The Maly Drama Theatre was founded in 1944, when most theatres in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) had been relocated due to the war. Set up by the local executive committee, the theatre, small in size at first, mainly toured the towns and villages nearby, almost little-known in the urban area.

In 1973, Yefim Padve was invited to serve as Chief Director at the theatre. He invited a number of renowned playwrights and young directors to work with the theatre, including Lev Dodin, who later became world-famous.

With his distinctive art language and superb directing skills, Dodin promptly won widespread acclaim from both the public and critics by virtue of his first few directorial works. He also drew high attention for staging the works about real Soviet life, including Dom (The House), adapted from a novel by Fedor Aleksandrovich Abramov.

In 1985, his directorial work, Brothers and Sisters, authored by Abramov, had its successful premiere. Then it toured the world, becoming one of the most internationally recognised works of Theatre.

In 1983, Dodin was officially appointed Artistic Director of Maly Drama Theatre. After that, the theatre became a leading ensemble in Russia’s theatrical circles. Meanwhile, it earned a wide reputation in the international theatre community with its creative and distinctive stage productions.

Now the theatre is home to a company of 57 staff members. In addition to giving regular performances in St. Petersburg, the theatre is often invited to major theatre festivals held around the world. It has performed in over 60 cities across Europe, Australia, the Americas and Southeast Asia.

In 1998, the theatre was awarded the title of “Theatre of Europe” at the the Union of European Theatres for its remarkable artistic achievements.