This oldest Russian drama theater is located in the Fontanka Embankment.

In 1874, Count Apraxin was allowed to construct a brick theater building on the territory of the market which belonged to him. The theater was surrounded by the stores of the Apraxin Market and was constructed using private capital and with merely commercial purpose. The theater was designed by Luigi Fontana and constructed in 1876-1878. The theater was named the Emperor's Smaller Theater. According to the architect's design, the facade of the theater was luxuriously decorated. The decorations of the interiors contained certain traces of the Renaissance architecture, as well as Rococo techniques.

The auditorium was designed in a traditional way: the stalls, three rows of boxes and the gallery.

In 1920, the theater was given to the company of the Greater Drama Theater founded in 1919. The organizers of this theater were Maxim Gorky, Alexander Blok and Anatoly Lunacharsky. The scenery artists were Alexander Benois, Mikhail Dobuzhinsky and Constantine Korovin. Music for the performances was written by the composers Boris Asafyev and Yuri Shaporin.

A very important epoch in the history of the theater were the years when the Chief Stage Manager of the theater was Georgy Tovstonogov. During the period of time from 1956 to 1989, real masterpieces of Russian theater were staged here.

At present, this is one of the leading Russian drama theaters. In summer, ballet performances and concerts of St. Petersburg's singers and musicians take place here.

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