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42-536: The Latvian National Opera and Ballet ( LNOB ) is an opera house and opera company at Aspazijas boulevard 3 in Riga . Its repertoire includes performances of opera and ballet presented during the season which lasts from mid-September to the end of May. During a typical season, LNOB presents almost 200 performances, including, on average, 6 new productions. The largest is the Great Hall which houses 946 seats, while

84-442: A choir and a ballet group, the latter of which was initially closely tied to Russian Ballet traditions since the first ballet dancers and teachers were hired from Russia. 56°57′19″N 24°06′17″E  /  56.95528°N 24.10472°E  / 56.95528; 24.10472 Opera house While some venues are constructed specifically for operas, other opera houses are part of larger performing arts centers. Indeed,

126-683: A concert on 22 December 2009, and its centenary with two gala concerts on 16 and 17 November 2018. Since 1998 the Riga Opera Festival is held at the opera house. Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic the Opera Theatre was closed and reopened multiple times in 2020 whilst making some productions available for online streaming. The well known Richard Wagner was working at the Riga City Theatre from 1837 to 1839. It

168-654: A more popular and intimate aspect (see, for example, Adam de la Halle 's Jeu de Robin et Marion ("Play of Robin and Marion"), in the 13th century). At the beginning of the 17th century, in Italy, singing underwent yet another renewal, with the emergence of Baroque art at the height of the Renaissance . Italy continues to have many working opera houses, such as the Teatro Massimo in Palermo (the biggest in

210-451: A publicly supported system. Early United States opera houses served a variety of functions in towns and cities, hosting community dances, fairs, plays, and vaudeville shows as well as operas and other musical events. In the 2000s, most opera and theatre companies are supported by funds from a combination of government and institutional grants , ticket sales, and private donations. In the 19th-century United States, many theaters were given

252-575: A symphony orchestra of 24 musicians. Conrad Feige who staged productions not only in Riga but also in St. Petersburg , Reval (Tallinn) and Dorpat (Tartu) , was invited to fill the posts of concert master and conductor. When in 1788 von Vietinghoff moved to St. Petersburg an actor by the name of Meierer took over the position. In 1815 the Musse Society ( die Gesellschaft der Musse ) bought the building from

294-473: Is Edmunds Freibergs The building is a combination of style; the facade has both eclectic and baroque features as well as elements of Art Nouveau , which was extremely popular in Riga at the time. The interior is very functional, but in the various ornaments, you can find elements of classicism . There are three halls in the theatre: the Great Hall (with 750 seats), the Actors Hall (with, depending on

336-663: Is Mārtiņš Ozoliņš who is also an associate professor at the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music . The artistic director since 1993 is Aivars Leimanis . The origins of the Latvian National Opera and Ballet stem back to 1782 when the Riga City Theatre ( Rigaer Stadttheater ) a.k.a. the Musse Building was opened. It was designed by Christoph Haberland and housed a total of 500 seats. Its director Otto Hermann von Vietinghoff personally funded

378-459: Is one of the leading professional theatres in Latvia . The building is in the eclectic style and is an architectural and artistic monument. The country of Latvia was proclaimed in this building in the year 1918. On 23 February 2002, the theatre celebrated its 100th anniversary. The director of National Theatre of Latvia since 2006 has been Ojārs Rubenis. The mission of Latvia's National Theatre

420-481: Is the period when he was starting to compose his third opera Rienzi . More recently Andris Nelsons was appointed to the post of chief conductor from 2003 to 2007. Nelsons is a regular conductor of the world's top orchestras. Additionally, multiple world famous opera singers have started their careers at this opera house. A prime example is the mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča as well as the soprano Kristine Opolais . The opera house has undertaken guest performances at

462-426: Is to be the centre of national culture and art with the goal of introducing the art of theatre and current events in culture, through national values, to an even larger part of society. The National Theatre's vision for the future is to theatrically concentrate theatre's, art's and culture's most valuable pieces, by regularly introducing Latvian classics, original work, foreign theatre experience and current events to

