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<\/p>\nMOSCOW (Voice of Russia): Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that about 600 professional theaters in Russia are operating under state sponsorship, and that a new strategy is being prepared for the development of theater in the country. He has also proposed giving creative organizations a special legal status, protecting the rights of their members, and creating an effective system of financial support.<\/p>\n
On October 22, a special ceremony was held in Moscow on the occasion of the 150th anniversary and the tenth congress of Russia’s Union of Theatre Workers, which President Putin attended. At the congress, a decision was taken to restore the organization’s historical name and rename it the Russian Theatre Society.<\/p>\n
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During the ceremony, President Putin awarded the organization the state decoration, the Order for Merits in Culture and Art, in recognition of its outstanding services to the promotion of Russian theater and the arts. The award was received by the organization’s chairman, the well-known Russian actor Vladimir Mashkov.<\/p>\n
Addressing the ceremony, President Putin said the history of Russian theater spans many centuries. He recalled that Russia’s first professional theater was founded by Fyodor Volkov in the city of Yaroslavl, where thousands of people came to watch the plays of its permanent troupe of artists.<\/p>\n
According to the Russian president, today about 600 professional theaters in the country are working with state support, and the state patronage enjoyed by theater in Russia is a unique example of its kind.<\/p>\n
He said Russian theater has combined within itself various arts including literature, music, painting and dance, and has played an important role in shaping the country’s cultural identity.<\/p>\n
President Putin said that even cinema, television and the internet have not been able to replace theater. According to him, theater’s greatest quality is the direct connection between artists and audiences, which links viewers to the emotions and experiences of the play’s characters.<\/p>\n
Referring to the renowned Russian director Mark Zakharov, he said that in Russian theater a person gets the opportunity to think, laugh and cry at the same time.<\/p>\n
The Russian president said the popularity of theater is increasing today, and not only in Moscow or other big cities but in various regional theaters too, plays are attracting large numbers of spectators.<\/p>\n
He said most of Russia’s professional theaters receive financial support from federal, regional or municipal budgets, which is extremely important for the country’s cultural unity and the promotion of shared human values.<\/p>\n
President Putin also welcomed investment by private businesses in theater projects, saying such activities should receive state support in an organized manner.<\/p>\n
Discussing cultural policy, he said a state cultural strategy up to 2030 is in force in Russia, while strategies for the development of libraries and creative industries have also been approved.<\/p>\n
He said that on the same lines, a new development strategy is also being prepared for the theater sector, aimed at making the joint efforts of the government, society and theater professionals more effective.<\/p>\n
Describing theater as an important institution for passing traditional values on to the new generation, President Putin said its role is not limited to entertainment alone but is also of fundamental importance in education, upbringing and the formation of moral consciousness.<\/p>\n
He said theater is not merely a cultural institution but a means of creative thinking, imagination and searching for the meaning of life.<\/p>\n
Giving special importance to theater’s effects on the younger generation, the Russian president said the ideas and values that artists and directors create in the minds and hearts of young people will play a role in shaping the Russia of the future.<\/p>\n
Welcoming the restoration of the organization’s historical name, President Putin said this organization, founded in 1876 for the mutual assistance of Russian artists, has over time played an important role in the development of theater, support for artists and the preservation of cultural traditions.<\/p>\n
He also congratulated Vladimir Mashkov on being re-elected to lead the organization.<\/p>\n
Discussing the current legal structure of creative organizations, President Putin said that because of certain legal restrictions, these organizations are unable to help their members, especially retired artists, or to fully benefit from opportunities to participate in state projects.<\/p>\n
He proposed that creative organizations be given a special status through law so that they can play a more effective role in shaping state projects, protect the creative, employment and social rights of their members, and have access to clear mechanisms of financial support.<\/p>\n
At the ceremony, President Putin handed over the state award, given to the organization in recognition of its services in the field of culture and the arts, to its chairman Vladimir Mashkov.<\/p>\n
Vladimir Mashkov thanked President Putin for the award and said the Russian Theatre Society includes not only artists but also the government, partners, friends and theater-loving audiences.<\/p>\n
On the occasion, he also presented President Putin with the Russian Theatre Society’s honorary badge No. 1, recreated in the style of the original badge of the historical organization founded in 1876.<\/p>\n
Receiving the award, President Putin said in a pleasant tone that at the start of his speech he had given up the intention of addressing the audience as colleagues, but now, after this award, he can call them his colleagues.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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