The «ILKHOM» theatre was one of the first professional theatres not depending on any state institutions for cultural affairs in the history of the former USSR. It was founded in 1976 by director Mark Weil, who is still artistic director of the theatre, and part of the group of Tashkent Theatre Institute graduates. From it’s beginning the theatre was founded on a jazz structure where the director makes an ensemble consisting of the participants who understand & hear each other.

Today only few people can remember that everything began from a rather strange play of that time, «Maskhoroboz-76», which was made in the traditions of street-theatre. With that play the founders of the «ILKHOM» went to Novgorod, Russia. It was the first probation of a new kind professional actor existing in the suggested circumstances -the circumstances of every-second-improvisation.

From the very beginning the theatre was named as ESTY the «ILKHOM» (Experimental Studio of Theatrical Youth-actors, artists, musicians, theatricals). Young playwrights such as A. Vampilov, S. Zlotnikov, Sh. Bashbekov, Ch. Guseinov, and L. Razumovskaya debuted in the young «ILKHOM» and were later called the new-wave playwrights. The meeting with the playwrights of that generation has become the best way of self-expression for the actors.

The years have passed. In 1985 came the time of freedom. By that time the «ILKHOM» had become famous, as a real independent theatre which usually outstrips the time, and pointed to many things in its plays indicative of the times.

By that time, between 1985-1990 the theatre lost the interest for traditional plays and sank into miming theatre. It has become the visual theatre of metaphors and clownery. It was the beginning of the new «ILKHOM». The actors playing in «Ragtime for clowns», «Clomadeus», «Petroushka» brought the energy and the feeling of a new time to the theatre.

From May 1989 the theatre has been called, simply, The ILKHOM Theatre. Today the «ILKHOM» is a complex, which includes theatre, a school of drama, and the exhibition hall.

From 1989 - the year of founding its own drama school - the next, third stage of the «ILKHOM»s life began. The graduation project of the 1st studio (1993) became the play, which united all generations of the theatre. It was a fantasy play about Samarkand based on C. Gozzi’s «Happy Beggars» where the directors of the play could assimilate the traditions of dell’arte comedy with «Maskhoroboz» - traditional national Uzbek comedy. It was a continuation of the theatre’s traditions and the beginning of a new time countdown in the «ILKHOM».

The theatre’s today repertoire is not less interesting than during its foundation. At first sight it seems that it consists of the «classical theatre heritage» but indeed it is so extraordinary that the reaction of the public is differing from absolute shock to rapture. The value of the repertoire is in its variety.     
 
The latest premieres are: «Ecstasy With The Pomegranate», «Flights of Mashrab», «Solos for 12»; «Oblom-off» by A. Goncharov; Diptych based on Edward Albee’s plays «Three Tall Women» & «The Zoo Story»;  «Hamlet and Others…» based on fragments from plays by Shakespeare, A. Arbuzov, N. Erdman, A.Ostrovsky, A. Goncharov, and M. Ugarov; the earliest comedies of Anton Chekhov «Chekhov LAB»; classical tragedy of the world theatre «Blood Wedding» by Lorca; «Art» comedy bestseller of the world repertoire by Yasmina Reza; co-project with British Council, ON Theatre and the Ilkhom Theatre the production «On Love» (documentary of love stories); «Imitations of The Koran» by A. Pushkin; «Love’s Labour’s Lost» comedy by W.Shakespeare. Before that was «Ubu Roi» by A. Jarri which was the first premiere in CIS of such a fundamental play in the arena of the World Theatre. Also the «ILKHOM» staged a deep poetic version of unknown & unpublished work «White White Black Stork» written by famous Uzbek novelist A. Kadyri who was repressed after The World War II; the psychological drama «The Brothers & Liza», by A. Kazantsev, and provocationally bright play, which includes several works of A. Pushkin, called «Romance Unleashed»(the  title of «Eugenie Onegin» in the origin) .

In today’s repertoire of the theatre there are several plays, which are still popular not looking at their age. Among them are: «Petty Bourgeois Wedding» by Bertold Brecht, «Happy Beggars» by Carlo Gozzi, «Tortilla Flat» by John Steinbeck.  

The «ILKHOM» theatre is still traditionally inviting new talents & mature actors, musicians & playwrights from different cities, theatre schools, & conservatory to work together.

Every month in the «ILKHOM» there are different exhibitions, charitable plays, concerts & video-programmes of the theatre.

