The history of the Cēsis theatre dates back to 1875, when the first Latvian theatre performance took place in the town – the German citizens’ club “Bürger Muse” hosted the troupe of Adolfs Alunāns with the play “Lakstīgala un bratļa meita” by R. Hāns and “Žūpa Bērtuli” by L. Holberg. This event so inspired the local Cēsis people that at the end of the same year a dramatic circle was established in the newly founded Charity Society, which in 1876 was officially named the Cēsis Theatre.
The first theatre managers were Kārlis Mačernieks (pseudonym Reķu Viesonis) and Pēteris Liepiņš-Austriņš, who started with Ādolfs Alunāns’ play “Pašu audzināts”. Under their leadership, the theatre flourished rapidly, with monthly guest nights featuring theatre performances or concerts, and soon the company began to stage increasingly complex works.
In 1883, a troupe of young actors dared to stage the difficult romantic play “Preciosa” by Pius Alexander Wolff with music by C. M. Weber, and an even bolder step was the fantastic comedy “The Wastrel” by Ferdinand Raimund with many stage effects – fires, water floods, flying through the air and transformations. The performance on 31 March 1885 was a great surprise and delight for the people of Cesis, and it was the first Latvian-language play to be staged in Cesis, beating even the Riga Latvian Theatre by two weeks!
As the theatre’s most popular performances became more and more grandiose, the Charity Society’s premises at 3 Rīgas iela became too cramped, so in 1884 the foundation stone was laid for the Society’s new building at 3 Jaunā iela (now 3 Piebalgas iela). This stately two-storey brick building was constructed by the well-known master builder Jānis Meņģels and was ready by the end of 1885. On 27 October 1885, on the occasion of the opening of the house, the opera “Life for the Tsar” (“Ivan Susanin”) by M. Glinka was performed in Latvian, with the main roles played by P. Liepiņš-Austriņš, Veronika von Landovska, Konstance Berga-Burtniece and K. Mačernieks.
Cēsis Theatre became so well known that it gave guest performances not only in the immediate area, but also in Valka, Jelgava, Liepāja and elsewhere. Literary scholar T. Šverste wrote: “No provincial theatre is as admired as the Cēsis Theatre. The theatre’s hostess, the Cēsis Benevolent Society, is praised from all sides, both by the managers and the actors. The whole of Latvia looked up to it, took many things as an example.”
In 1889, the regional Song Festival was held in Cēsis as an echo of the 3rd General Latvian Singing Festival, and the concerts were followed by performances of plays in several scenes. In 1890, the theatre staged the first Latvian performance of the play “At the Latvian Chest” by Edvardas Treimāns-Zvārgulis.
Unfortunately, the management of the Society lacked financial skills and in 1891, on the orders of the owner of Cesis Castle, Count Sievers, and the police, the house became the property of Jānis Menģelis for debts, and in 1892 the Charity Society itself was closed down and the theatre was left without a stage. In order to preserve cultural life, other solutions were used – the work of the Society was continued by Ev. The Organ Building Committee of the Lutheran Church used the premises of the Cēsis Men’s Singing Society at 24 Rīgas iela.
In 1899 the Cēsis Visiting Society was founded, and in 1900 it moved to a house at 13 Vaļņu Street built by the master builder Pēters Pētersons, with a large stage and auxiliary rooms suitable for theatre. The opening ceremony was attended by writers Augusts Deglavs and Reinis Kaudzīte, and the Cēsis Theatre performed H. Neierts’ play “The Shepherd’s Daughter”.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the theatre became an important voice of public opinion – in 1906 Jukums Palevičius “play ‘Purvā’ was performed in Cēsis, which openly spoke out against tsarism and alarmed the audience. The authorities banned the planned repetition of the play. In October of the same year, the play ‘The Pale of the Russian Theatre’ by Ā. Alunāns” drama in verse “Our Ancestors”, which, according to the newspaper “Balss”, was well attended, “although there were no Germans or Germans of willow for an understandable reason”.
In the 1920s and 1930s, the Cēsis theatre experienced both boom and decline. After the restoration of the Guest Society House in 1923, the theatre resumed its work with Aspazija’s play “The Silver Shiner”. The repertoire included Latvian classics – A. Alunāns, A. Brigadere, R. Blaumanis, Aspazija, Rainis, J. Akuraters, A. Upīts, as well as the pearls of world drama – Shakespeare, Schiller, Ibsen, Goldoni, Bomarshe. Up to 25 performances per season.
However, in 1933, after the performance of Blaumanis’ The Evil Spirit, critical reviews also appeared, and several years were described as a period of the theatre’s decline. In 1936, the cultural life of the inhabitants of Cēsis took on a new lease of life when the 10th Cēsis Guards Regiment, under the direction of the director of the Zemnieku Drama Theatre, Fričs Rode, began to organise drama courses. On 4 April of the same year, the “new Cēsis theatre” opened its curtain with the stage play “Bierantos” by Līgotņu Jēkabs, with the participation of both former theatre actors and newcomers.
A significant event in the cultural life of Cesis was the grand open-air performance of Alexander Greene’s “The Flag Seekers” in the summer of 1937, which featured almost 400 actors and extras, and an audience of more than 3000 – a full castle park!
The theatre continued to operate during the Second World War. In 1940, in preparation for the Decade in Moscow, the theatre staged Blaumanis’s “Fire” and began staging “The Wailing Woman”, but this work was interrupted by the war. 1941.-1942. At the turn of the century, the Cēsis Drama Ensemble “Atpūta un dzīvotprieks” (Rest and Joy) of the Central Union of Trade Unions (ACS) was founded, and in January 1943 it was reorganised into the independent Cēsis Theatre. Kārlis Veilands, a teacher at the Cēsis Music School, became the director of the theatre.
During the war, several professional actors from Riga – Harijs Misiņš, Ludvigs Bars, Atis Krauklītis – came to Cesis and helped to improve the skills of local amateurs. The theatre continued to be active until the end of the war, preserving the cultural life of Cesis even in the most difficult times.
The materials used for the description are:
Elīna Riemere, research “The History of Cēsis Theatre”
Collections of Cēsis Castle Museum and Central Library