On December 2, 2017, the “House of Hovhannes Tumanyan” Center for Science and Culture of the Armenian Diocese in Georgia hosted a meeting with theater lovers. The meeting was dedicated to the topic of the people’s theatre performance group.

In attendance were artists of different nationalities, appreciators of theater, students from Akhalkalaki and Ninotsminda studying at different higher education institutions of Tbilisi.

The occasion was honored with the presence of the Primate of the Armenian Diocese in Georgia, His Grace Bishop Vazgen Mirzakhanyan.

Director of the Center Gisane Hovsepyan gave opening remarks. She invited literary critic and musician Artyom Grigorents to serve as a master of ceremonies. This time he presented himself as an artistic director of a drama school. This drama school is called By-pass Lane, according to its founding in the Avlabari neighborhood of historical Tbilisi, where the Armenian writer Nar Dos lived and worked. In this drama school the rehearsals of the amateur theater take place.

During the meeting the attendees exchanged views on the traditions of amateur theatre; there was a time when it was providing beginning actors with training, it was a professional actor’s forge.

Afterwards, the video clips of amateur theater’s performances were shown, where people of different professions play the roles, including teacher Garry Ghalamkarov, mechanical engineer Irina Grigoryan, who performed Artyom Grigorents’s “Let’s hope”. The thing to note here is that the play has been translated into Armenian by Gisane Hovsepyan and published in “Dramaturgy” magazine in Yerevan. Born in Javakheti Karine Khodikyan is the editor of the magazine.

Poet Vladimir Sarishvili, filmmaker Tengiz Malania, composer Irakli Tsintsadze, research scientist Samvel Mkrtchyan offered their comments on amateur theatre.

In his closing remarks, the Primate of the Armenian Diocese in Georgia, His Grace Bishop Vazgen Mirzakhanyan expressed his satisfaction, highly appreciated the acting of the amateur actors and Artyom Grigorents’s respectable mission. The Bishop noted that such activity requires every possible support.

The attendees were inspired by the meeting to continue the mission and to keep the group’s enthusiasm alive.