The Crimean Academic Russian Drama Theater of Gorkiy began its history in 1821 in a stone barn of the Nobility Assembly. This structure was purchased by a Moscow merchant Volkov. The capital of the Crimea needed a theater, and literary passions quickly ran high in the former barn. Later, it was repaired and the troupe began to gain fame. In 1846, the greatest Russian actor M.S. Shchepkin arrived here on a tour and spent 12 years in Simferopol!
The modern building of the Crimean Academic Russian Drama Theater of Gorkiy was built at the site of a former barn, at the corner of Dvoryanskaya and Pushkin streets. It was decided to accommodate a theater, a revenue house and even a shop with a restaurant in the mansion. The opening of the theater took place on April 11, 1911. The theater kept working even during the Civil War. This was facilitated by the fact that many famous Russian actors turned out to be in this southern region. Thus, the great Russian actress Faina Ranevskaya played her first role on the stage of the theater in 1919.