World Theatre Day
Next: March 27, 2027
The house lights dim, the world gathers.
The story
Where it comes from
World Theatre Day was created by the International Theatre Institute and first held on 27 March 1962, the opening night of the 'Theatre of Nations' season in Paris. Every year since, the ITI has invited a theatre figure of world stature to write an International Message on theatre and a culture of peace. The first was written by the French writer and filmmaker Jean Cocteau, who answered the claim that machines had killed the stage: 'If the Theatre is dead, Long Live the Theatre.'
How it's celebrated
The year's message is translated into many languages and shared by theatres, drama schools and companies around the world, which use the day to promote their work and remind people why live performance matters. The ITI's simplest aim is to enjoy the art form for its own sake, so the best way to join in is to buy a ticket, take a friend, and sit together in the dark while the play begins.
Did you know
- The playwright Arthur Miller wrote the second message, in 1963, and the actors Laurence Olivier and Jean-Louis Barrault shared the third.
- Asian authors of the message include South Korea's Kim Jeong-ok in 1997 and India's Girish Karnad in 2002.
- The International Theatre Institute now has its headquarters in Shanghai, as well as an office at UNESCO in Paris.
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