Robert Sturua—an Ambassador of Georgian Theatre on the Global Stage

Marina (Maka) Vasadze*

The Caucasian Chalk Circle. Play by Bertolt Brecht. Directed by Robert Sturua. Set Design by Gеorgi Alexi-Meskhishvili, Composer: Gia Kancheli. Choreography by Y. Zaretski. Premiere at Rustaveli National Theatre in Tbilisi, Georgia, in 1975.

Fifty years ago Bertolt Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle introduced Georgian theatre to the world. The show’s run lasted till 2002. It was directed by Robert Sturua.

I will briefly outline the defining features of Robert Sturua’s directorial language, explore the phenomenon of his theatre in general, and explain why audiences and professionals from various countries have recognized The Caucasian Chalk Circle (1975) and Richard III (1978) as most outstanding productions. Consequently, I will discuss why Robert Sturua can be regarded as the global ambassador of Georgian theatre, which, in my view, constitutes an important aspect of cultural diplomacy.

Georgi Alexi-Meskhisvili’s poster. Photo: Yuri Mechitov, courtesy of the Rustaveli National Theatre Museum

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Rustaveli Theatre—specifically Robert Sturua’s productions of The Caucasian Chalk Circle and Richard III—broke through the Soviet Union’s political and cultural barriers, bringing international recognition to the director, the Rustaveli National Theatre, and Georgian theatre as a whole. As the director remarked in an interview, beyond talent and hard work, an artist also needs a stroke of luck.

Robert Sturua in 1980. Photo: Yuri Mechitov, courtesy of the Rustaveli National Theatre Museum

Following a successful tour in Moscow (1978), the capital of the Soviet Union, which functioned to some extent as a “censor”, Sturua and the Rustaveli Theatre were allowed to tour Europe (1979), an opportunity exceptionally rare at the time. Since then, the theatre has toured across the continents of Eurasia, America and Australia to enthusiastic applause for these truly brilliant productions.

Robert Sturua’s production of Bertolt Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle premiered in 1975. Since then, the production has been performed numerous times in Georgia and abroad: it remained in the Rustaveli’s repertoire till 2002. Personally, I have seen The Caucasian Chalk Circle at least 30 times over the years. Each time, the performance filled me with hope for the future. Based on the principles of market-square theatre, the traditional Georgian performing school, Brecht’s Alienation, elements of transformation and improvisation were present in the actors’ performance. Watching each performance, I could discover new details in the actors’ play, which, of course, was in accordance with the task set by the director. The best example of this was Ramaz Chkhikvadze’s Judge’s aria, which the actor performed with a variety of nuances. Ramaz Chkhikvadze’s Azdak attracted me more and more with his immense humanity. The essence of justice in this homeless sage was not that he helped the poor and judged the rich, but that he judged no one.

From the late 1960s onward, there was a shift in worldview as young artists began seeking and creating theatre productions based on fundamentally new conceptual and aesthetic principles. In Georgian theatre, Robert Sturua spearheaded these changes: his work embodied the contradictory tendencies characteristic of postmodernism, which found expression in widespread criticism and revisionism.

The Caucasian Chalk Circle marked Robert Sturua’s second encounter with Brecht’s work; previously, in 1969, he had staged The Good Person of Szechwan, but this staging was not artistically successful. In The Caucasian Chalk Circle, Sturua combined Brecht’s principles of epic theatre, Mikhail Bakhtin’s theory of the carnivalesque, and Georgian theatrical and performing traditions. Robert Sturua’s inclination toward public discourse and the synthesis of poetic language, music and dance found its highest artistic expression in this production. Throughout his subsequent work, Sturua continued to explore the interplay of various styles, genres and performance techniques.

