Hager Fikir Theatre ሀገር ፍቅር ቲያትር The Hager Fikir Theatre is a theatre in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It is one of the oldest and foremost theatre in Ethiopian history; hosting as a multipurpose artistic venue for over half decade.
Ethiopian National Theater
The Ethiopian National Theater, which was used to be called the Haile Selassie I Theatre, and which before that has set out to be Cinema Marconi, holds an interesting place in the history of Addis Ababa.
In 1946, the Municipality of Addis Ababa recruited a band with the main objective to play Ethiopian songs by soloists accompanied by a modern orchestra; this was motivated by the influence of western & eastern culture. On the one hand, Ethiopia was not to insulate itself against these trends, on the other, the Ethiopian traditional music should survive. Thus began the process of giving a modern setting to the folk traditions of the country and this in turn prompted the Government to set up a National Theatre. This was an innovation and aimed at preserving folk-music traditions of the country.
At the very center of the capital, the Italians had started to build Cinema Marconi, but they were expelled when it was only half completed. It became a dumping place for garbage. In 1955 the building was completed for the celebrations of the Silver Jubilee of the coronation of His Imperial Majesty. The building rose from a ramshackle hall, which could seat some three hundred and fifty people or so to an imposing edifice which could seat an audience of 1260
