Kaunas State Musical Theatre

Kaunas State Musical Theatre

Kaunas State Musical Theatre is musical theatre in Kaunas, Lithuania. It was established on November 27, 1940 in former State Theatre hall adjoining the Laisvės Alėja. For some time it was playing mostly operettas.

The building

Decision to build Kaunas City Theatre was admitted in 1891, and first play was staged on January 9, 1892. Neo-Renaissance was chosen as a style for the building, and it was built in the City Garden square. Two storey building had 500 square meters hall. Spectators also could watch plays from two storey balconie rows. In the balconies special loges were established for Kaunas Governor and Kaunas Fortress commandant.

After Lithuania established independence and Kaunas became the temporary capital, the theatre became a cradle for modern Lithuanian drama, opera and ballet theatres.

Theatre was reconstructed in 1922-1925, 1930-1933 and in 1980. Exterior of the building assumed Neo-Baroque architecture, the audience hall was enlarged to 763 places, and the third row of balconies and the central lodge were added.^[1]

Romas Kalanta set himself on fire in 1972 as a protest against the Soviet regime in the nearby square.

Musical theater

1948 Lithuanian Opera and Ballet Theatre, with whom the Musical theatre was sharing the same building, was moved to Vilnius, and Musical theatre became the only theatre to reside in the building. It built its reputation on staging musical comedies. After Lithuania regained independence theatre added operas to its repertoire.^[2]

Plays of note

• Giuseppe Verdi's opera Rigoletto, 1951.

References

General:

"Valstybės Teatras Kaune" (in Lithuanian). Lietuvos teatro, muzikos ir kino muziejus. Retrieved 2007-09-22. 

Coordinates: 54°53′46″N 23°54′21″E / 54.89611°N 23.90583°E / 54.89611; 23.90583