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504-687: The Hongkong festival , Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux in France, Teatro Massimo Bellini in Italy, Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Luxembourg Opera Theatre etc. The orchestra consists of more than 100 players. Many of them have been recognized as soloists or together as a chamber music ensemble. More than 250 performances are conducted during a typical season. The repertoire consists of more than 50 operas and ballets ranging from Baroque to contemporary classical music styles. The opera house, since 1918, employs

546-579: The biblical Book of Daniel , deals with Israel's captivity in Babylon . The play was written and performed by students of the Episcopal School of Beauvais , located in northern France. In the 15th century, sung theater of a religious nature found a special place in the mystery plays performed on cathedral squares. As before, they dealt with sacred subjects, but they were not about worship per se. Secular musical theater also existed, but had

588-495: The 1930s, 2 December was celebrated as the anniversary of the Latvian National Opera (LNO), but under the Soviet occupation, the date was 23 January. In the years 1920–1940, the Latvian National Opera played a central role in Riga's musical life. Every year, 8 new productions premiered and, starting with a production of a ballet by Peter Ludwig Hertel , ballets were also staged. In 20 years, more than 300 performances took place, with

630-565: The Art department of the Ministry of Education. After the Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940 , the name of the theatre was deemed too nationalistic, so it was renamed to Riga's Dramatic Theatre ( Rīgas Drāmas teātris ), only to restore the previous name in 1988, 3 years before Latvia regained its independence. The current managing director of the theatre is Ojārs Rubenis and the artistic director

672-642: The City of Riga under German occupation – received the following letter of gratitude: " Under [his] aegis, the Latvian theatre received the second theatre building with the same rights as pertain to the German theatre in the first building. [..] Not only drama performances took place, there were also some rehearsals of the Latvian Opera ". The Latvian Opera conducted performances during the first half of 1918 in

714-492: The Education Commissariat's Art Department – gave an order for Latvju opera to move to the former Stadttheater and the company did so on 23 January 1919. On this day a performance of the 15 October 1918, production of The Flying Dutchman took place in the new location. An important role in the move was played by Teodors Reiters, chief conductor of Latvju opera since September 1918. In January 1919, he became

756-555: The First World War. Jāzeps Vītols was a seminal figure in the development of Latvian opera and the first director of Latvju opera , holding the post until the end of December 1918. In his memoir, Vītols gives a detailed description of the formation of Latvju opera in the summer of 1918. After the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty was signed in 1918 many evacuees could return to Riga. On 15 September 1918,

798-478: The German company in the theatre took place on 1 January 1919. The next afternoon, the building's annex burnt down, which was fully restored only in 1922. On 27 December 1912, the Latvian Opera ( Latviešu opera ), directed by Pāvuls Jurjāns (1866–1948), began performing in the auditorium of the Latvian Society House with a production of Pyotr Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin . Some of the company spent

840-627: The Republic of Latvia . Just as under the Bolsheviks, the company was lawfully guaranteed a building, status of the national opera, and state financing. On 2 December, a performance of Richard Wagner's Tannhäuser took place. It had premiered in Latvia already on 10 May 1919, under the direction of Dmitry Arbenin and conductor Teodors Reiters, when it was the Opera of Soviet Latvia. Until the end of

882-418: The abandonment of ancient theaters, which were transformed into gigantic stone quarries , like many other ancient buildings, both public or private. Music still had its place in worship. It continued to bring audiences together, but its content was completely renewed. The Jeu de Daniel ("Play of Daniel") was a sung play, characteristic of the medieval Renaissance of the 12th century . The subject, taken from

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924-687: The average annual audience of 220,000. In 1940 when the Soviet Union occupied Latvia the name of the theatre was changed to the "Opera and Ballet Theatre of the Latvian SSR". Under the Nazi German occupation (1941–1944), it became the Riga Opera Theatre, only to revert to the name given in 1940 when Soviet troops re-occupied Latvia in 1945. On 24 April 1989, the Opera celebrated its 70th anniversary and changed its name back to

