diff --git a/lua/lualine/init.lua b/lua/lualine/init.lua
index c975612..bf62dbf 100644
--- a/lua/lualine/init.lua
+++ b/lua/lualine/init.lua
@@ -279,6 +279,9 @@ local function setup_theme()
       }, true, {})
       theme = require 'lualine.themes.gruvbox'
     end
+  else
+    -- use the provided theme as-is, assuming it's a dictionary
+    theme = config.options.theme
   end
   highlight.create_highlight_groups(theme)
   vim.api.nvim_exec([[