For the last fifteen years the Ilkhom Theatre took part in more than 30 international theatre festivals in more than 21 countries of the world: the United States, Norway, Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, Czechoslovakia, Germany, France, Russia and Kyrgyzstan etc.

The latest global project organized and managed by the Ilkhom Theatre with the support of Swiss Agency of Development and Cooperation was Laboratory of Young Directors of Central Asia and Kazakhstan. The Laboratory has two phases: the first phase was held at The Ilkhom Theatre in April 2005 the second phase was held from  October 17 till November 12, 2005.

Tours and International projects

2007, February 28 – March 13 - Matsumoto and Tokyo, Japan: Tour with the production «Imitations of The Koran» by A. Pushkin

2006, October - project «Ecstasy with the Pomegranate» by Mark Weil, Dm.Tikhomirov
The project is supported: Doris Duke Fund for Dance of the National Dance Project, a program administered by the New England Foundation for the Arts with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, and the Ford Foundation.

2006 tour of the «Ilkhom» Theater dedicated to its 30th anniversary:
- 14-22 April 2006 – Moscow, Russia in Vs.Mejerholda's Center: «Love’s Labor Lost» by William Shakespeare, «White White Black Stork» by Abdulla Kadiriy, «Chekhov LAB» by Anton Chekhov
- 25-30 April 2006 – Vienna, Austria, HOLLENFAHRT International Off-Festival The world premiere, an exclusive project «Flights of Mashrab», dedicated to the 250th anniversary of the Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart birth.
- 6-10 June 2006 – Barbican Centre, London, England  «White White Black Stork» by Abdulla Kadiriy.

2004, March - May - Co-project with British Council, the production «On Love» based on real stories, the premiere took place on May 13 - 14, 2004.

2004, April 26-28 - Special guest production «Happy Beggars» by Carlo Gozzi on The Second International Festival Of Arts «Peace and Respect», Central Asian Meeting in Bishkek (The Kyrgyz Republic).

2004, February 9 - 17 - Tour with the productions «Imitations of The Koran» and «Romance Unleashed» by A. Pushkin in Moscow (Russia) on stage of The Nations Theatre.

2004, January 25 - February 8 - Tour with the production «Imitations of The Koran» by A. Pushkin in the USA (Los Angeles (CA) on stage of Skirball Cultural Centre, Tucson (AZ) UA Presents

2002 - The Retrospective of The Ilkhom Theatre productions in Moscow and St.Petersburg, dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the theatre. April 8-24, 2002.
- On the stages: in St.Petersburg - Festival «Baltic House» and in Moscow - MHAT (Moscow Art Theatre called Chekhov). - Guest tour of the theatre to European Theatre Festival «Passages» in Nancy (France) with the production «Ubu Rex» by A. Jarry, May 6-10, 2002;
- World Premiere of «Imitations of The Koran» by A. Pushkin on Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen Europ?isches Festival(Germany), May 24-26, 2002.

2001 - Festival of Theatre and Music «Ilkhom: East/West» was held from the end of January till the beginning of May 2001 - «Love's Labours Lost» by W. Shakespeare was presented on the Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen Europaisches Festival in June 2001. This is a co-production between four schools of drama: Yoram Loewenstein Studio in Tel Aviv (Israel), University of Washington Drama School in Seattle (USA), Folkwang-Hochschule Essen University (Germany) and the Ilkhom Theatre's Drama School (Uzbekistan).
 
2000 - «Medea» by Euripides - the international co-production involving Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen Europ?isches Festival(Germany), Th??tre Vidy-Lausanne (Switzerland) and the Ilkhom Theatre (Uzbekistan)
The European Premiere of «Ubu Rex» by A. Jarry performance - June 7-9, 2000, on Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen Europ?isches Festival(Germany).
 
1998 - «Babel Inn» Co-production of the Ilkhom Theatre and Shapiro&Smith Dance Company (USA) World Premiere during Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen European Festival in Germany The Premiere of The Joint Project - «Ubu Roi» by A. Jarry - The Ilkhom Theatre and German Drama Theatre from Almaty (Kazakhstan)

1997 - Germany (Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen European Festival)

1996 - Germany (Recklinghausen, Mulheim, Saarbrucken) «Petty Bourgeois Wedding» by B. Brecht «Happy Beggars» by C. Gozzi
 
1993 - «Theatre: East-West» International (Tashkent) «Happy Beggars» by C. Gozzi

1993 - Netherlands (Limburg, Maastricht) «Ragtime for Clowns» Czechoslovakia (Kolin) «Clomadeus»

1992 - Italy (Bologna) «Ragtime for Clowns», «Clomadeus»