“The history of Europe – told by its theatres” was a touring exhibition, created by six theatre museums from six countries. The exhibition was on show from 2015 to 2018 in Warsaw, Copenhagen, Vienna, Munich, Ljubljana, Hanau, London, and Bellinzona. With more than 250 exhibits, the exhibition illustrates how the history of Europe from antiquity to the present is mirrored in the performances and the theatre buildings of the different eras. The focus is therefore not on battles or political power play, but on mutual influences across all borders and the development of society – all that has shaped Europe and continues to shape it.  

In a colourful design, reminiscent of the colours in the flags of European countries, the  exhibition presents nine topical chapters, entitled: “Mediterranean Experience”, “Religious Impact”, “Changing Society – Changing Building”, “Aesthetics and Technology”, “The Nation”, “Fire!”, “Crossing Borders”, “War”, “Democracy”. 

The exhibition aims to inspire the visitor and invites him to connect the past and present on display with the possible future. And obviously, topics like “Changing Society”, “Religious Impact”, “Democracy” are immediately relevant today and to our future.

It was the first time that a group of museums created an exhibition as team, each proposing well-chosen exhibits from its own and other collection(s) and discussing all proposals with the colleagues from the partner museums. The result is also a panorama of European theatre collections.

The participating museums were: Teatermuseet i Hofteatret, Copenhagen / Slovenski Gledališki Inštitut, Ljubljana / Victoria and Albert Museum, Theatre & Performance Department, London / Deutsches Theatermuseum, Munich / Theatermuseum, Vienna / Teatr Wielki - Opera Narodowa - Muzeum Teatralne, Warsaw

The exhibition was organized by PERSPECTIV as part of the European Route of Historic Theatres and supported by the Culture Programme of the European Union. 

Have a look at the exhibition magazine here (7.5 MB).

And find the entire exhibition on the Internet: www.thoetbit.eu