966-614: The country), the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples and the Teatro alla Scala in Milan . The Teatro San Cassiano in Venice was the world's first public opera house, inaugurated as such in 1637. In the 17th and 18th centuries, opera houses were often financed by rulers, nobles, and wealthy people who used patronage of the arts to endorse their political ambition and social position. There

1008-694: The director of the Opera. On 9 February 1919, the Bolshevik government issued a decree whereby the Opera was nationalized to become the Opera of Soviet Latvia and to be financed from the state budget. After the Stučka government was overthrown, the company returned to its original name Latvju opera .. On 23 September 1919, the Regulation "On the National Opera" was adopted by the Cabinet of Ministers of

1050-655: The most valuable foreign plays, as well as an opportunity to be a part of some of the best of the National Theatre's plays that are in the international circle. The Latvian National Theatre is situated in the centre of Latvia's capital city Riga , on the bank of the Riga Canal. Located just outside the Old Town, it stands in a park where the Citadel used to be. In 1897 Riga ’s city council decided that it

1092-431: The name "opera house", even ones where opera was seldom if ever performed. Opera was viewed as a more respectable art form than theater ; calling a local theater an "opera house" therefore served to elevate it and overcome objections from those who found the theater morally objectionable. Notes Sources Latvian National Theatre The Latvian National Theatre ( Latvian : Latvijas Nacionālais teātris )

1134-548: The one from the interwar period. After the season finale with Giuseppe Verdi's Un ballo in maschera in 1990 reconstruction work was started on the building with a reopening in 1995. The opera company returned to its home stage with a production of the opera Uguns un Nakts by Jānis Mediņš . In 2001, construction work on a complex of annexes was completed, providing audiences with the New Hall that can seat 300 people. The Latvian National Opera celebrated its 90th anniversary with

1176-621: The opening concert took place and on 15 October 1918, Richard Wagner's The Flying Dutchman was performed, with Teodors Reiters as the conductor. On 19 November, The Flying Dutchman was performed without changing the decorations from the previous night, when the Declaration of Sovereignty of the Republic of Latvia was adopted under solemn circumstances. After the Bolsheviks led by Pyotr Ivanovich Stuchka took power in early 1919 establishing Soviet rule in Latvia, Andrejs Upīts – Head of

1218-559: The relationship of consonance that it will have with one of these vases." The odeon built by Pericles near the Theater of Dionysus in Athens was, according to the Suda , intended for the rehearsal of music that was to be sung in the grand theater or, according to Plutarch , for the jury to audition musicians competing for a prize. Ancient theaters provided the ideal conditions, but it

1260-656: The same premises which now house the Latvian National Theatre where another opera company with a slightly different name ( Latvju opera ) began its activities in autumn of that year. The initiative of the Latvju opera originated in Dorpat in the society named Apgāda organized by lawyer Andrejs Frīdenbergs. Organizational work continued in St Petersburg to where many Latvian artists had evacuated during

1302-598: The smaller ones – the New Hall, the Dress Circle Hall (Beletāžas zāle ) and the Red Hall – have a maximum seating capacity of 338, 170 and 100 respectively. LNOB employs a total of approximately 600 people. The building is located on the bank of the Riga Canal, near the Freedom Monument . As of 5 November 2019, the chairman of the board is Egils Siliņš , an opera singer. The chief conductor since 2013

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1344-409: The term opera house is often used as a term of prestige for any large performing arts center. Based on Aristoxenus 's musical system, and paying homage to the architects of ancient Greek theater , Vitruvius described, in the 1st century BC, in his treatise De architectura , the ideal acoustics of theaters. He explained the use of brazen vases that Mummius had brought to Rome after having had

