Estonian National Opera
Encyclopedia
Estonian National Opera is the national opera
company of Estonia
. The company is based at the Estonia Theatre
in Tallinn
.
Play-acting was taken up in 1871, although theatre
as a tradition did not really come into being until 1895, when the society began to direct song plays, folk plays and comedies, usually with singing and dancing. By the start of the 20th century more serious drama was being staged.
In 1906, the society became the basis for the professional theatre called "Estonia" founded by the directors and actors Paul Pinna and Theodor Altermann. This remained tied to the "Estonia" society and the Estonian Theatre "Estonia" Limited Liability Company, founded in 1908, until 1940, at which time they were disbanded under the Soviet rule in Estonia as part of "the bourgeois remnant" and the theatre was nationalized.
The opera company is also known as the Estonia Theatre
after the building it occupies in downtown Tallinn. This was built as a national effort under the leadership of the "Estonia" society in 1913 and was opened to the public on 24 August that year.
The opera house itself was bombed and razed to the ground by the Soviet air raids on 9 March 1944. It was reopened after the war in 1947. Estonian painters Richard Sagrits
, Elmar Kits and Evald Okas
painted the ceiling in tempera
of the Estonian National Opera in the style of Socialist Realism
.
Plays were staged in "Estonia" until 1949 when the drama troupe was disbanded, after which "Estonia" continued purely as a musical theatre
.
The opera celebrated its centenary in 2006. The celebration was carried out in a newly renovated opera house.
The theatre has had several names throughout its existence. The latest one is "The Estonian National Opera", which was adopted in 1998.
Directors:
Chief conductors:
.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
company of Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
. The company is based at the Estonia Theatre
Estonia Theatre
The Estonia Theater is an opera house and concert hall in Tallinn, Estonia.The Jugendstil building was designed by Finnish architects Armas Lindgren and Wivi Lönn. It was built as a national effort with the leadership of Estonia society in 1913 and was opened to the public on August 24th...
in Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
.
History
The song and drama society "Estonia" was founded in 1870. This was the beginning of what has become the current-day Estonian National Opera .Play-acting was taken up in 1871, although theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
as a tradition did not really come into being until 1895, when the society began to direct song plays, folk plays and comedies, usually with singing and dancing. By the start of the 20th century more serious drama was being staged.
In 1906, the society became the basis for the professional theatre called "Estonia" founded by the directors and actors Paul Pinna and Theodor Altermann. This remained tied to the "Estonia" society and the Estonian Theatre "Estonia" Limited Liability Company, founded in 1908, until 1940, at which time they were disbanded under the Soviet rule in Estonia as part of "the bourgeois remnant" and the theatre was nationalized.
- 1907 – first operetta staged, HervéHervé (composer)Hervé , real name Louis Auguste Florimond Ronger, was a French singer, composer, librettist, conductor and scene painter, whom Ernest Newman, following Reynaldo Hahn, credited with inventing the genre of operetta in Paris.-Life:Hervé was born in Houdain near Arras...
's Mam'zelle NitoucheMam'zelle NitoucheMam'zelle Nitouche is a vaudeville-opérette by Hervé. The libretto was by Henri Meilhac and Albert Millaud.-Performance history:It was first performed at the Théâtre des Variétés, Paris on 26 January 1883.- Roles :-Synopsis:... - 1908 – first opera staged, KreutzerConradin KreutzerConradin Kreutzer or Kreuzer was a German composer and conductor. His works include the opera for which he is remembered, Das Nachtlager in Granada, and Der Verschwender, both produced in 1834.Kreutzer owes his fame almost exclusively to Das Nachtlager in Granada , which kept the stage for...
's Das Nachtlager in GranadaDas Nachtlager in GranadaDas Nachtlager in Granada is a romantic opera in two acts by Conradin Kreutzer. The libretto is written by Karl Johann Braun von Braunthal based on Johann Friedrich Kind’s drama Das Nachtlager von Granada.... - 1911 – the first Estonian operetta staged, Adalbert Wirkhaus's St John's Night
- 1922 – the first full evening ballet performance, Léo DelibesLéo DelibesClément Philibert Léo Delibes was a French composer of ballets, operas, and other works for the stage...
's CoppéliaCoppéliaCoppélia is a sentimental comic ballet with original choreography by Arthur Saint-Léon to a ballet libretto by Saint-Léon and Charles Nuitter and music by Léo Delibes. It was based upon two macabre stories by E. T. A. Hoffmann, Der Sandmann , and Die Puppe... - 1928 – the first Estonian opera, Evald AavEvald AavEvald Aav was an Estonian composer born in Tallinn, Governorate of Estonia, Russian Empire. He studied music composition there with Artur Kapp and wrote primarily vocal music to words in the Estonian language. In 1928 he composed the first national Estonian opera, Vikerlased . The opera premiered...
