St. Theodosius Cathedral is the oldest Orthodox Christian Church in the State of Ohio. It is located in the historic Tremont area of the City of Cleveland.

The historic cathedral was constructed between 1911-1912 and is considered one of the finest examples of Russian church architecture in the United States. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places in the United States.

The parish of St. Theodosius Orthodox Christian Cathedral was organized by immigrant Russians living in Tremont in 1896. St. Theodosius Cathedral was the “Mother Church” for most of the Orthodox Christian churches in northeast Ohio today.

The cathedral is perhaps best known for its appearance in the 1978 Best Picture winning film, The Deer Hunter with Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken, and Meryl Streep.

Ken Kovach has been Choir Master at St Theodosius for 50 years. In this video he gives us a tour of the inside of the Cathedral and shares some thoughts on the Eastern Orthodox Church.

On June 1, 1971 Ken Kovach became Choir Master at the historic St. Theodosius Russian Orthodox Cathedral in the Tremont neighborhood of Cleveland Ohio. In his 50 (and counting) years he has witnessed many things in the Cathedral. One of which is being part of the filming of the movie The Deer Hunter, a 1978 American epic war drama film.

Ken met and worked with Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken, Meryl Streep, writer/director Michael Cimino and others. Ken is an Ellis Island Medal Recipient and inductee in the Cleveland International Hall of Fame. He also sings with a Russian folk group called the Cuyahoga Cossacks. In this video, Ken tells about the Choir Master role and some of these stories. And then he gives a brief example of his great singing voice – singing The Lord’s Prayer.

St. Theodosius Cathedral
733 Starkweather Avenue
Tremont neighborhood of Cleveland
Cleveland, Ohio 44113

St Theodosius Cathedral website
216-574-4886