Suchergebnisse

The article is analysing three productions from Estonia 100 theatre series "Tale of the Century" (Sajandi lugu): "The Landlady of Raven Stone" (Kaarnakivi perenaine), "Estonian History. A Nation Born of Shock" (Eesti ajalugu. Ehmatusest sündinud rahvas) and "Will Be / Will Not Be. Estonia in 100 Years" (Tuleb / Ei tule. Eesti 100 aasta pärast). These three productions had a common feature: they presented an al- ternate history, using either mytho-historic, counterfactual or utopian approach in interpreting Estonian history. The main aim is to demonstrate, how poetics of alter- nate history or utopia is explicitly or implicitly also building up politics of the future, depriving from victimisation and empowering subjectivity and agency. Alternate histories create space for opportunities where different stories – both factual, personal and fictional – can be realized. Estonian theatre makers and audi- ences seem not need any more precise imitations or reconstruction of history but reflections from different point of views and with different degrees of authenticity that help them to remember and understand the palimpsestic nature of history, the current situation and possible future scenarios.

This article discusses the pros and cons of theatrical mobility, investigating situ- ations where theatre is breaking its traditional practices of being local and urban by becoming mobile, international and rural. The main features in this context are guest performances at home and abroad, the importation of guest directors, performers, designers et cetera, and finally, site-specific and open-air productions. The structure of the analysis is based on these features, partly derived from the historical development of theatre but partly also from the aim of contrary thinking, insisting that contrary to the widespread assumption of nomadism as something indigenous or postmodern, nomadic attitudes can also be detected in quite traditional forms of theatre making and living. While touring at home and abroad provides opportunities for theatre makers to practice nomadic life style, summer theatre creates an opportunity for spectators to experience nomadism in more local spaces. The above mentioned features are analysed in the context of Estonian theatre, drawing occasional parallels with the neighbouring country of Finland. Each section goes through three periods of Estonian theatre history; 1) the period before the Second World War when theatres belonged to societies; 2) the period between 1940 and 1991 when Estonia was a part of the Soviet Union and all theatrical activities were subject to state control; 3) the period of independence and globalization. Since each period had a different imprint on theatrical mobility, the phenomenon will be investigated in relation to the political, social and cultural contexts, using Bruno Latour's concept of actor-network-theory as a methodological tool.

Language used on the stage always bears certain connotations to the identity, ideology and morality of characters, theatre makers and audiences. In my article, I am going to analyse how minority languages have been used or represented in Finnish, Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian theatre though the lens of theatre history. Following books are investigated using content analysis method: The Dynamic World of Finnish Theatre (2006) by S. E. Wilmer and Pirkko Koski, Estonian Theatre (2003) by Jaak Rähesoo, Theatre in Latvia (2012, ed. by Guna Zeltiņa) and Lithuanian Theatre (2009, ed. by Gintaras Aleknonis and Helmutas Šabasevičius).Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are neighbouring countries that have faced diff erent political history: from rather independent Finland to the post- Soviet Baltic countries. Taking this into the consideration, one can detect the disquisition between bi-lingual (Finland, Latvia) and monolingual approaches (Estonia, Lithuania) to theatre history.

Despite the seemingly general agreement that we are still living in a post- orpost-post-modern world andmany contemporary performancesarebased on theprinciplesofpostdramatic theatre, researchers have noticed certain changes in the poetics of theatricallanguage, which havenot, so far, been described and analysed. Thisarticleseeksto search for apoeticsof playing?that isto say, implicit principlesof producingand perceivingcontemporaryperformances (non-mimetic forms of playing are beyond the scope of this investigation).These principles in themselves are not necessarily new or contemporary, although theircombinations often create such an impression. The article consists of three parts. The firstexplores the term 'poetics' and the second the poetics of playing. The final part provides anempirical analysis of an example of the new poetics of playing. The political theatre projectUnified Estonia Assembly developed the structures and strategies of politics and performingarts to their extremes, at the same time creating a powerful representation of political games.By being a kind of exceptional theatrical event, it helped to exemplify how performers caninfluence participants or society and how ambivalence as a strategy can be emphasized incomprehension and social interaction. Thepoeticsof playing in Unified EstoniaAssembly wasbased on fluid conceptions of players, roles and participants, playing and reality, and thisfluidity also created astrongsenseof ambivalenceboth duringtheplayingand afterwards.

The article investigates the construction of transnational Finno-Ugric identity through the theatre festival Mayatul and different performative strategies. This kind of identity construction is investigated through the framework of identity politics and transnationalism. The definition of the Finno-Ugric peoples (Finns, Estonians, Hungarians, Samis, Mordvins, Komi, Udmurts and others) is based foremost on their language kinship. It is believed that similar characteristics of languages and a similar natural environment and climate have shaped the close-to-nature lifestyle and the particular perception of the world shared by the Finno-Ugric peoples.Essential platforms for constructing transnational Finno-Ugric identity are different theatre festivals, among which Mayatul (since 1992) is the most prominent. The majority of productions at the festival are performed in Finno-Ugric languages and interpret the literary texts or folklore of these peoples. However, only a few productions strive for indigenous aesthetics like those of Estonian theatre director Anne Türnpu. The Finno-Ugric peoples' identity is predominantly a minority identity because mostly they represent a small national and language group in a bigger state like Russia, and only Finland and Hungary have enjoyed one hundred years of independence. Nevertheless, all countries and nations embrace smaller ethnic or cultural minorities, thus minority identity is a universal concept. Theatre festivals are able to unite minority identities into larger transnational identites, even when it is just an imagined community.

Terms and organisation of hobby education have changed during different eras in Estonia. Also, hobby education has received varying degrees of public attention in different political systems. The main aim of this research is to discuss the terms, position and organisation of hobby education in the 21st century Estonia. The article is divided into three parts: First, an analysis of the terminology in policy documents related to hobby education; then an overview of the field of Estonian hobby education; and lastly a presentation of the results of a survey among the representatives of Estonian hobby institutions.

This article explores the role of Estonian community houses in supporting sustainable cultural development and the vitality of communities in a turbulent era of global change. It poses the following questions: (1) How do the representatives of community houses perceive their roles and challenges? (2) How does organizational agency and cultural policy (at national and sub-national level) contribute to cultural sustainability in the context of such disruptions? To answer the first question, in 2022 an online questionnaire survey targeting representatives of Estonian community houses was conducted. The article is based on quantitative and qualitative analysis of 126 responses. The second question provides historical, political, and cultural context to address the first. Estonian community houses, numbering 376 in operation today, are a unique network to study. In the nineteenth century, these cultural hubs became the basis for the system of non-formal life-long education, arts and culture, and later regulated and developed within the subnational politics of culture and education in the Estonian nation-state (1918–40), in the Soviet Union (1940–91), and in today's Estonia (1991–2023) as part of the European Union. The COVID-19 pandemic added a new set of disruptions. In this light, the continuity of the functioning of community houses, alongside their ability to adapt, becomes particularly important for both local communities and sustainable cultural development.