Algusjärk – võrdluste vajadus
Initial Phase: Need of Comparisons

Summary/Abstract: The article, based on a conference report on the occasion of the 140th anniversary of native Estonian theatre, treats its initial and still amateur phase (1870–1906). The facts of those humble beginnings are already pretty well known; what we need now is a wider framework of comparison. It was a time when tremendous social and cultural changes rushed the Estonian population from half-medieval conditions into modernity; it was also the time of an extraordinary burst in European drama. These factors quickened the spread of theatrical activities among Estonians, and in a way the naïve exoticism of the popular performances of the period reflected an opening-up of the world. The nearest comparison here is the development of Latvian theatre. While exhibiting many common features it also shows some differences. notably, the beginning of the new century, a time when realism was established in Estonian theatre, saw in Latvia a return of romantic mythological and historical plays, which created a much stronger tradition of verse drama. The period also demands a constant and meticulous comparison with the activities of Baltic German theatre. such comparisons often reveal wider patterns, but they also bring out the role of casual factors and individual personalities, thus keeping us from developing too deterministic ideas.

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