Ilkhu Theater may lose the site

The Tashkent Drama Theater "Ilkhom", the first independent theater in Uzbekistan, received an order by April to leave the building in which it has been located for more than 40 years.

The order was received at the end of last week from the owner of the hotel, the company OFELOS PLAZA . This year it is planned to begin the full reconstruction of the building, since it “externally in an unsightly state is in the city center and spoils the general appearance of the capital with its appearance, quoted the prescription “ The newspaper. uz " .

“The loss of space allocated by the Founder of the theater, Mark Weil by the state in 1976, actually means the death sentence of Ilkhu Theater,” the theater’s statement published on his website said. -From the legal side we are powerless to do anything. The room does not belong to us. After privatization in 1994, the theater used it free of charge. With the previous owner, OJSC “Scodlik”, a lease agreement was concluded until 2023 with an automatic extension of 10 years. ”

In 2017, the court abolished the decision to privatize the hotel, and the building returned to state control. Its new owner was the joint venture of OOO OFELOS PLAZA .

“Passing it on the next owners, no one thought about the fate of the unique theater,” the Ilkhu theater team said.

“We want to ask the townspeople and the authorities: is Tashkent so rich spiritually and culturally as to simply abandon one of his best theaters? Is there a new hotel complex or business center of such a victim? We believe that not. “Ilkhkh” needs our city, ”the authors of the statement are sure. - We urge the authorities of Uzbekistan to pay attention to us and save the theater. We urge all our viewers, colleagues, friends, journalists, diplomats and the international community to help us preserve this unique and magical place. Only with your help we can do it. ”

On February 12, Ilhom will host a press conference at which the theater team will talk about plans to fight for his future.