Ostrovsky Academic Drama Theatre, Professional theater in Oral, Kazakhstan

The Ostrovsky Academic Drama Theatre occupies a building erected in 1940 on the site of the former Pushkin House in Oral. Its hall seats 305 spectators, and the resident troupe numbers 30 actors. The theatre is named after Alexander Ostrovsky, whose plays have opened every season as a tradition.

The theater was founded in 1859 under Arkadi Stolypin with an inaugural production of a comedy by Ostrovsky. During World War II, it collaborated with evacuated theater companies from Belarus and Karelia-Finland, expanding its repertoire.

Each season opens with a new production of a play by Alexander Ostrovsky, whose name the theatre has carried since 1960. Its repertoire also includes Kazakh drama, such as Mukhtar Auezov's works staged here, and the comedy "The Forest" won the Yelikgul second-degree prize in Almaty around International Theatre Day.

The theater stages performances regularly throughout the year, making it easy to catch a show at almost any time. Performances are primarily in Russian, and the location in the city center is convenient for visiting.

In 1919 a fire destroyed the theatre building, and performances moved into the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral until the present building rose in 1940 on the site of the former Pushkin House. The company had already played through artillery shelling during the Civil War, staging Schiller's "The Robbers" and "Intrigue and Love".