The Old Theatre of Arad ( ro, Teatrul vechi din Arad) or Hirschl Theatre is a building declared a historical monument located on Gheorghe Lazăr Street, in Arad municipality and is the first permanent theatre building in

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

, built in 1817.

Description

The building, built in Baroque style and erected in 1816-1817, at the initiative of the Viennese merchant Iacob Hirschl, is considered the oldest permanent theatre building in the country. The main façade has largely retained its previous appearance; the most remarkable elements are the three gates that line the ground floor. The façade is beautifully decorated by some semi-buried

pilasters In classical architecture, a pilaster is an architectural element used to give the appearance of a supporting column and to articulate an extent of wall, with only an ornamental function. It consists of a flat surface raised from the main wall ...

, provided with floral ornaments. On the stage of this theatre, remarkable performances in Hungarian,

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

have taken place. In the autumn of 1817, in November, a German theatre troupe led by Cristofor Kun performed here . The first major event of the theatre, immediately after the inauguration, was the presentation on the Thalia stage, on February 27, 1818, of a performance in Romanian, by the students of the Preparandiei from Arad, an event which is among the first Romanian theatrical performances in the country. Among the troupes that took to the stage we should also mention those of Mihai Pascaly and

Matei Millo Matei Millo (; November 24/25, 1814 – September 9, 1896) was a Moldavian, later Romanian stage actor and playwright. Born in Stolniceni-Prăjescu, Iași County, his grandfather was the poet Matei Milu; his parents were Vasile Millo and Zamfira ...

, who came from

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

.On one such occasion,

Mihai Eminescu Mihai Eminescu (; born Mihail Eminovici; 15 January 1850 – 15 June 1889) was a Romanian Romantic poet from Moldavia, novelist, and journalist, generally regarded as the most famous and influential Romanian poet. Eminescu was an active membe ...

participated as a prompter in a performance given by Mihai Pascaly's troupe in 1868.https://turismistoric.ro/cel-mai-vechi-teatru-din-tara-in-care-a-fost-mihai-eminescu-risca-sa-se-prabuseasca/ Far from being an isolated cultural act, the performances were continued in the following years. The existence of a permanent building, over the years, brought to the stage of the performance hall numerous prestigious troupes and a number of artists such as Treuman in 1845, or Johan Strauss son in the concert of 1847. The theatre, as an institution, operated in an edifice consisting of two buildings, the Hirschl House and the Old Theatre. In 1907 the building was converted into the ''Urania'' Cinema, being among the first in the country. On 16 April 1913, the first Romanian film was shown here: "

The War of Independence ''The War of Independence'' is a nonfiction history book by American historian Claude H. Van Tyne, published in 1929. It explains the history and causes of the American Revolutionary War. Van Tyne won the Pulitzer Prize for History The Pulitzer ...

", a film that had premiered on 1 September 1912 in Bucharest, in the hall „Eforie”. The building, which was in an advanced state of decay, was returned to the descendants of the former owner Iacob Hirschl. Arad City Hall wants to buy the building of the first permanent theatre in Romania and restore it. The current owners have said they agree to give up the old theatre building for a sum of money.

References

Bibliography

* Eugen Gluck/Alexandru Roz; ''Arad City Guide''; 1982

External links

Teatrul Vechi Jakob Hirschl

4 februarie 2013, Untaru Claudia, ''Adevărul'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Teatrul vechi din Arad 1817 establishments in Romania 1907 disestablishments in Romania 1907 in Romania Theatres in Romania