In 1974 the group became heavily involved in amateur theatre, playing pieces of absurdity on the steps of the Engineers' Castle. However, when the theater was headed by professional director Eric Goroshevsky, Grebenshchikov became disillusioned with the idea of a fusion of rock, poetry and theatre, and shifted Aquarium's focus to concentrate on musical activities (though they only made a complete break from the theatre group in 1977). George left the band, but kept in touch with its members. The following year, cellist Vsevolod (Seva) Gakkel joined the band .