Russian theatre specializing in theatrical naturalism.
It was founded in 1898 by Konstantin Stanislavsky (as artistic director) and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko (administrative director) with the goal of replacing old-fashioned histrionic acting and heavy-handed staging with a simpler and truer style. It opened with Aleksey Tolstoy 's Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich and won its first major success with Anton Chekhov 's The Seagull . Along with other plays by Chekhov, the theatre mounted new works by writers such as Maksim Gorky and Maurice Maeterlinck . Its company received acclaim on European and U.S. tours in 1922 and influenced later theatrical development worldwide. Since 1939 it has been known as the Moscow Academic Art Theatre.