Igor Golyak

Igor Golyak joined the Conservatory in 2017 and is an associate professor of theater.

Golyak has taught the art of theater for over a decade, and is the founder of the Igor Golyak Acting Studio and artistic director of Arlekin Players Theatre, which has won numerous awards in the United States and internationally—most recently an Elliot Norton Award for his production of Dead Man’s Diary at ArtsEmerson. In the fall of 2019, he will be directing The Seagull at Arlekin Players Theatre and The Merchant of Venice at Actors’ Shakespeare Project.

Arlekin Players Theatre is a multicultural and multinational collaborative that is constantly growing in the number of audience members, company actors, and volunteers. The company has been invited to perform on famous stages and at renowned festivals all over the world, including Moscow Art Theatre and festivals in Yerevan, Armenia; New York City; Chicago; Lviv, Ukraine; Monaco; and many others.

The foundation of his approach as a teacher is to inspire creativity and depth through the work and methods of Konstantin Stanislavsky, Yevgeny Vakhtangov, and Michael Chekhov. Golyak’s students have garnered praise and awards at the International Michael Chekhov Theatre Festival, Eastern Massachusetts Association of Community Theatres (EMACT) Festival, and the New England Theatre Festival. They have also represented the United States at the International Theatre Festival in Monaco, hosted every four years by Prince Albert.

As a guest lecturer, Golyak has taught classes and seminars at Boston University, Harvard University, Lesley College, Wellesley College, New England Theater Conference, the Russian Academy of Theatre Arts/Middlesex University, Moscow Specialized Institute for the Arts, and the ARBOS Theatre Festival. Additionally, he has been featured in news stories on TV, radio, and most recently in the Boston Globe.

Golyak received a master’s degree in directing from the Russian Academy of Theatre Arts in 2004, as well as an acting degree from Moscow’s Schukin Theatre Institute (Vakhtangov Theater). He is the recipient of the Yaroslavl Theatre Festival’s Best Student Performance award and the Vienna Theatre Festival’s Best Actor award. He went on to perform with Teatr u Niktiskih Vorot in Moscow with leading roles.

Professional Awards and Recognitions

• Outstanding Director, Medium, Small or Fringe Theater, A Dead Man’s Diary (Elliot Norton Award nomination, 2018)
• Outstanding Design, Medium, Small or Fringe Theater, A Dead Man’s Diary (Elliot Norton Award, 2018)
• Best Actor Award (Massachusetts State Theatre Festival EMACT, 2012)
• Special Adjudicator’s Award for Notable Theatrical Risk Taking, Arlekin Players Theatre (Massachusetts State Theatre Festival EMCAT, 2012)
• Best Production, The Bear, Arlekin Players Theatre (New England Regional Theatre Festival, 2010)
• Best Director, The Bear (New England Regional Theatre Festival, 2010)
• Best Ensemble, The Bear, Arlekin Players Theatre (New England Regional Theatre Festival, 2010)
• Best Adaptation, The Bear, Arlekin Players Theatre (New England Regional Theatre Festival, 2010)
• Best Director Award (Michael Chekhov International Theatre Festival)
• Best Actor, Diary of a Madman (Vienna Theatre Festival ARBOS)
• Best Director, Diary of a Madman (Vienna Theatre Festival ARBOS)
• Best Student Performance, The Portrait (Yaroslavl Theatre Festival)
• Best Overall Cast, The Portrait (Yaroslavl Theatre Festival)