In August 1931, an article titled "There Will Be a Theater at Kuznetskstroy" appeared in the city newspaper. The Central Club named after R. Eikhe was urgently renovated for this purpose. The troupe consisted of 60 people, and a symphony orchestra of 15 musicians was also created. In September 1932, the preparatory rehearsal period began, but soon the club building burned down. In 200 days, the workers of Kuznetskstroy built a new building with 1200 seats in Victory Square, opposite the KMC, where the Metallurgists' Theater is now located. The official opening took place on November 6, 1933, with the performance of "Intervention" based on the play by Lev Slavin. The theater's repertoire included both classical and modern works. It was the first in Siberia to address A. S. Pushkin's tragedy "Boris Godunov" and A. P. Chekhov's play "Ivanov."

After the war, in 1963, a new building in the classicist style was constructed for the Drama Theater, which was a rarity for the Khrushchev era.