Kaarel Ird ja Vanemuine nõukogude kultuuripoliitika kontekstis
Kaarel Ird and Vanemuine in the context of Soviet cultural policy

Summary/Abstract: This article looks at the work and various management strategies of the long-term director of Vanemuine Theatre Kaarel Ird (1909–1986). The article is largely based on materials from the Cultural History Archives of the Estonian Literary Museum (EKM EKLA, f 307). Ird headed the Vanemuine Theatre for about 40 years (1940–1986, with brief hiatuses) and his file includes a remarkable number of instructions issued to theatres by the Party and government authorities during those times. The­atres as institutions of ideological work were under strict multilevel control in the Soviet Union; the regime demanded that theatres celebrate a variety of state holidays, such as the anniversary of the October Revolution, Lenin’s birthday, etc.Ird took it upon himself as a theatre director to make Vanemuine famous all over the Soviet Union, and then also internationally. This took successful tours in Moscow and Leningrad, organization of All-Union seminars at Vanemuine, as well as establishing friendly relations with theatres abroad. Ird had a wide network of acquaintances, including both Estonian and Soviet stage directors, dramatic theorists and theatre critics, as well as cultural functionaries. He would often arrange matters through Moscow. When it came to the celebration of state holidays, one of his strategies was to overshadow them; that is, he made sure that the state holidays would be outmatched by ostentatious celebrations of national cultural importance (e.g. the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution vs the opening of Vanemuine Theatre’s new building in 1967; Lenin 100 vs Vanemuine 100). As for repertoire, he made an effort to stage as many Estonian original plays as possible by first demon­strating to officials in Moscow that these were contemporary Soviet plays – the re­commended percentage of which was quite high. So-called trick productions – the staging of works by authors holding high positions in Moscow (e.g. Tikhon Khrennikov) – were another strategic device. Schooling the next generation (organizing studios, supporting and defending young colleagues) and working with the audience (conferences for theatre-goers, audience surveys) were considered essential. All in all, Ird was able to outmaneuver the Soviet cultural policy in a number of ways.

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