Armen Dzhigarkhanyan is proud to be Armenian by blood, birth and upbringing. As a child, Armen dreamed of becoming an actor. Love of the theatre was in his blood; his mother, Helen Vassilyevna, was an avid fan of the theatre and never missed a single drama or opera.

After finishing high school in 1953, Armen went to Moscow to enrol in the Russian Academy of Theatre Arts (GITIS) to play on a Russian stage. Unfortunately, his experience there was limited to an interview, as they did not like his strong accent. Armen left Moscow and worked as an assistant cameraman for a year at Armenfilm studios in his hometown.

Armen began his acting career in 1955 at the Stanislavsky Russian Drama Theatre in Yerevan and in 1967, moved to the Lenkom Theatre in Moscow. In 1969, he joined the Mayakovsky Theatre. Since then, he has starred in numerous Soviet films (such as The New Adventures of the Elusive Avengers, and Teheran-43), and provided the voice for many Soyuzmultfilm cartoon characters.

Many of his stage and screen roles have become notable performances within Russian and Armenian culture. Both audiences and critics alike refer to them as some of the best achievements in Russian art.
Although his career has covered all disciplines, his heart remains in the theatre ,which is why he founded his own. He says: “For me, home has always been, and remains, the theatre”.

These days Armen Dzhigarkhanyan divides his time between Russia, Armenia and America. He returns frequently to his historic homeland of Armenia, and while working in Russia, he regularly travels to America where his wife Tatyana lives with their cat Phil.

Dzhigarkhanyan reads a lot, keeps up to date with the current music trends, enjoys modern Performing Arts, loves painting and French fries.

“I am a realist, I know that everything has its time. My activity, of course, has fallen, now I’m less in demand than before. But this is a natural thing: a man grows old, memory starts to falter, and so on and so forth.”

Dzhigarkhanyan was awarded the Armenian Republican State Prize in 1975 for his performance in Triangle, and again in 1979 for Snow in Mourning. Dzhigarkhanyan was also awarded the title of People’s Artist of the USSR in 1985.