1386-446: The theater of Corinth demolished, and as they were probably used in the Theater of Pompey . As wooden theaters were naturally sonorous, these vases, placed between the seats on the stands, served as resonators in the stone buildings: "By means of this arrangement, the voice, which will come from the stage as from a center, will extend in circles, will strike in the cavities of the vases, and will be made stronger and clearer, according to

1428-422: The viewer. There are also plans to include the most interesting and the most talented professionals, continue the development of theatre as an art form, as well as strengthen the collaboration between theatres and other cultural organizations. The guidelines for the National Theatre's development ensure the chance for the viewer to be introduced to all the events happening in the life of theatre in Latvia and with

1470-480: The von Vietinghoff family. Richard Wagner was the Kapellmeister of the theatre from 1837 to 1839. In the period of 1860–1863 a new Riga City Theatre building was constructed with almost 3000 seats. The first productions were Friedrich Schiller 's Wallenstein's Camp and Ludwig van Beethoven 's Fidelio . On 14 June 1882, the theatre burnt down after which only the outer walls had remained. The building

1512-506: The years of the First World War in Riga, but some evacuated to Russia. Under Jurjāns, the Latvian Opera resumed its activities in Riga in January 1918, with a production of Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata and several operettas: Johann Strauss Jr's Die Fledermaus , Franz Lehár 's The Merry Widow , Rudolf Dellinger 's Don Cesar and Johann Strauss II 's The Gypsy Baron ( Der Zigeunerbaron ). In August 1918, Hauptmann Paul Hopf – Head of

1554-519: Was Russian language theatre, by 1917 Riga Latvian Society was renting the premises to hold plays in Latvian. During the First World War the theatre was evacuated, but by 1918 it was already back in business, and on 15 October staged Richard Wagner 's The Flying Dutchman . Just over a month later, Latvia declared its independence, with the declaration being read from the theatre's stage. The only remaining photograph from this historic event

1596-785: Was no opera house in London when Henry Purcell was composing and the first opera house in Germany, the Oper am Gänsemarkt , was built in Hamburg in 1678, followed by the Oper am Brühl in Leipzig in 1693, and the Opernhaus vorm Salztor in Naumburg in 1701. With the rise of bourgeois and capitalist social forms in the 19th century, European culture moved away from its patronage system to

1638-669: Was not enough to have just one theatre in Riga. Riga’s first theatre was the German Theatre, currently the Opera House . A competition was held to choose the design of the new building. The Augusts Reinbergs project "Dum spiro, spero" ("While I breathe, I hope") won and construction began, mainly funded by local Russian merchants and some nobility. The theatre was opened to the public on 14 September 1902 as Riga's Second (Russian) theatre ( Rīgas 2. pilsētas (krievu) teātris ) and held both theatre and opera performances. Although this

1680-579: Was not yet time for opera: the aim was to worship the deities, not to venerate the muses . The subject was religious, it was accompanied by singing and instrumental music. Worship was public, and the audience was made up of citizens as well as other categories of the population. Four centuries later, the Church abandoned spectacles as practiced in Antiquity. Histrions , representative of Greco-Roman civilization , gradually disappeared. The Middle Ages saw

1722-631: Was renovated from 1882 to 1887 following a design by the city's chief architect Reinhold Schmaeling . The theatre was closed for the German company during World War I . Until 1915 the Riga Imperial Music School used the building for its concerts. During the 1916–1917 season, Angarov and Rudin's Russian drama company performed there, with the theatre being renamed as the German City Theater in Riga ( Deutsches Stadt-Theater in Riga ) on 29 September. The last performance of

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1764-557: Was taken in the theatre's main hall. In 1919, during a brief period of Bolshevik rule, the makeshift government named it the Workers’ Theatre ( Strādnieku teātris ), but it became the Latvian National Theatre soon after and on 30 November the official opening took place with a staging of Rūdolfs Blaumanis "Ugunī" ("In Fire"). The creative program was authored by Jānis Akurāters , a Latvian writer, then head of

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