National Theatre Mostar
Mostar's repertory theatre of 1949, in the first purpose-built post-war theatre in the country.
The National Theatre in Mostar was founded on 28 November 1949 and gave its first performances in the hall of the Abrasevic workers' society. Its own building opened on 17 November 1951 with a staging of Hasanaginica, and was the first purpose-built theatre put up in Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Second World War. The house has a main stage and a smaller studio space, and works as a repertory company drawing on Bosnian dramatists alongside the wider European canon.
By 1992 the theatre had mounted some 291 productions. During the war the main auditorium sheltered displaced families while the company kept performing on the small stage; the set-building shop was destroyed and the costume workshop badly damaged. The theatre has since rebuilt its repertoire and tours widely within the country, often in co-production with the Croatian National Theatre in Mostar. Each spring it hosts Mostarska liska, an international comedy festival first held in 1991 and revived in 2004.
Highlights
- First purpose-built theatre erected in Bosnia and Herzegovina after 1945
- Opened in 1951 with Hasanaginica, still a signature title
- Host of the annual Mostarska liska international comedy festival
- Main stage and a studio space used for smaller work
