Pyotr Fomenko Workshop Theater: The Old Man and the Sea

Based on the novel of the same name by Ernest Hemingway, running time: 1 h, prime October 31, 2025
Ticket price range 1000—15000 rub.

Author —
Director, set design, author of the dramatization — Ivan Shalayev
Lighting designer — Nanna Shekh
Set Design Assistant — Varvara Baboshina
Composer — Aliya Grishel
Choreographer — Aleksander Nikolayev
Assistant Director — Maria Bessonova

Trials and Errors is an experimental programme at the Pyotr Fomenko Workshop Theatre, where actors and directors explore new ideas, texts, and theatrical forms. The most successful productions become part of the theatre’s repertoire.

Upcoming Performances

November, 1, 20:00

November, 12, 20:00

December, 2, 20:00

December, 16, 20:00

On October 31, 2025, the Pyotr Fomenko Workshop Theatre needed nothing more than two delicate white feathers, a single long rope, a metal barrel and a dozen battered cans to tell one of the most dramatic stories in world literature. What else was there? The old man Santiago, the boy Manolin — and a boundless sea of talent and imagination. I think Hemingway would have liked what they did here with his final work.: Natalia Romanova, Zvezdy Megapolisa

In the intimate space of the stage, free of cumbersome scenery, Ivan Shalayev creates a rich, multifaceted world using only minimalist yet expressive means, where every element contributes to an image full of meaning: nothing exists merely for its own sake; everything becomes a sign, a metaphor, a spark for the audience’s imagination. […] Through movement, light and sound, the production conveys the tension of a confrontation lasting many hours, in which the old man and the fish emerge as two equally powerful forces of nature.: Irina Priko, Musecube.org

The production is stylish, unexpected and fascinating. […] Goryachev’s old man is strikingly different from the Santiago I had imagined after reading the book. His old man is hardly an old man at all, but a tightly wound bundle of muscle and nerves. And that makes it all the more compelling to watch as this bundle first winds the ropes around himself, then sheds them — and layer after layer of himself — until he is emotionally stripped bare to the very core.: Kate_pro_dosug | Moscow Events & Activities for Children, Telegram channel

Superb acting fills the Fomenko Workshop’s new production with energy and momentum. Nor is it lacking in vivid, expressive symbolism. […] The Old Man and the Sea at the Pyotr Fomenko Workshop Theatre is a production about human pride: about how, convinced of our own exceptional nature, we enter into battle with the natural world; how we destroy something magnificent and beautiful simply to prove our strength.: Tatiana Ratkina, Teatr To Go