Ganja State Drama Theatre
Azerbaijani-language repertory theatre in Ganja, housed in an 1886 building converted in the 1930s.
The company was founded in Baku on 13 November 1921 under the name Tanqid-Tabligh and moved to Ganja in December 1932, bringing performers such as Ismayil Talibli and Fatma Gadri with it. Amateur and semi-professional Azerbaijani theatre had existed in the city since 1899, when local enthusiasts staged their first plays, and a Muslim drama assembly followed in 1906. Between 1964 and 1990 the theatre carried the name of the playwright Jafar Jabbarly.
Its home was put up in 1886 by the German entrepreneur Christopher Forer as a wine store and was converted for stage use between 1932 and 1936. The auditorium seats 366, with a studio hall of about 120 places for smaller work. The repertoire mixes Azerbaijani classics and new writing with translated European drama, and the company has toured to festivals in Ufa, Ukraine, Turkey and Georgia. A larger purpose-built theatre on the bank of the Ganja River has been under construction since 2014.
Highlights
- Company founded in 1921 and resident in Ganja since 1932
- Auditorium of 366 seats plus a 120-seat studio hall
- Building of 1886, originally a wine store by Christopher Forer
- Azerbaijani classics staged alongside translated European drama
