Lauri Lagle (born 12 February 1981) is an

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

n stage and film actor, screenwriter, stage producer, director and playwright.

Early life

Lauri Lagle was born 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 '' ...

, where he attended school. He graduated from the

Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre The Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre (''Eesti Muusika- ja Teatriakadeemia'') began as a mixed choir of the Estonia Society Musical Department (EMD) on the eve of World War I. The assembly of the Estonia Society created the Tallinn Higher Musi ...

in 2006. Among his graduating classmates were

Inga Salurand Inga Salurand (born 1 August 1983) is an Estonian stage, film, and television actress whose career began in the mid-2000s. Early life and education Inga Salurand was born and raised in Tartu, where she attended primary and secondary schools. In ...

Risto Kübar Risto Kübar (born 4 December 1983) is an Estonian stage, voice and film actor. Early life and studies Risto Kübar was born in the small borough of Kose. His older brother is sidecar motorcross racer Silver Kübar. He attended Kose Secondary S ...

, Mari-Liis Lill, Laura Peterson,

Ursula Ratasepp Ursula Ratasepp (born 17 June 1982) is an Estonian stage, film and television actress. Early life and education Ursula Ratasepp was born in Tallinn in 1982. She is the older sister of actress Katariina Ratasepp (born 1986). She studied drama at ...

, Britta Vahur, and

Sergo Vares Sergo Vares (born on 14 September 1982 in Rakvere) is an Estonian actor. Vares graduated from Rakvere Gymnasium in 2001. In 2002, he enrolled at the University of Tartu to study journalism, but left to study acting at the Estonian Academy of Musi ...

Stage career

While still a student, he made his stage debut at the

Estonian Drama Theatre The Estonian Drama Theatre ( et, Eesti Draamateater) is a theatre in Tallinn, Estonia. It has the role of a national theatre for Estonia. The Estonia Theatre is located next door. History The building that houses the Estonian Drama Theatre was or ...

(''Eesti Draamateater'') as Mauno Susi in a 2004 production of

Madis Kõiv Madis Kõiv (5 December 1929, Tartu, Estonia – 24 September 2014, Tartu, Estonia) was an Estonian writer, philosopher and physicist. Education Kõiv attended school in Tartu after the second World War, graduating in the early 1950s with a d ...

's ''Finis nihili''. This was followed by the role of Puck in

Shakespeare's William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

'' A Midsummer Night's Dream'', the same year. In 2005, he appeared as Arno in a production of

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 ...

' '' Kevade''. In 2006, he would officially become engaged at the Estonian Drama Theatre, beginning with the role of David in a production of

Brian Friel Brian Patrick Friel (c. 9 January 1929 – 2 October 2015) was an Irish dramatist, short story writer and founder of the Field Day Theatre Company. He had been considered one of the greatest living English-language dramatists. (subscription req ...

's '' The Home Place''. Lagle would remain at the Estonian Drama Theatre until 2013 and appear in stage productions of works by

Fyodor Dostoyevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (, ; rus, Фёдор Михайлович Достоевский, Fyódor Mikháylovich Dostoyévskiy, p=ˈfʲɵdər mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪdʑ dəstɐˈjefskʲɪj, a=ru-Dostoevsky.ogg, links=yes; 11 November 18219 ...

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are ''All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...

, Hendrik Toompere, Jr., and

Antti Tuuri Antti Elias Tuuri (born 1 October 1944, Kauhava, Southern Ostrobothnia) is a Finnish writer, known for his works dealing with Southern Ostrobothnia. The ''Äitini-suku''-series tells the stories of the Finns who emigrated to the United States. ...

, among others. Following his engagement at the Estonian Drama Theatre, Lagle become a freelance actor, appearing frequently in roles at the

Theatre NO99 Theatre NO99 was a theatre in Tallinn, Estonia that began to operate in February 2005. It was a state-owned repertoire theatre that has its own building with two theatre halls in central Tallinn. The theatre closed in 2019. The theatre's name ...

in Tallinn, as well as performing at the

Tallinn City Theatre Tallinn City Theatre ( et, Tallinna Linnateater) is a repertory theatre located in the medieval old town of Tallinn, Estonia. Tallinn City Theatre was established in 1965 as Estonian SSR State Youth Theatre. In 1992, after the reindependence of ...

and the

Endla Theatre Endla ( et, Endla teater) is a professional theatre in city of Pärnu, Estonia. The theatre was opened in 1911. The first performance was "Libahunt" ("Werewolf") by Estonian writer August Kitzberg. The Estonian Declaration of Independence was ...

