The theatre of Estonia dates back to 1784, when

August von Kotzebue August Friedrich Ferdinand von Kotzebue (; – ) was a German dramatist and writer who also worked as a consul in Russia and Germany. In 1817, one of Kotzebue's books was burned during the Wartburg festival. He was murdered in 1819 by Karl L ...

founded an amateur theatre company in

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju '' ...

. Most of the plays at the time were comedies for the amusement for local

Baltic German Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...

nobility. In 1809 a professional theatre company was established, with its own building in Tallinn, the Tallinna saksa teater. The repertoire was mostly in German but plays in Estonian and Russian were also performed.Culture And Customs of the Baltic States By Kevin O'Connor
/ref> After serfdom was abolished in Estonia in 1816, the first native Estonian musical society,

Vanemuine Vanemuine () is a theatre in Tartu, Estonia. It was the first Estonian language theatre. History ''1870–1906 The Beginning of the Beginning. Koidula’s Theatre, Wiera’s Theatre.'' On June 24, 1870 was the first day in Estonian theatre ...

, was established in 1865. The Vanemuine society's staging of

Lydia Koidula Lydia Emilie Florentine Jannsen, ( – ), known by her pen name Lydia Koidula, was an Estonian poet. Her sobriquet means 'Lydia of the Dawn' in Estonian. It was given to her by the writer Carl Robert Jakobson. She is also frequently referred to ...

's ''The Cousin from Saaremaa'' in 1870 marks the beginning of theatrical drama in the Estonian language. The Vanemuine Music and Theatre Society was led by August Wiera from 1878 to 1903. In 1906 a new building was erected for the society and the theatre company turned professional under the directorship of

Karl Menning Karl Menning (11 May 1874 in Tartu – 5 March 1941 in Tartu) was an Estonian theatre director, critic and diplomat. In 1902 he graduated from University of Tartu's department of religion. 1906-1914 he was the first theatre director of Vanemuin ...

. Plays by Western writers such as Henrik Ibsen,

Gerhart Hauptmann Gerhart Johann Robert Hauptmann (; 15 November 1862 – 6 June 1946) was a German dramatist and novelist. He is counted among the most important promoters of literary naturalism, though he integrated other styles into his work as well. He rece ...

, Russian

Maksim Gorky Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (russian: link=no, Алексе́й Макси́мович Пешко́в; – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (russian: Макси́м Го́рький, link=no), was a Russian writer and sociali ...

and Estonian

August Kitzberg August Kitzberg ( in Laatre Parish, Governorate of Livonia, Russian Empire – 10 October 1927 in Tartu) was an Estonian writer. Life Until 1863, August Kitzberg was known as August Kits. He grew up in Niitsaadu farmstead in Penuja village, Ab ...

Oskar Luts Oskar Luts ( – 23 March 1953) was an Estonian writer and playwright. Biography Oskar Luts was born into a middle-class family in Järvepera, central Estonia, at that time in the governorate of Livonia (Russian Empire). His younger brother was ...

and

Eduard Vilde Eduard Vilde ( – 26 December 1933) was an Estonian writer, a pioneer of critical realism in Estonian literature, and a diplomat. Author of classics such as ''The War in Mahtra'' and ''The Milkman from Mäeküla''. He was one of the most revere ...

were staged. Also in 1906 the Estonia Music and Theatre Society in Tallinn turned professional under the leadership of

Theodor Altermann Theodor Altermann (24 November 1885 – 1 April 1915) was an actor, theatre director and producer in the Russian Empire. His father was Jüri Altermann, his mother was Miina Nurm. Sources * Bernhard Linde, "Theodor Altermann" – Looming ...

and Paul Pinna. This company later became the

Estonian National Opera Estonian National Opera (''Rahvusooper Estonia'') is the national opera company of Estonia. The company is based at the Estonia Theatre in Tallinn. The theatre has had several names throughout its existence. The latest one being "The Estonian Nati ...

References

Arts in Estonia Theatre in Estonia {{estonia-stub