The narrator (Zhanri Lolashvili) helps Grushe (Tatuli Dolidze) “find the way”. Photo: Yuri Mechitov, courtesy of the Rustaveli National Theatre Museum

The director offered a free, innovative montage of Brecht’s play. He removed the prologue, replaced the singer with a narrator, eliminated the group of musicians, and assigned the dramaturgical weight to the narrator. While the text was shortened, the core principles of Brecht’s dramatic theory were maintained. The production began like a kind of Carnival parade, opening through a gate swung open by the narrator, accompanied by his song: “Buy, buy whatever you like.” Actor-characters then entered the stage dancing. This was not merely a narrative beginning; it immediately set the artistic style of the performance and created a specific mood for the audience. Sturua created an elevated, lively performance full of subtle humor, skillfully blending grotesque and realism. By parodying stereotypical Soviet acting styles and varying the rhythm, he helped actors achieve a level of mastery at which their performance could be seen as free improvisation.

Ramaz Chkhikvadze’s Azdak was a clear embodiment of Brecht’s theoretical principles, brilliantly combining poetic and prosaic elements, fantasy and reality, intellect and emotion. The play focuses on the transformation of the character Grushe, her difficult struggle to save her child. Throughout the story, her humanity was put to test in different circumstances. In the end, through this journey of self-formation, she embraces the creed of life—“to sow goodness.” Like Grushe, Azdak is also a bearer of goodness, and, ultimately, their very different paths naturally converge.

L-R Grushe (Iza Gigoshvili), Azdak (Ramaz Chkhikvadze,) Netela (Marina Tbileli), Azdak decrees that the child Mikheil belongs to the woman who manages to win him over. Photo: Yuri Mechitov, courtesy of the Rustaveli National Theatre Museum

The finale of the production also took the form of a kind of Carnival parade but with a different conceptual weight than at the beginning. In this closing sequence, the director distilled the essence of the play’s message: that all things rightfully belong to those who sow goodness. This mirrored structure—the beginning and end—served to seamlessly bind the performance into a unified artistic statement.

Sturua constructed the structure of the production with mathematical precision. The chain of events was woven so seamlessly that each link harmoniously connected to the next, without anything superfluous or tedious. This was a performance rich in social and political commentary, brought to life through the use of folk theatre masks, metaphorical and symbolic imagery, and infused with a carnivalesque spirit of exuberance.

One more notable fact: the production did not use Paul Dessau’s original music for the songs (zongs). This nearly caused a scandal, as Brecht’s heirs even considered taking legal action. However, after seeing the performance, they abandoned the idea altogether—they were so impressed by Gia Kancheli’s music composed for the songs, and by the overall production itself.

Sketch for the set by Gеorgi Alexi-Meskhishvili. Photo: Yuri Mechitov, courtesy of the Rustaveli National Theatre Museum

Robert Sturua has directed more than 100 productions in Georgia and abroad—from classical masterpieces to modern and contemporary drama, including more than twenty plays by Shakespeare. Robert Sturua’s “polystylistic” theatre is marked by text montage, often omitting scenes and using film-like editing techniques. He transforms characters to give actions polemical resonance, uses metaphorical behavior, and arranges stage space with mathematical precision. His sets and props carry dense symbolic meaning, while performances blend styles, fusing psychological depth with irony and theatrical expressiveness. Music functions narratively, like dialogue or movement, with multiple themes serving distinct dramaturgical roles. His work features choreographic structures, color symbolism, eclectic costumes, dynamic narration, temporal ambiguity and a blurred line between reality and theatrical convention—key traits of postmodernism that define his unique theatrical language.

Robert Sturua’s artistic career is primarily associated with the Rustaveli National Theatre, where he staged his earliest productions and where he continues to work to this day. At the age of 87, he staged a production based on one of the greatest works of the Georgian cultural revival, the 12th-century epic poem The Knight in the Panther’s Skin by Shota Rustaveli, which premiered in November 2025.

*Marina (Maka) Vasadze Theatre Critic, Dr. of Arts, Associate Professor at Shota Rustaveli Theatre and Film Georgia State University, head of publishing house Kentavri at the same University, Secretary of the International Association of Theatre Critics (AICT-IATC) Georgian section, author of several monographs, textbooks, auxiliary textbooks for students and more than 300 articles. In 2022, she was awarded the prize for Best Review of the Year by the Georgian Theatrical Society’s annual competition. In 2024, awarded the Valerian Gunia Prize by the Georgian Theatrical Society for her book The Semiotics of Robert Sturua’s Theatrical Language.

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