CULT OF AMBITION
- Year
- 2022
Cult of Ambition was Quemmekh’s first independent public live show and first sold-out performance, organised and built entirely by the collective at Haraki Theatre in Tbilisi. From constructing the stage, sound, and lighting to laying a giant red carpet across an excavated street, Quemmekh turned logistical obstacles into part of the spectacle. The project also introduced dedicated concert promotional videos by collective member Masho Gelashvili, helping pioneer a practice that later became common in Georgia’s music scene. At its core, the show embodied one principle: if the space doesn’t exist, create it yourself.
Held at Haraki Theatre in Tbilisi, Cult of Ambition marked Quemmekh’s first independent public live show and its first-ever sold-out performance. Organised and built entirely by the Quemmekh collective, the show took place shortly after the private Maudi performance, bringing the collective’s renewed live vision directly to an audience for the first time.
The project also introduced a new approach to concert promotion. Quemmekh pioneered the production of dedicated promotional videos for its live shows, introducing a practice that was uncommon among Georgian bands at the time and has since become a standard part of concert promotion across the local music scene.
The venue stood on one of Tbilisi’s main avenues, which the municipality excavated just two days before the show, making access to the theatre difficult. Quemmekh responded by laying down a giant red carpet that stretched from the street to the venue entrance, transforming an unexpected obstacle into part of the spectacle.
At the heart of Cult of Ambition was a simple proposition: if the space doesn’t exist, build it yourself. Ambition was not merely the show’s subject, but its operating principle — a statement to audiences and fellow artists that creative independence means taking responsibility for the conditions in which your work can exist.
The night became Quemmekh’s first sold-out show and its first direct encounter with a growing audience. Remembered as one of the most remarkable live performances in the Georgian music scene, Cult of Ambition established a defining principle of the collective: never wait for permission, infrastructure, or opportunity. Create them yourself.
