Розглянуто контактні та творчі зв"язки театру корифеїв з розвитком театрального мистецтва в Полтаві. На прикладі творчої історії Полтавського театру розкрито особисту участь М. Заньковецької, М. Садовського та І. Тобілевича у формуванні репертуару і підготовці акторів у 1900-ті роки, а також описані постановки за п"єсами М. Старицького та І. Карпенка-Карого на полтавській сцені впродовж ХХ ст. і нині.
The article deals with the history of the development of theatrical art in Poltava, thereto clarifying the place of the theatr ical performances bas ed on the stage plays of the Ukrainian playwrights known as "c orypheses of the Ukrainian theater" – M. Kropyvnytsky, M. Starytsky and I. Karp enko-Kary in the creative history of the Poltava Academic Regional Music and Drama Theater named after M.V. Gogol in the XIX–XX centuries. Initially, the Polta va Free Theater was organized in 1808; it had its own building and functioned until 1812 . A new, very important stage in the development of the Poltava Free Theater is connected with the activity of Ivan Kotlyarevsky, who was the director and wrote the plays "Natalka Poltavka" and "Moskal-magician". In the second ha&lf of the 19th century, the development of drama was closely connected with the activities of theatrical groups Mark Kropyvnytsky, Mykola Sadovsky, and Ivan Ka rpenko-Kary. They often toured in Poltava in& the late nineteenth – early twentieth century. M. Zankovetska and M. Sadovsky performed here. In 1901, the ne w building for the theater was built. In 1906, M. Sadovsky together wi th M. Zankovetska organized a mobile theater & in Poltava, which toured Ukraine, and a year later moved to Kiev. The first performance in the repertoire of the ne wly formed theatrical troupe was "Martin Borulya" by I. Karpenko-Kary, where the ma in role w&as brilliantly performed by the author himself. During the twentieth centur y, in the repertoire of the Poltava Theater, which has been transformed many times, the following plays by the "corypheses" of Ukrainian dra&ma have appeared: "Acted out fools!", "The Prisoner" by M. Kropyvnytsky, "Marusya Boguslavka", "Chasing two hares" by M. Starytsky, "The hired man", "One hundred thousands", "The evil spark will burn the field and disapp&ear itself" by I. Karpenko-Kary and many others. Alexandra Hertsyk., Euge n Kokhanenko, Kateryna Osmyalovskaya were a superstars of the Poltava stage of the first half of the twentieth century. In the post- war period, among the& greatest creative ac hievements of Polt ava artists were performances of plays: "Chasing two hares ", "The Miserable", "Martin Borulya". The article considers different versions of the stage embodiment of plays by I&. Karpenko-Kary and M. Starytsky. The acti vity of the best modern Poltava actors, People"s and Honored Artists of Ukraine of Ukraine, who brilliantly and clearly embodied the roles written by "theater of the corypheses", was highligh&ted.
