MOSCOW, October 22. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has awarded the Russian Theatrical Society the Order "For Merit in Culture and Art," a TASS correspondent reported.

The Union of Theater Workers of Russia was renamed the Russian Theatrical Society at its tenth congress earlier on Thursday.

At the event, Putin presented the state decoration, awarded to the chairman, Vladimir Mashkov, in recognition of the organization’s many years of fruitful activity.

This year, the organization is celebrating its 150th anniversary, with about 2,000 events across Russia, including the launch of two special theatrical trains traveling from Sevastopol to Moscow and from Vladivostok to Moscow.