's Vikerlased (The Estonian Vikings) - 1944 – the first Estonian ballet, Eduard TubinEduard Tubin-Life:Tubin was born in Torila, Governorate of Livonia, Estonia. Both his parents were music lovers, and his father played trumpet and trombone in the village band. His first taste of music came at school where he learned flute and balalaika. Later, his father swapped a cow for a piano, and the...
's Kratt
The opera company is also known as the Estonia Theatre
Estonia Theatre
The Estonia Theater is an opera house and concert hall in Tallinn, Estonia.The Jugendstil building was designed by Finnish architects Armas Lindgren and Wivi Lönn. It was built as a national effort with the leadership of Estonia society in 1913 and was opened to the public on August 24th...
after the building it occupies in downtown Tallinn. This was built as a national effort under the leadership of the "Estonia" society in 1913 and was opened to the public on 24 August that year.
The opera house itself was bombed and razed to the ground by the Soviet air raids on 9 March 1944. It was reopened after the war in 1947. Estonian painters Richard Sagrits
Richard Sagrits
Richard Sagrits was an Estonian painter.Sagrits was an author of the ceiling painting of the Estonian National Opera in the style of Socialist Realism....
, Elmar Kits and Evald Okas
Evald Okas
Evald Okas was an Estonian painter, probably best known for his portraits of nudes.-Biography:Okas was born in Tallinn, where he began his artistic career while studying at the State Art School...
painted the ceiling in tempera
Tempera
Tempera, also known as egg tempera, is a permanent fast-drying painting medium consisting of colored pigment mixed with a water-soluble binder medium . Tempera also refers to the paintings done in this medium. Tempera paintings are very long lasting, and examples from the 1st centuries AD still exist...
of the Estonian National Opera in the style of Socialist Realism
Socialist realism
Socialist realism is a style of realistic art which was developed in the Soviet Union and became a dominant style in other communist countries. Socialist realism is a teleologically-oriented style having its purpose the furtherance of the goals of socialism and communism...
.
Plays were staged in "Estonia" until 1949 when the drama troupe was disbanded, after which "Estonia" continued purely as a musical theatre
Opera house
An opera house is a theatre building used for opera performances that consists of a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and set building...
.
The opera celebrated its centenary in 2006. The celebration was carried out in a newly renovated opera house.
The theatre has had several names throughout its existence. The latest one is "The Estonian National Opera", which was adopted in 1998.
People
There are over 500 employees currently working at the Estonian National Opera.Directors:
- Aarne ViisimaaAarne ViisimaaAarne Viisimaa was an Estonian operatic tenor and opera director. He was notably the director of the Estonian National Opera from 1927–1944...
(1927-1944)
Chief conductors:
- Otto Hermann (1906-1908)
- Adalbert Wirkhaus (1908-1912)
- Raimund Kull (1912-1942)
- Juhan AavikJuhan AavikJuhan Aavik was an Estonian composer.Aavik studied music composition at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory...
(1925-1933) - Verner Nerep (1942-1944)
- Priit Nigula (1942-1951)
- Kirill Raudsepp (1951-1963)
- Neeme JärviNeeme JärviNeeme Järvi is an Estonian-born conductor.-Early life:Järvi studied music first in Tallinn, and later in Leningrad at the Leningrad Conservatory under Yevgeny Mravinsky, and Nikolai Rabinovich, among others...
(1963-1975) - Eri KlasEri KlasEri Klas, is an Estonian conductor.Klas is of Jewish ancestry. Klas graduated as an opera and concert conductor in both Tallinn and Leningrad , beginning his conducting career at the Estonia Theatre in Tallinn and at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow...
(1975-1994) - Paul Mägi (1995-2002)
- Jüri Alperten (2002-2004)
- Arvo VolmerArvo VolmerArvo Volmer is an Estonian conductor.Volmer was principal conductor of the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra from 1993 to 2001. Since 2004 he has been music director of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and both music director and principal conductor of the Estonian National Opera in Tallinn...
(2004-)
Current
The National Opera of Estonia produces a lively and varied opera season. Tickets can be purchased via phone through the company’s website or over the internet through ClassicticClassictic
Classictic is a service that provides information and ticket sales for classical music events on a multi-lingual internet portal. Classictic acts as an agent for concert organizers, opera houses, orchestras and musicians, facilitating the primary sale of tickets to their events as an auxiliary...
.