The Odessa comedy troupe "Maski" has violated the language law for the second time this year

The Odessa comedy troupe "Maski" was issued a citation for a repeat violation of the language law. The reason was the sale of a ticket in Russian.

This was reported byAnna Nerush, a representative of the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language.

She explained that the complainant had sent a copy of a ticket to the show written in Russian. Following this, the “Maski” comedy troupe provided an explanation, noting that the attached document was not a ticket but merely an invitation to the performance offered to eligible groups. In addition, the troupe noted that the document did not specify the year, which makes it difficult to assess the actual circumstances.

However, as Nerush noted, the details of the document attached to the complaint correspond to the definition of the term “ticket” as set forth in the law. According to her, Article 23 of the Language Law mandates the use of the Ukrainian language not only on tickets but also in other informational materials about cultural events. 

She also noted that the witness confirmed that he had purchased a ticket in 2026. He also stated that the performance was conducted in Russian, so he had to leave.

Back in June, the comedy troupe“Maski” had already come under scrutiny by a representative of the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language. During an inspection of the venue, four administrative reports were filed.

One of the reports was issued for violating customer service requirements. A video recording in which a theater employee speaks to a female visitor in Russian was attached to the complaint.

Another violation concerned book distribution. During the inspection, five titles of books in Russian written by the theater’s actors were found on the premises, while no Ukrainian-language editions were available for sale. Representatives of the theater stated their intention to expand the selection to include books in the state language.

Inspectors also documented violations of requirements for online presence. On the theater’s social media pages, Russian-language posts, hashtags, and publications with Russian-language audio were found. This violation had been documented previously during the year. At the time of the inspection, some of this content had already been translated into Ukrainian.

In addition, three signs in a non-official language were found on the theater’s premises, which also served as grounds for issuing a violation report. This was a repeat violation, and the Russian-language signs were removed or replaced during the inspection.

In March of this year, the head of the organization was also held accountable for a Russian-language poster.

Юлія Калабайда