Georgiy Isaakyan

The head of the studio of musical theatre of the Russian University of Theatre Arts (GITIS). Honoured Art Worker of Russia, Laureate of the Government Prize of the Russian Federation (Feodor Volkov Prize) for the contribution to the development of the Russian theatrical art, of the “Golden Mask” National Theatre Award, of the Perm and Sverdlovsk Governors Prize for the contribution to culture, of “Ballet” Magazine’s Prize “The Soul of Dance” in the nomination “The Knight of Ballet”.

Was born in Yerevan, Armenia. Graduated from special music school named after P. I. Tchaikovsky under Komitas State Conservatory of Yerevan on a class of violin, theory of music and composition. In 1991 he graduated from the Moscow State Academy of Theatre Arts, the faculty of music theatre (course of Professor V. Kurochkin). In 1989–1991 worked as a director and teacher at the department of opera singing at the Yerevan State Conservatory, where he staged his graduation work – opera “Anush” by A. Tigranyan. Since 1991 — the production director, since 1996 — the principal director, since 2001 — the artistic director of the Perm State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre named after P. I. Tchaikovsky. In 2003–2011 — the initiator and the artistic director of the International Festival “Djagilev seasons: Perm-Petersburg-Paris”. Since 2010 – the artistic director of the Moscow State Opera and Ballet Theatre for Children and Young Audience named after Natalia Sats.

Staged a number of productions abroad: “Madama Butterfly” by G. Puccini (Dublin, Irish National Opera House), “Die Fledermaus” by J. Strauss (Latvian National Opera, Riga), “Don Carlo” by G. Verdi (Sakai-city-opera, Osaka, Japan), “La Boheme” by G. Puccini (Belarus State Opera, Minsk), “Almast” by A. Spendiarov (Yerevan National Opera, Armenia).

At the Yelets city open-air stage G. Isaakyan has staged opera “The Legend of the Ancient Town of Yelets, the Virgin Mary and Tamerlane” (by A. Tchaikovsky) that became the world premiere of this piece. G. Isaakyan was the Artistic Director of the “Opera/GULAG” — the joint project of the Perm Opera and Ballet Theatre and the Museum of Political Repression “Perm-36”. In the frame of this project he has staged opera “Fidelio” by Ludwig van Beethoven.

In 2014, Georgiy Isaakyan was elected the President of the Musical Theatres Association. In 2015, he joined the Board of Opera Europe. In 2016, he initiated arrangement of the annual All-Russian Festival of Musical Theatres “TO SEE MUSIC” and the LEGEND prize. In 2017, the Children Musical Theatre named after Natalia Sats under the direction of Georgiy Isaakyan received OPERA AWARDS, the European “opera OSCAR”.