. As well as performing as a stage actor, Lauri Lagle has also produced and directed a number of plays. These include several for the Estonian Drama Theatre and Theatre NO99 and most notably, 2016's ''Paradiis'', which was also written by Lagle and debuted at Tallinn's

Von Krahl Theatre Von Krahl Theatre ( et, Von Krahli teater) is a theatre in Tallinn, Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Fi ...

Film and television

Lauri Lagle made his film debut in the 2005

Kristjan Sarv Kristjan Sarv (born Tartu, 21 December 1979) is an Estonian actor. He studied acting at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre (2000-2004). From 2005–2008, he worked in the theatre NO99. He has appeared in several television series and fe ...

-directed

road movie A road movie is a film genre in which the main characters leave home on a road trip, typically altering the perspective from their everyday lives. Road movies often depict travel in the hinterlands, with the films exploring the theme of alienatio ...

short ''2pic''. This was followed by the role of La Mort in the 2007 Rainer Sarnet-directed drama ''Kuhu põgenevad hinged''. In 2013, he had a starring role as Fred in the

Veiko Õunpuu Veiko Õunpuu (born 16 March 1972, in Saaremaa) is an Estonian film director and screenwriter who is best known for his artistic movies '' Autumn Ball'' (''Sügisball'', 2007) and ''The Temptation of St. Tony'' (''Püha Tõnu kiusamine'', 2009). ...

directed drama '' Free Range/Ballaad maailma heakskiitmisest''. The film was selected as the Estonian entry for the

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

at the 86th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated. Lagle's performance, however, garnered him a Best Actor award at the 22nd

Vilnius International Film Festival The Vilnius International Film Festival (VIFF) Kino pavasaris is a film festival held annually in March in Vilnius, Lithuania since 1995, and is the largest film festival in the nation in number of films and audience. It is one of the most anticipa ...

in 2014. The following year, he appeared as Lowry in the Veiko Õunpuu-directed drama ''Roukli'', starring

Taavi Eelmaa Taavi Eelmaa (born 15 June 1971) is an Estonian stage and film actor. Biography Career Born and raised in Tallinn, he is the son of actor Aleksander Eelmaa and Reet Eelmaa. Taavi Eelmaa began studies at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre, ...

. In 2019, he appeared in the role of Commander Rebane in the Miguel Llansó-directed English language absurdist action comedy/sci-fi film ''Jesus Shows You the Way to the Highway''. In 2009, he appeared as Käbi in the

ETV ETV may stand for: Television * e.tv, a South African terrestrial television channel * Educational Television (Hong Kong), a television series * Educational television, the use of television in education * Enhanced TV, an interactive television ap ...

twelve-part television mini-series '' Tuulepealne maa'', which follows the pre-World War II

history of Estonia The history of Estonia forms a part of the history of Europe. Humans settled in the region of Estonia near the end of the last glacial era, beginning from around 8500 BC. Ancient Estonia: pre-history Mesolithic Period The region has been ...

; its birth as a country, the

Estonian War of Independence The Estonian War of Independence ( et, Vabadussõda, literally "Freedom War"), also known as the Estonian Liberation War, was a defensive campaign of the Estonian Army and its allies, most notably the United Kingdom, against the Bolshevik westw ...

, post-war life throughout 1920 up to 1941 and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. He has also made appearances as Sten in the popular TV3 crime-comedy series ''

Kättemaksukontor ''Kättemaksukontor'' (English: ''Revenge Office'') is an Estonian comedy-crime television series. In the series, a group of women have the organization called "Kättemaksukontor". This organization helps to solve murder cases for the police. The ...

'' in 2009. In 2016, the Estonian Film Institute and the Cultural Endowment of Estonia granted Lagle

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists ...

120,000 to direct his first feature film, ''Portugal''; based on a screenplay written by Lagle and starring

Mirtel Pohla Mirtel Pohla (born 28 January 1982) is an Estonian stage, film and television actress. Early life and education Mirtel Pohla was born in Tartu. She attended secondary school at the Tartu Karlova Gümnaasium, graduating in 2000. Afterward, she app ...

and Jarmo Reha.ERR.ee
''Algavad Lauri Lagle esimese mängufilmi "Portugal" võtted.'' 6 July 2016. Retrieved 4 December 2016.

Personal life

Lagle is in a romantic relationship with artist and graphic designer Eliise Raadik. The couple have a daughter, born on 12 October 2018.

Acknowledgments

*Käsu Ants, Estonian Drama Theatre stage director Colleague Award (2009) *Estonian Theatre Critics and Researchers' award for Good Theatre (2012) *Best Actor award, 22nd

(2014) * (2017)

References

External links

* *Lauri Lagle a
Draamamaa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lagle, Lauri 1981 births Living people Estonian male stage actors Estonian male film actors Estonian male television actors Estonian screenwriters Estonian film directors 21st-century Estonian male actors Male actors from Tallinn Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre alumni