National Festival "Musical Heart of the Theatre" 2025: St. Petersburg Platform of Contemporary Musical Theatre

On October 28, 2025, a press conference was held in St. Petersburg dedicated to the launch of the National Festival and the Musical Heart of the Theatre Award, the world’s only professional initiative dedicated to modern musical theater. The event was gathered by prominent figures of the Russian musical theater scene: Head of the Department of State Support for Art and External Relations of the Committee for Culture of St. Petersburg Elena Lavrinovich, founder and artistic director of the St. Petersburg State Children's Musical Theater "Karambol" Irina Brondz, Director of the St. Petersburg State Musical Theater. F.I. Shalyapina Yulia Strizhak, director of “Captain’s Daughter” Igor Konyaev, lead actor Ivan Ozhogin, as well as composer, People’s Artist of Russia Maxim Dunaevsky (President of the festival), General Producer Dmitry Kalantarov and others.

Within the framework of the festival, which takes place in major Russian regions, in 2025, musical performances of the leading theaters of the country will be screened in St. Petersburg (the poster includes groups from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg, Barnaul, Omsk and other cities). The shortlist includes 14 performances, and 157 academicians will vote for the winners.

Participants emphasized the importance of the festival for the popularization of modern musical theater, noting its scale, uniqueness and support from various institutions (Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives, Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, Union of Theatre Workers of the Russian Federation and regional governments).

The culmination of the festival will be the solemn ceremony of awarding the Musical Heart of the Theatre award (November 24 at the State Chamber Musical Theatre “St. Petersburg Opera”) with the participation of the stars of the musical genre (Maxim Dunaevsky, Dmitry Kharatyan, etc.) and the final jukebox musical “Dunaevsky”. Double portrait. The 2025 Festival is not only a competition, but also a master classes, a business program and an opportunity for regional theaters to demonstrate their achievements.