Kirill Lavrov Award Ceremony Held at Tavricheskiy Palace

The headquarters of the Interparliamentary Assembly of the CIS hosted the announcement of laureates for the International Award named after the outstanding actor and People's Artist of the USSR Kirill Lavrov "For Support and Promotion of Russian Culture".

The prestigious award was presented to: Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia and the Moscow Virtuosi chamber orchestra Vladimir Spivakov, President of the National Drama Theatre of Russia (Alexandrinsky Theatre) Valery Fokin, Artistic Director of the Saint Petersburg State Academic Boris Eifman Ballet Theatre Boris Eifman, Founder and Head of the "Aprielik" Russian Language and Theatre School (Paris, France) Lidia Drobych.

The Kirill Lavrov Award will also be presented to the Chyngyz Aitmatov State National Russian Drama Theater in Bishkek; it was presented to the theater's director Sergei Bardakov at the ceremony.

Nikolai Sventitsky, who passed away this year, was awarded the commemorative prize of the K. Y. Lavrov International Prize. He had served as director of the State Russian Drama Theater named after A. S. Griboyedov and as head of the "Russian Club" International Cultural and Educational Union.

Welcoming the organisers and participants of the ceremony, Deputy Secretary General of the IPA CIS Council - Plenipotentiary Representative of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Irina Sokolova emphasised that in the current circumstances, promoting and popularising Russian culture, supporting the Russian language and Russian theatres abroad is an extremely important yet challenging