Theater of Tallinn (0)

Report
Theatres of Tallinn
Student:
Supervisor:
Tallinn 2008

Table of Contents

Table of Contents 2
Introduction 3
The Estonia National Opera 4
Russian Drama Theatre 5
Tallinn City Theatre 6
Estonian Drama Theatre 7
Estonia National Puppet Theatre 8
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Conclusion 9
References 10

Introduction

I choose this topic because I want to get know more about local Theatres I hoped to get more information about their location , for whom each theatre is designed and a little overview about their history.
The history of Estonian theatre does not differ much from that of the neighbor countries. The first play was performed in the 16th century at the Tallinn Town Hall. The town school children , who were Germans, staged Terence's The Andria in Latin. The first theatre house in Tallinn was mentioned in written materials which date from the late 17th century; the house was used by travelling theatre groups. Tallinn was already known then as a theatre-loving city.
The first prominent name in Estonian history of theatre, August von Kotzebue , dates from the same period. The Russian authorities sent him from St. Petersburg to Tallinn to work as an official . Kotzebue's entertaining productions became famous all over Europe. He founded the first theatre with its own permanent cast, and brought the Estonian language to the stage. Theatre became especially popular amongst Estonians in the second half of the 19th century, as part of the national awakening process .
Theatres in Estonia, like elsewhere in the world, may be divided into three categories according to their form of ownership: state, municipal and private theatres. In Estonia, the first prevail; there are 9 state and 1 municipal theatres, the Tallinn City Theatre.
The famous music and ballet theatre is the Estonian National Opera in Tallinn. The Russian Drama Theatre is the most popular theatre among the Russian speakers. Despite that the most of the repertory is in Russian, quite a number of Estonian classical plays are staged there. The other important theatres in Tallinn are the Tallinn City Theatre, the Estonian Drama Theatre and the Estonian State Puppet Theatre.

The Estonia National Opera

“Estonia” became a professional theater on September 16, 1906. The current Estonia house - a representative building in the heart of Tallinn - opened the doors in the summer of 1913. The building was designed by Finnish architects Armas Lindgren and Wiwi Lonn. The "Estonia" theatre has had several names during history, but since 1998, it bears the name The Estonian National Opera. From 1994 the theater is managed by the general manager Paul Himma.
The Estonian National Opera is the home of the symphony orchestra, the opera choir and the ballet. The theater repertoire includes classical operas, ballets and operettas as well as modern musical and children plays. The most popular performances are " Swan Lake" and the opera "La Traviata".
The Estonian National Opera’s majestic White Hall (218,8 m2) with its grand crystal chandeliers is an excellent place for festive receptions, formal occasions and dancing parties. The hall is provided with removable chairs (for 100 people) and tables. In the Opera House, next to the theatre hall is a spacious concert hall for 790 listeners. Concert hall is operated by state organization “Eesti Kontsert” and it is the main concert place of the Estonian Symphony Orchestra.

Russian Drama Theatre

The State Russian Drama Theatre of Estonia first opened It’s doors at December 15, 1948. And till now days is the only one professional Russian theatre in Estonia. More than for 50 years of the existence the theatre has put out about 500 performances. These are statements of modern Russian and western playwrights, Russian and international classics, the Estonian dramatic art, performances for children. During it’s tours theatre has visited many cities of the former USSR: from Kaliningrad to Chita, from Murmansk to Tashkent. Last year ’s Russian theatre of Estonia toured Moscow , Saint Petersburg, Riga, Vilnius , Novgorod, took part in various festivals. Some well-known theater directors (Andrey Tarkovsky, Roman Viktjuk, Juriy Sillart, Lembit Ulfsack and others ) worked on a stage of Russian theatre. The theatre puts about 8-10 premieres per year.
A building of theatre is located in the center of Tallinn. F.Skuinsh constructed it in 1926 first as the cinema . And up to now it keeps magnificent glamour of an interior. In one of theatre halls takes place the art gallery , which carries exhibitions of Russian and Estonian artist. Performances of famous collectives from Russia and other countries often took place in building of theater. The auditorium (an orchestra and a balcony ) is designed for 661 places . The mirror foyer is also used as a hall for creative meetings, presentations (about 70 places). In Pink foyer on the second floor the cozy theatrical bar is located. During performances it serves spectators.

Tallinn City Theatre

The Tallinn City Theatre was founded in 1965 by the legendary Estonian director Voldemar Panso . Tallinn City Theatre is a repertory theatre, situated in the heart of Tallinn. The theatrical season lasts from August to June. Voldemar Panso put together a strong company of actors , among whom were both young graduates of the theatre school and well known stars .
Tallinn City Theatre's repertory has been well approved by both the audience and the critics . It contains world classics as well as modern drama. Attention is dedicated also to the new Estonian drama - Jaan Tätte works at the Tallinn City Theatre as an actor, but he is also one of the best Estonian playwrights. Several of his plays, including his most popular play "Highway Crossing ", directed here by the author himself, have been translated into many different languages , and have been staged in Germany, Latvia, Russia, Finland and Sweden .
Currently the Tallinn City Theatre's resident company includes 28 actors and 3 stage directors, but the theatre is open to guest performers from Estonia as well as abroad. Tallinn City Theatre is famous by a high artistic level as well as its unique medieval building, which houses seven different performance spaces and a large open-air stage for summer productions.

Estonian Drama Theatre

Estonian Drama Theatre was founded in 1920. Theatre house has seen the changing of different powers, has had a variety of names but has still stood the test of time without losing it's position in the context of Estonian architectural and cultural history. Estonian Drama Theatre is connected with the name of an internationally known producer Voldemar Panso. His productions shaped and formed the image of this theatre in the 60-s and 70-s. Today his followers and adherents work in the same theatre house.
The performances are given in Estonian but the simultaneous translation into Russian is also available . In these days the repertoire of Estonian Drama Theatre consists of the plays written by Shakespeare , Moliere, Calderon and also Friel, Bergman etc.

Estonia National Puppet Theatre

Estonia has no age-old puppetry tradition, like some other countries. Regular puppet shows were first a feature of the children's program of the Estonian Drama Theatre in the 1930s . A separate puppet theatre was founded in 1952; for decades it worked under the leadership of Ferdinand Veike . At first it had no house of its own, constantly travelling around the country . In 1955 part of an historic building in the old-town quarter of Tallinn became its home. The theatre started to broaden its means , often mixing puppets and live performers. From 2000 the artistic director is Andres Dvinjaninov and the managing director is Meelis Pai. The theatre building was extensively renovated; at present it has a 177- seat main stage, a 100-seat oval hall, an 80-seat green hall, and an open-air stage in the back yard.

Conclusion

Thanks to this summary I get lot of information about Tallinn theaters, their history and repertory. Its good to know more about my favorite theatres, which is Linnateater. Theatre played an important role in advancing and safeguarding the spirit of Estonians. I love theaters and its good to know, that a considerable part of the audiences are made up of young people. The fact that last year about 500 young people applied to the twenty places available at the Drama School, speaks volumes about the popularity of theatre in Estonia.

References

http://tourism.tallinn.ee/fpage/events/theatres , read on March 21,2008

http://www.estoniantheatre.info/index.html?action=artmitu&id=22 , read on March 19,2008

Jaak Rähesoo, 1999, Estonian Theatre, Kirjastus Eesti Teatriliit, read on March 19,2008
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