Astana Musical Theater, the first musical theater in Central Asia, was created on the basis of the “Kazakh Concert” State Concert Organization of the Ministry of Culture and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The theater was established in 2016.
The young troupe of Astana Musical Theater is focused on the latest trends and has a unique repertoire of world-famous and national musicals. Actors of Astana Musical Theater are winners of republican and international competitions.
From 2016 to 2019, Askhat Maymirov (a teacher, a PhD in Cultural Studies, and an Honored Worker of the Republic of Kazakhstan) was the theater’s artistic director.
In April 2019, Eslyam Nurtazin (the winner of the Prize of the First President Foundation, a PhD, and a teacher) was appointed the artistic director of the theater.
This is an experimental musical, where scenes of national traditions are used as a setting for a theatrical production. The creative team combined costumes and set decorations in the national style with up-to-date technologies. The expressive means of modern theater, creative choreography, and new renditions of folk music were also used. Spectators watch the performance sitting in a yurt – a Kazakh national dwelling and a symbol of unity.
In February 2021, after a long hiatus, the theatre staged “UNT”, a social drama based on the play by the Russian playwright Lyudmila Razumovskaya. The play was translated into Kazakh by Esim Segzbaev.
In February 2021, the theater also presented “COVID-19” dance performance. “COVID-19” is a reflection on eternal values, the mental state of a person during quarantine, the absurd actions and beliefs of some people, and the pain of loss of loved ones.
In 2017, under the Rukhani Zhangyru program, the Astana Musical Theater went on an international tour, which included Paris, Berlin, Vienna, Brussels, and Moscow. Astana Musical presented the original, modern interpretation of the “Kyz Zhibek” musical by Evgeny Brusilovsky.
In November 2019, the theater toured in the city of Istanbul (Turkey) with the experimental musical performance “Shagyrak.”
In 2018, under the “Modern Kazakhstani Culture in the Global World” Project, the Astana Musical Theater took part in the prestigious Avignon Festival.
In 2018, the theater also took part in the “ASTANA” II World Theater Festival with the “Kyz Zhibek” ethno-folklore musical by Evgeny Brusilovsky.
In June 2021, the theater participated in the Elorda – Oner Ulkesi Festival performing Lyudmila Razumovskaya’s “UNT.” The festival was held in honor of the 30th anniversary of the Independence of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Day of the Capital.
