The history of the Croatian National Theatre in Split is quite long and complex. The theatre was built as the municipal theatre of the city of Split during the reign of Mayor G. Bulat in 1893. The building was designed by local architects. At the time, the theatre was one of the largest in South-Eastern Europe. It seated 1,000 people at a time, out of Split's population of 16,000. The building was originally used for theatre productions by visiting companies, mostly Italian, as there was no drama company in the city until the 19th century.
The first professional theatre company appeared in 1920, when the theatre building was first reconstructed and the theatre was renamed "National Theatre of Dalmatia". In 1928, during the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, the theatre was merged with the National Theatre of Sarajevo and renamed "National Theatre for Western Regions". In the same year, the professional ensemble of actors was disbanded by the authorities. However, a group of artists led by Ivo Tijardović formed the Split Theatre Society, which continued to stage operas and operettas in 1930.
In 1940, the theatre experienced a brief period of revival, adopting its current name and recruiting opera, ballet and drama companies for the first time. But the revival was short-lived, as the theatre was closed again in 1941 during the Italian occupation of World War II, when parts of southern Croatia were incorporated into the military governorship of Dalmatia. At the end of the war, the theatre was rebuilt and its first season was opened in September 1945.
The theatre is still in operation to this day. However, in 1970, the theatre was completely destroyed in a fire. It was rebuilt only in 1980.
Nowadays, the Croatian National Theatre shows about 300 performances a year, hosting about 120,000 spectators. It hosts about 20-40 opera, ballet and drama productions a year, as well as many symphony concerts. The theatre has been called "The first theatre house in Dalmatia" and "one of the largest and oldest theatre houses in the Mediterranean".
In addition to its regular repertoire, the Croatian National Theatre holds two long-running festivals every year: the Split Summer Festival and the Marulić Days.
The Summer Festival was founded in 1954 and is the second oldest performing arts festival in the country. The festival usually lasts about 30 days from mid-July to mid-August and includes a huge variety of events: open-air jazz, classical music concerts, art exhibitions, theatre performances in squares, contemporary dance shows, etc.
The festival "Marulić Days" was established in 1991 on the 490th anniversary of the publication of Judith, one of the most important literary works, which was written by M. Marulić in the 16th century. The week-long festival took place in April, showcasing the best achievements of Croatian dramaturgy of the previous year.
