There were three national theatres in Stanislaviv between the wars - Ukrainian, Jewish and Polish. The musical-drama theatre building has been preserved to this day. Here is its history.

Stanislaviv theatre
In interwar Stanislavov there were three national theatres: the professional, Ukrainian Ivan Tobilevych Theatre; the amateur, Jewish Dramatic Theatre named after Abraham Goldfaden; and the Polish, amateur Dramatic Theatre named after Aleksander Fredro. The latter, together with the operetta department of the Stanislaw Moniuszko Musical Society (founded in 1871), merged in 1928 to form the Stanislaw Moniuszko amateur musical-dramatic Pokucko-Podolski Theatre. In 1931, the institution was transformed into a professional stage under the direction of Zuzanna Lozinska, an actress and director. The opening ceremony took place on 30 September 1933. By the outbreak of war, the theatre (which functioned under the name of Teatr Małopolski in its final period of activity) had given over 4200 performances, three quarters of which were in small towns in the provinces of Stanislawow, Ternopil and Lwow.

Performances were held on Mickiewicz Square (now Lesia Kurbas Street) in the theatre hall of the Stanislav Moniuszko Music Society building. The building was constructed in 1891 thanks to the efforts of the long-standing president of the society, Bolesław Szamejt. The two-storey edifice with a crowning dome in the corner was designed by a graduate of the Lviv Polytechnic, Józef Łapicki (1851-after 1914), in the then commonly used Neo-Renaissance style.

It was the only permanent theatre building in a provincial Galician town, and also housed the town's orchestra, choir and music school. The ambition of the cultural elite of interwar Stanislavov was to have a magnificent theatre building with modern architecture. Therefore, in the 1920s, the Music Society managing the building decided to rebuild the theatre in a modern and functional style.

Reconstruction of the Stanisław Moniuszko Theatre building
The architectural design was entrusted to Stanislav Trela, the most prominent representative of the architectural community in Stanislavov at that time, the author of the city's largest monumental buildings, including the Town Hall and the "Ton " cinema . The construction work was carried out in 1928-1929. The construction manager was Trela, with whom the then president of the Music Society - Leon Kuźmiński - cooperated.

The original cost of the reconstruction was estimated at 120,000 zloty, and the interior decoration at 40,000 zloty. A mortgage loan from Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego was obtained for the investment. In the course of the works, the costs rose steadily, as a consequence of unforeseen additional works, necessary for technical reasons. In the end, the cost of the reconstruction exceeded PLN 280,000. Part of it was covered by donations from the Stanislawski society, and a national contribution campaign was also undertaken.

As it was written in the report on the activities of the Music Society, "thanks to a very ingenious solution to the plan, worked out by WP inż. arch. Stanisław Trela, we were able to adapt the purpose of the building to the needs of a big-city theatre. The solution to the plan was to make an architecturally beautiful sanctuary of the arts, while using only the most economical and necessary demolition or dismantling of the existing very thick walls".

The Stanisław Moniuszko Theatre - architecture
The Stanislaw Moniuszko Theatre is an important construction, if only because it is one of very few theatrical buildings constructed in interwar Poland. The building became a symbol of modern trends in the architecture of Stanislavov in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Stanisław Trela, as a pupil of the eminent Lvov architect Professor Witold Minkiewicz, was a proponent of modern structures and forms, though usually not devoid of references to tradition.

In this case, he strove to achieve a modern effect, but at the same time kept in mind the investor's modest financial capabilities. Therefore, he decided on a simple, cubic body, devoid of historicising ornaments, and at the same time diversified despite the austerity of form. The dynamic, rounded corner with its long, surrounding balcony and steel balustrade are harbingers of the naval style. The architect's expressionistic tastes are also evident in the modest decoration. The central part was flanked by insets in white plaster in the form of sharp-edged vertical grooves.

The realisation gained recognition not only for its architectural form, but also for its functional solution. Behind the entrance, there was a circular vestibule with ticket counters on both sides and three exits to the staircases (two of which had two-metre-wide terraced stairs planned by the architect). Dressing rooms were placed between the staircases, open to the foyer space that surrounded the theatre hall and allowed free access to all seats. The auditorium with seats on the ground floor, balconies and boxes was shaped like an amphitheatre. In addition, new chairs, a curtain, dressing tables with movable mirrors and washbasins and a fixed horizon on the stage were made. It was also equipped with iron lifts for the decorations, electric ramps and fire protection equipment. In addition to the theatre facilities, rooms for a music conservatory were planned in the building.

Today, the preserved building serves as the Ivano-Frankivsk regional philharmonic hall.