Theatre on the Frontlines: Ukraine’s Cultural Resistance

In war, theatres usually go dark. In Ukraine, they turned into shelters, volunteer hubs, and symbols of national resilience.

A new chapter Ukrainian Cultural Heritage in the Russian–Ukrainian War: Ukrainian Theatre—A Case Study by Ilona Urych, Anna Korzeniowska-Bihun, and Robert Boroch in Tactical and Strategic Insights from the Russo–Ukrainian War shows how Ukrainian theatre became a strategic tool of anthropological defence. More than performance spaces, theatres documented war crimes, mobilised communities, and preserved cultural identity under fire.

Russia’s attack on Ukrainian theatres—including the bombing of Mariupol Drama Theatre—isn’t collateral damage. It’s cultural warfare, aiming to erase memory, identity, and resistance. In response, Ukrainian artists staged not just plays, but survival itself.

The battle for national survival isn’t only fought on the front—it’s waged on the stage.