major actors such as Vahram Papazyan, Hrachya Nersisyan and Arus Voskanyan. The 1980s were the theatre’s peak. It toured Chekhov’s “Three Sisters” to France, Lithuania, Portugal and Latvia, and it kept working after the 1988 earthquake. It also kept working through the 1990s, when the roof leaked and there was no heating. The theatre works with the Vanadzor branch of the Yerevan State Institute of Theatre and Cinematography, whose students often appear in its productions. Its repertoire covers classical, world, Armenian and contemporary drama.

Cultural

Mher Mkrtchyan Artistic Theatre

Yerevan

The Mher Mkrtchyan Artistic Theatre was founded in 1986 through the efforts of the beloved actor Mher (Frunzik) Mkrtchyan. It was originally named after director Vardan Ajemyan. It opened with Marcel Pagnol’s “The Baker’s Wife,” which Mkrtchyan staged himself while playing the title role. That part became his swan song, and after his death in 1993, the theatre was renamed in his honor. From 2000 until 2018, it was led by his brother, film director Albert Mkrtchyan. The theatre is located at 18 Khorenatsi Street and is run by the municipality. In 2024, it was fully renovated, with a new 160-seat stage and modern lighting and sound, and reopened with Yevgeny Schwartz’s “An Ordinary Miracle.” What you can do there: see Armenian-language comedies and dramas in an intimate, newly renovated hall dedicated to one of Armenia’s most beloved actors

Cultural

Hrachya Ghaplanyan Drama Theatre

Yerevan

The Yerevan Drama Theatre named after Hrachya Ghaplanyan was founded in 1967 by the director whose name it bears. It opened with Ghaplanyan’s own staging of Vishnevsky’s “Optimistic Tragedy.” The theatre is located at 28 Isahakyan Street in the Kentron district and is run by the Yerevan municipality. A statue of its founder stands in the lobby. Since 1986 the artistic director has been People’s Artist of Armenia Armen Khandikyan. The theatre has toured to festivals in Georgia, Russia, Poland, Hungary, the UK and the USA, winning numerous awards. What you can do there: see classic Armenian plays alongside contemporary and international drama, performed by one of Yerevan’s most established troupes.