Up to ten actors have been dismissed from the Kote Marjanishvili State Academic Drama Theatre in Tbilisi. Information about this is being shared on social media by now-former members of the troupe. There have been no official comments from the theatre yet, UNN reports, citing "News Georgia."
According to media reports, those dismissed include Ninaka Gelashvili, Guram Jashi, Zaza Iakashvili, Natia Gubenko, Maia Katsitadze, Irakli Cholokashvili, and Eka Nizharadze. Some of them had spent 30 years at the Marjanishvili Theatre, the country's leading drama theatre.
According to the actors, in January, the usual one-year contracts were unexpectedly replaced with three-month ones. When the term expired, the administration simply did not renew them—without explanation.
The publication notes that versions of the reasons vary. Cholokashvili suggests insufficient involvement in the repertoire. Gubenko calls what is happening "repressions" and directly hints at a political subtext.
In recent years, the theatrical community has actively participated in anti-government protests. Against this backdrop, artistic directors began to be replaced in state theatres, and talk of censorship became increasingly frequent within the industry.
Since 2024, the Marjanishvili troupe has been led by Gogi Margvelashvili, an appointee of then-Minister of Culture Tea Tsulukiani. She has been repeatedly criticized for pressuring the sector and persecuting dissenters.